Players will encounter many challenging enemies and beasts as they traverse the many worlds included in Remnant 2, so it is important that careful consideration is made to the Archetype chosen for the game. There are a multitude of options, some of which will need to be unlocked in-game, all of which support a different style of play. This is how the Archetypes in Remnant 2 stack up against one another.
Updated August 2, 2023, by Tim Lord: As the gaming community continues its search through the ever-changing worlds of Remnant 2, more discoveries are being made regarding the location of special weapons, items, and even character classes. In light of recent discoveries, new Archetypes (Invader, Archon, and Engineer) have been added to the list of playable characters in the game.
S Tier
Handler, "Man's best friend," lives up to the adage in Remnant 2, with the Handler Archetype establishing itself as one of the strongest options to survive the multiple worlds contained within the game. Whether as a solo player or in cooperation with others, the addition of a canine companion can be a real difference-maker when facing the plethora of unruly beasts that players will encounter on their travels.
The Handler's Prime Perk, Bonded, is arguably one of the best in the game, as the player's furry friend will attempt to revive their master when they are downed, a circumstance that would result in immediate death in most other classes. Additionally, the dog is a great distraction for enemies and will attract the attention of foes, buying players more time to unleash their offense to clear out adversaries. Players need not worry about their pet's health, as they are capable of reviving themselves and have an incredibly efficient health regeneration rate.
Medic
Health is tough to come by in Remnant 2 and just as hard to manage in this challenging Soulslike title, which makes the Medic Archetype a sensible choice to deal with all that the multiple worlds have to offer. A perfect choice for party players, the Medic will come to the rescue of players struggling to stay alive in the face of the game's many beasts and is rewarded in kind for its efforts. The Medic comes with a plethora of perks that benefit both the player and their companions for managing to restore their health.
The Medic has three excellent skills to choose from to improve their abilities. The Wellspring allows players to channel healing energy into their fists and unleash a Healing Spring covering a 3-meter radius for 15 seconds that will heal 10.5 health per second to all friendlies that stand in it. The Healing Shield guards all allies within 25 meters with a barrier equivalent to their maximum health, while regenerating a percentage of it themselves. Finally, the Redemption produces a huge shockwave that revives any allies that are downed and restore over half of their health. All of these options benefit the survival of players and their comrades as they face the game's many threats.
Archon
The Archon Archetype attracted much attention in the gaming community due to how exceedingly difficult a class it was to discover. The Archetype was not designed to be stumbled upon by accident but was instead a hidden challenge for data miners to reward their thorough combing of the game. Once players tick off the long list of prior Archetypes, items, and skills, they will be able to enter the Corrupted Portal and grab the item required for the Archon.
Despite the lengths players need to go to acquire the Archon Archetype, it is certainly worth the investment. The Archon is the master of weapon mods and the generation of mod power, so players who favor using mod powers to launch their offense will greatly benefit from this character's skills. Its Prime Perk, Tempest, automatically generates 2 Mod Power each second and rewards players for using their Mods by increasing generation by 50%. As an added bonus, the Archetype's weapons are strong starting points, with the XMG57 Bonesaw, Enigma Handgun, and Labyrinth Staff.
A Tier
Gunslinger
One of the pre-order bonuses for players eager to sink their teeth into Remnant 2, the Gunslinger is the master of dealing out raw damage in great quantities. For those who didn't pre-order the game, this can still be unlocked and used as a playable class once the requirements for access have been fulfilled. The Gunslinger is a specialist in inflicting damage at high rates, reloading at lightning-fast speed, and conserving precious ammunition, unlike any other class. Ammunition preservation is a particularly useful quality, as it is difficult to come by and sorely missed when stocks run dry.
The Gunslinger Archetype is a great option for active combat, particularly with its prime perk, Loaded, at the player's disposal. If ammunition is running low, this perk will instantly reload both of the player's weapons and allow infinite reserve ammo for five seconds, which can be improved with upgrades. Its Archetype Perks can also influence a number of damage and speed-related statistics, such as the character's reload speed, the volume of ammo salvaged, and their fire rate.
While the Gunslinger is a great attacking class that deals incredible volumes of damage, it lacks the variety in healing capabilities that the S Tier Archetypes do, which can be a significant disadvantage. Remnant 2 can be an unforgiving game when it comes to managing health, so players will need to aim true and perfect their evasive maneuvers with this Archetype.
Hunter
The perfect choice for players who prefer a playstyle that emphasizes stealth and dealing damage from a distance, the Hunter Archetype is equipped with all the tools needed for effective long-range combat. With its ability to mark any hostiles in the area, the Hunter prioritizes adopting strategies to ensure their survival by picking off their adversaries one by one without being noticed.
The Hunter's skills each benefit its inclination for quiet destruction, with its Hunter's Mark increasing the awareness of hostiles, the Hunter's Focus supporting improved aiming down the sights, and Hunter's Shroud making players as good as invisible to the enemy eye. The Hunter's Prime Perk, Dead To Rights, deals additional base ranged weak spot damage while simultaneously extending the duration of its active skills, making for a more lethal invisible assailant.
While the Hunter is a great long-range specialist, it will at times struggle with medium to close-quarters combat, particularly as its preferred weapons generally have a lower fire rate to deal with charging enemies. If players can trust their aim, then it's an excellent choice. However, those who are shaky aiming down the sights may want to consider a class with a faster fire rate.
Engineer
There was some speculation that Remnant 2 was perhaps missing a heavy weaponry specialist. While the Challenger is an expert in causing high volumes of damage, it is limited by its range. Shortly following the release of the game, the missing piece was discovered in the form of the Engineer Archetype. This character class is all about heavy weapons and turrets that deal damage in high frequency and even higher volume.
For players who enjoy recklessly firing from the hip, the Engineer class is the perfect character to do just that. Its Prime Perk, High Tech, supports spraying enemies with a relentless storm of bullets by overclocking one of the character's weapons, granting infinite ammunition, a higher fire rate, and increased damage for up to 25 seconds. All of its skills are turrets and fulfill different purposes, with the choice of Vulcan, Flamethrower, and Impact Cannon.
Invader
For those who prioritize mobility and elusiveness as keys to success in Remnant 2, the Invader Archetype is designed specifically for that purpose. With an array of skills to disorientate and dodge incoming enemy attacks, this Archetype is one of the hardest to hit. With the Serrated Root Blade, players can get their hands on this crafty character class.
The Invader Archetype excels at producing decoys and causing a general feeling of confusion for adversaries. With its Prime Perk, Shadow, Invader will cast a decoy anytime that a character skill is used, which draws enemy fire for three seconds and leaves them vulnerable to additional damage of up to 15%. Its skills are among the most useful in the game as well, allowing the Archetype to dodge incoming threats and even warp forward into space-time for a more devastating assault.
B Tier
Challenger
With its heavy armor and heavy weapons to go with it, the Challenger Archetype does not hide its intentions of getting up close and battering its opponents. A specialist in close-quarters combat and reducing the damage inflicted, this character is a suitable choice for players who like to rush into combat and take on their foes head-first. For players new to the Remnant franchise or even the Soulslike genre itself, this is a great starting point as the Challenger is incredibly durable and its Prime Perk acts as a second chance when the combat situation becomes overwhelming.
The Challenger's Prime Perk, Die Hard, lives up to its name, as it automatically provides players with a free revival when their character takes what would otherwise be lethal damage. Its other skills support its hard-nosed style of fighting, improving the character in areas such as fire rate, movement speed, and Bulwark, making it even more difficult to put down.
While this class is incredibly strong at close range and a great starting point, it can struggle against bosses that require an effective long-range arsenal. Additionally, enemies become more challenging as the game progresses, meaning the Challenger will steadily lose its power advantage.
Alchemist
The Alchemist is another support-type Archetype that does its best work by supporting the abilities of its comrades. As a solo player, it does not pack the offensive or defensive punch that some of the other Archetypes do, but it is certainly a desirable teammate to have in Remnant 2. It is another of the game's secret character classes, so players will have to complete the required objectives to unlock the Alchemist, but it is a worthwhile investment, especially for party players.
As the name would suggest, the Alchemist is a master of potions and concoctions, all of which will endeavor to make the journeys of their intended users far easier. Given how significant a challenge the game can be, this Archetype is worth its weight in gold on the back of its ability to buffer the offensive and defensive capabilities of its companions. Its Prime Perk, Spirited, only furthers this capability by enabling the Alchemist to surpass the limit on the number of active concoctions that can be active at any one time.
While it doesn't have a potent offense, the Alchemist carries a respectable Wrangler 1860 rifle, a Double Barrel sidearm, and an ax as their weapons. It may be able to stand its ground to some extent, but this Archetype is best used for improving the abilities of others.
C Tier
Summoner
The Summoner is the king of delegating work on account of its ability to command a squad of its own minions to fight for them. Using a few different Root minions, this Archetype will give up some of its health to have its henchmen do its bidding. There are three options for minion type for the Summoner once they reach level ten, the Hollow, Flyer, and Reaver, all of which have their own skills and will cost between 10-35% of the player's health to produce. It is worth noting that only one minion type can be called upon at any given time.
The Summoner's skills and abilities improve the performance of its minions, with its Prime Perk, Ruthless, increasing the damage and speed of their attacks when they receive damage themselves. As a strategic maneuver, players can opt to inflict a small amount of pain on their subjects to encourage the benefits of this ability. The general Archetype Perks are also for the benefit of the player's army, improving areas such as damage, health, and lifesteal.
While the ability to summon companions is a great skill, it comes at a significant cost to the Summoner. Given the player will take a significant hit each time they use their skills, they are left vulnerable to being felled and will rely on relic chargers or a Medic companion.
Explorer
The Explorer Archetype may not offer a noteworthy offense or durability, but it excels at finding rare items that players can use to bolster their character's abilities and traits. It is the fastest-moving Archetype in the game, making it one of the harder characters to hit, however, it doesn't hit back the way that its Archetype counterparts do. Its ability to salvage valuable goods is a desirable trait but the benefits, unfortunately, do not outweigh the costs.
The Explorer's Prime Perk, Lucky, gives players a greater chance of spanning rarer items for collection, and its general perks also increase the chance of striking gold. Its Gold Digger skill is perhaps one of the best abilities it has, as it digs into the ground to create a small fountain that can improve the statistics of the player and their allies that are affected.
While it is a great way to acquire some harder-to-find items, the Explorer's lack of durability and offensive punch make it one of the weaker options in Remnant 2. This could, however, be used as a secondary Archetype to help bolster the stronger character classes.
Remnant 2 is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC