Much like its predecessor reviewed yesterday, Ignorance is Strength manages to feel extremely timely in a world that is at times teetering on the edge of being a surveillance state in some regions. Throw in the fact that as a data collector working for the state, you have a fair amount of power you could opt to exercise in the narrative you create through the information you choose to hold back or pass along. This mix of Big Brother concepts and the outsized power that can be wielded by faceless bureaucrats does once again make for an interesting backdrop.

With a storyline playing out roughly concurrently with the previous game, but going down a different rabbit hole, your focus again will be on poring through official documents, social media, and materials that perhaps you shouldn’t have access to in search of answers to a pressing crisis. One element that has been added that stood out to me, was how on top of you needing to simply be selective in what you choose to pass along, you’ll now also need to be mindful with regards to time. That will mean trying to give good information a sort of rank, being sure to focus on passing through the highest value information, not just what may be accurate. Of course, while the interface continues to at least be passable, and some attempts were made to streamline some tasks a little, I don’t doubt that a controller simply isn’t the optimum way to play, so if you have access to a PC that may remain a better choice.

It’s always a bit of a challenge to review a game and one of its sequels back-to-back when they’re released on top of each other, even if they were developed some time apart from one another. You’re essentially competing with yourself at that point, and as a reviewer trying to pick which game is a better value for readers, is also more of a pointed challenge. Unsurprisingly, they both have quite a lot in common, though thankfully Ignorance is Strength does manage to show a little more refinement overall and has some new features to explore, even if not until later in the game. To the credit of the original, I do think its story and additional content were a bit more compelling, but honestly they’re both well-balanced so which you pick first is a crapshoot.