The original Slime Rancher was one of the underrated gems of 2017. That’s what makes it all the more special that, during the Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase at E3 2021, we got the announcement for a sequel. Slime Rancher 2 is on the way, promising more slimes and more opportunities to round ’em up. Here’s what we know about a Slime Rancher 2 release date so far, and what we could see in this follow-up to a fan favorite.
The Slime Rancher 2 release date is only “2022” right now
If you were hoping to spend any time in 2021 rustling up slimes, you’ll have to head back to the first game in order to do so. The sequel, Slime Rancher 2, won’t be hitting either PCs or Xbox consoles until sometime in 2022. Yeah, that’s going to be a bit of a bummer for some. But when you think about how absolutely loaded Fall 2021 is going to be — with everything from Halo Infinite to Far Cry 6 to Horizon Forbidden West, potentially — maybe it’s a good idea for Slime Rancher 2 to stay the heck out of that window.
With that said, you can at least look forward to playing Slime Rancher 2 day and date as part of your Xbox Game Pass subscription. The vast majority of what Microsoft had to show off during its E3 event will hit Game Pass on day one, which is great news for those paying the $10 or $15 a month for it. This title is a confirmed Game Pass drop, so while you can’t mark down a Slime Rancher 2 release date in your calendar just yet, you don’t have to set any money aside for it. That is wonderful.
Slime Rancher 2 is going to a new location
As the game’s trailer so helpfully shows off, Slime Rancher 2 is taking players on a bit of a trip. The sequel will go “across the Slime Sea to Rainbow Island,” a new space that is full of “ancient mysteries” and, of course, a whole bunch of new slimes.
Not only that, but the act of collecting those slimes seems to be getting a bit of an upgrade in Slime Rancher 2. As the game’s page on the Xbox website notes, you’ll “collect resources on Rainbow Island to upgrade your vacpack, build new gadgets, and expand your conservatory.” What’s this? A conservatory? Yes! You’ll be able to construct a whole space for those captured slimes to call home. It genuinely looks pretty cool.
We’ll have our ears to the ground for word of a more specific Slime Rancher 2 release date, which we hope will arrive within the next few months. In the meantime, why not go back and hit up the original Slime Rancher for a few hours? It’ll remind you of why you enjoyed it so much, and it’ll maybe even tide you over until the sequel arrives.
