One of the most surprising announcements of Summer Game Fest that went a bit under the radar was N Plus Infinity Times Two, the next entry in Metanet Software’s legendary N series. Originally released in 2004, N is best described as an action ninja platformer. The series has seen three releases so far and is still going strong, even years later, with the N++ ‘TEN++’ Update released just last year.
So, the return of N with N Plus Infinity Times Two is seriously exciting. How exactly is Metanet going to follow up a game with over 4000 levels? The answer is a multiplayer take on N, bringing the chaos of the platformer into a party setting. At Summer Game Fest: Play Days 2026, I had the chance to go hands-on with N Plus Infinity Times Two and check out two of the game’s modes. I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect going in, but I ended up having a lot of fun with what I was able to play.
The Steam page lists that there will be five online game modes, including Trials, Co-op, One-Up, Racing, and Team Tag. At SGF, I was able to check out both Racing and Team Tag. First, Racing puts you against three other players and is exactly what it sounds like. There’s a wide variety of obstacle courses available, and you have to try to navigate through them as fast as possible. However, you’ll find an interesting twist here.
There are a few ways you can approach a Racing match. First, you can run as fast as you can to the end, which turns your character into a rocket that can perma-kill enemies before they have the chance to even qualify. If you get hit by one of these, you get no points for the round. However, there are collectibles in the environment that can increase your score, so you have to be strategic and consider which playstyle will put you in the best position to win. Sometimes, rushing to the objective and firing off a rocket to kill the lead player can be the difference between winning and losing. Other times, you might end up losing because you didn’t collect any coins.
The other mode I was able to check out was Team Tag, which splits four players into two teams of Hunters and Ninjas. Ninjas are tasked with hopping around, avoiding Hunters, and staying alive for as long as possible while collecting items. Hunters have one objective only: to touch the Ninjas and eliminate them. Hunters can turn into a rocket with the press of a button, giving fast speed that can be hard to avoid as a Ninja. This got chaotic fast, and every round, I was frantically running around either avoiding Hunters or chasing down Ninjas. Each of the courses available has different environmental hazards and slopes that you interact with differently, so every round will seemingly be different from the last.
Metanet shared with me that N Plus Infinity Times Two was designed to be quickly picked up and played, and it was easy to see that at SGF. Each round is really short, so while you can hop on for just a few to get your fill, I can easily see myself losing hours out of pure competitiveness. I’m looking forward to seeing more from this one in the coming months, especially the level editor and other modes I wasn’t able to try.
N Plus Infinity Times Two is set to launch in 2027 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
