The success and popularity of the auto-shooter genre, fuelled by such greats as Vampire Survivors, Entropy Survivors, and Brotato, seems to have revived interest in the ‘idle’ genre too – the history of which can be traced back to the early noughties. Tap Wizard 2 is one of the first games we’ve seen take ideas from both genres, although it is unmistakably an idle game foremost. Progress is made even when you aren’t playing, and not a great deal of interaction is ever required. Yes, this is another example of the genre that can be left playing in the background.
The biggest difference over other idle games is that you can control the wizard should you wish. They move and auto-shoot as default, yet you can take control at any time, helping them to avoid enemies and collect treasure. I’d hesitate to say that their chances of survival increase when under your control though, as the ‘action’ is clearly heavily scripted and pre-calculated. Ol’ pointy hat simply faces off waves of enemies while earning XP, trinkets and currency before being reborn upon death – with early waves fast-forwarded to get progress back up to speed.

At any point you’re able to intervene and spend that currency and XP on upgrades, helping them to survive longer. There’s a lot to invest in, ranging from upgradable pendants and obelisks, a flowchart of skills, collectable totem characters, perks, and improved spells. At the start, only three spells can be equipped, and the assortment can be changed at any time, causing your wizard – who can later be reskinned – to summon fireballs, magic swords, beams of light and more.
Dig a little deeper into the icon-driven menus and you’ll find a bestiary and text-based lore too, with more lore unlocking every fifteen minutes. All the while, upbeat music plays…on a very short loop. This can thankfully be turned off.
I’ve spent a few days with Tap Wizard 2, checking on my wizard’s progress whenever turning the Xbox on, and while it’s always interesting to see how much wealth they’ve accumulated I also can’t shake the fact that the experience is directionless and perhaps a little pointless too. It’s a game that practically plays itself; your interactions are limited to investing in upgrades. I don’t feel it’s poorly made – it’s presented nicely enough, and there’s clearly a lot of ‘stuff’ going on behind the scenes – but neither is it particularly compelling. As idle games go though, this one does feel fully featured. I wish I could’ve done more to help my wizard chum on his quest, but that’s something clearly beyond the bounds of the genre.
Topcog’s Tap Wizard 2 is out 7th January on Xbox One. Published by Ultimate Games. A Switch version is also planned.