With so many epic characters to try out in Hopoo’s third-person roguelike, it can be tough to keep up, and that’s where we come in. In this guide, we go over each of the Risk of Rain 2 characters and how to unlock them. Tut tut, it looks like there’s a risk of rain – so it’s a good thing we’re here to offer you an umbrella in the form of a roster of super OP fighters, right?
If you want even more opportunities to keep coming back, back again, check out our list of the best Switch roguelikes. We’ve also got lists for the best Switch FPS games and the best mobile shooters, full of real bangers.
So, without further ado, let’s dive into all of the Risk of Rain 2 characters and how to unlock them.
Risk of Rain 2 characters
Commando
A returning character from the first Risk of Rain, Commando is a jack-of-all-trades, but kind of a master of none. He’s pretty easy to get the swing of, with a simple kit that remains reliable across the entire game, though he boasts very few significant strengths or weaknesses.
You unlock Commando by default at the beginning of the game.
Huntress
Like Commando, Huntress is a returning character from the first Risk of Rain. She’s a bit of a glass cannon, in that she’s fragile but extremely mobile, and capable of dishing out heaps of damage.
You unlock Huntress by default when you start the game.
Bandit
Bandit is another returning character in Risk of Rain 2, capable of dealing loads of damage from behind. He excels in stealthy tactics, making use of daggers, guns, and smoke bombs that can stun enemies. He’s mobile and versatile, but requires some player skill in order to truly shine.
You unlock Bandit by completing either of the third stages.
MUL-T
MUL-T is a multi-purpose robot, and an extremely versatile character. It has high health and armour, and playing as MUL-T allows you to choose two of four primary weapons, which you can configure in different ways, either by swapping through the two weapons and equipment through Retool, or by using both primary weapons at once through its armoured Power Mode.
You unlock MUL-T by completing the ‘Verified’ challenge, in which you must beat the first Teleporter event five times.
Engineer
Rather than relying on his own strength, Engineer makes use of a selection of deployable gadgets, which he sets up in a variety of defensive measures – specifically, turrets, which gain the same items that the Engineer himself possesses. As a result, when choosing items for Engineer, you should focus on ones that will benefit his turrets just as much as they benefit him.
You unlock Engineer through ‘Engineering Perfection’, which you achieve by completing 30 stages in Risk of Rain 2 over any number of runs.
Atificer
Like Huntress, Artificer is a bit of a glass cannon. She’s equipped with a range of powerful destructive skills, and is capable of taking down even the tankiest enemies, but she has no defensive capabilities beyond her Ion Surge skill which allows her to fly perpetually. As such, if you want to succeed as Artificer, you need to be adept at dodging and remain aware of your surroundings.
In order to unlock Artificer, you need to complete the Pause challenge, in which your objective is to free the survivor suspended in time.
Mercenary
Mercenary is a highly mobile melee fighter, whose low skill cooldowns push his gameplay to hinge on chaining together quick attacks. He’s capable of dodging and weaving in and out of combat, and shines most through an offensive playstyle that takes advantage of the invulnerability afforded by his skills.
To unlock Mercenary, you must complete the True Respite challenge, in which your goal is to obliterate yourself at the Obelisk.
REX
REX is half robot, half plant, and is capable of dishing out powerful attacks from a great distance, sacrificing portions of its HP to do so. Luckily, it’s also capable of weakening opponents and draining health from them to recuperate HP. Therefore, when playing as REX you can expect your health to consistently yoyo, but with enough skill and familiarity with your kit, you’ll always be relatively safe.
You unlock REX by completing the Power Plant challenge, in which you must repair the broken robot with an escape pod’s fuel array.
Loader
Loader is a surprisingly mobile and heavy cargo loader, who’s able to hit enemies with some of the most impactful attacks in the game. If you manage to get the swing of velocity when playing as Loader, you can topple many powerful beasties with just one punch.
In order to unlock Loader, you need to complete the Guidance Offline challenge in which you must defeat the alloy worship unit in Siren’s Call.
Acrid
Ex-prisoner Acrid is a poison-spewing badass who takes down enemies with powerful, melee-ranged attacks and face-melting DoT, sporting the highest base damage stat of all of the survivors (not including the criminally overpowered Heretic). It’s not all close-quarters combat for Acrid either, as it also has a few handy long-range and crowd control abilities mixed in, making it a powerful fighter in pretty much any situation. Due to its ability to inflict poison and blight status effects, Acrid becomes lethal when equipped with items that inflict additional debuffs.
You can unlock Acrid by completing the … To Be Left Alone challenge, which you beat by making it through the nine challenge cells in the Void Fields.
Captain
Captain is the commander of UES Safe Travels, and can control the battlefield with their help. He specialises in calling down a variety of tactical drops from orbit, from healing beacons to a powerful kinetic blast called OGM-72 ‘DIABLO’ Strike.
To unlock Captain, you need to complete the Washed Away challenge by defeating the final boss and beating the main game.
Void Fiend
As suggested by its name, the Void Fiend is an eldritch, void-mutated survivor that fluctuates between a controlled and corrupted form throughout battle. Capable of harnessing the Void as a lethal weapon, its corruption builds until it reaches boiling point, allowing Void Fiend to unleash its full power and transform into a more aggressive fighter. Both the controller and corrupted forms have their own unique weaknesses and strengths, making Void Fiend quite a complex character to master.
Void Fiend is a part of the Survivors of the Void expansion. You unlock Void Fiend through the Dragged Below challenge, in which you either need to defeat the boss of the Planetarium and reach the end, or complete wave 50 of the Simulacrum.
Railgunner
Railgunner is a highly skilled markswoman with a lethal eye for her target. She’s a long-range, single-target survivor who fights with a powerful railgun, deploying smart homing rounds and devastating piercing shots. As a result of both this and her incredibly powerful supercharge, her damage output is very impressive, and she also has some decent crowd-control capabilities.
Heretic
The Heretic, also known as Ku-skan, is a secret playable character. You can’t pick her from the character selection screen – instead, you need to transform into her by holding all four Heresy items simultaneously. This is a feat well worth pursuing, as she’s considered to be the strongest survivor in the game, boasting amazingly powerful skills, super high base health, higher movement speed and base damage, and she can even triple jump.
Her one downside is that she has negative health regeneration, meaning she loses health over time instead of recovering it. Ouch! At least she goes down fighting, though.
And that’s all of the Risk of Rain 2 characters currently in the game. Of course, we’ll update this guide if any new survivors pop up. In the meantime, head over to our list of the best Switch games and the best mobile games to flex your newfound skills across a variety of genres.
