3.2 hours played
Written 7 years ago
Beat 'em up? Sure. Roguelite? No. From the description, I was expecting something like Rampage Knigths or Son of a Witch, but this game lacks a lot in the roguelike department. The only roguelike feature it has is permadeath - and the game is so easy that you might never get to see it.
I would have still liked the game if the rest was good, but there are many flaws. The graphics is very nice, almost Don't Starve like, but the animations are stiff and many of the attack animations just look weird. The combat actually flows pretty good, you can stun-lock enemies with quick attacks until you run out of stamina. I was surprised to see a Dark Souls-like stamina bar in a beat 'em up game, but it works alright (except for boss fights where you can only do a couple of hits before saving the stamina for dodging). So, fighting regular enemies is good, it's just that it looks a bit weird on the screen.
Bosses are a completely different matter. The boss fights are so tedious. It shows that the game lacked play testing, because for some bosses you can simply stand next to them and keep hitting, while he repeats trying to stomp you and keeps missing. For others, you have to land a few hits and then dodge away. The main problem is the stamina which makes you have to repeat this way too many times before the boss is dead.
There's no real exploration. The levels are completely linear, there aren't even those optional rooms like shops/treasure rooms in Rampage Knights. The map was probably supposed to give you some sense of exploration, but it's just a "level picker" really. This works fine for a beat'em up, but it isn't a rougelite at all. Even Lost Castle has more exploration than this game.
Another problem is variety. Two hours into the game and I keep seeing the same bushes and barrels. I did get to see some caves and such, but once you exit, your back to the same thing. I cannot imagine playing this as a true roguelike in die & repeat style. Compare to The Binding of Isaac, Rampage Knights, Son of a Witch where you get to see 6-7 different environments if you play the game for one hour.
The enemy variety is actually good. There are melee ones, ranged ones, shielded enemies, flying enemies where you have to jump to hit them, tough enemies which take some time to take down, spiders and scorpions, etc. This is actually what kept me playing the game for this long.
There's no weapon / item variety. The whole point of roguelike games like The Binding of Isaac or Son of a Witch is that you can find (or buy) various weapons and items which you can combine in interesting ways to build up your character. When I mention buying, there are no shops or treasure rooms with weapons. The only way to build your character is to level up after the level is complete. The problem with leveling is that it locks you into your choices for a very long time. So, if you see some enemy type and wish to change your tactics mid-run, though luck. Not possible in this game. Compare that to other games where there are weapon drops all the time and you can switch often.
The main reason I got the game was because I was hoping for replayability that other games in this roguelike beat'em up genre have. But for this game there's simply no reason to start over again once you complete it.
FInal score: 4/10.