I need to make it clear that I am not a fan of the roguelike genre. Don’t get me wrong, I understand their appeal, and I can respect them for what they are, but their repetitive nature and my frustration at suffering over essentially the same areas over and over just quickly wears thin with me. When I was younger I could get into these type of games more, but when I don’t have hours upon hours to devote to toiling over the same levels with little to no story, I just tend to lose interest quickly.
That being said, I absolutely adore Crypt of the NecroDancer. It takes a lot for a roguelike to grab me, let alone one that makes me want to keep
coming back to see what’s next. This
game is really a thing of beauty fo r how
it successfully mashes up two distinct
genres that I never would have thought
of slapping together. Crypt of the Necro-
Dancer is ingenious in how it takes a dungeon crawler and rhythm game and spits out something wholly unique and memorable. After sitting and playing for less than ten-minutes I was already messaging all my music friends demanding that they download this gem ASAP.
Crypt of the NecroDancer is a hard game to explain. It’s the sort of game that needs to be experienced for yourself, but I’ll do my best in this review. The game is essentially your modern dungeon crawler with procedurally generated levels, so you’ll never get the same experience each time you play. What makes the game special is the way in which you move, fight, and explore each level of the dungeon. Every action in the game is dictated by the music that is specific to each of the games levels. You just need to be able to use the arrow keys, and have a bit of rhythm to enjoy the hell out of this game.
Moving and attacking require you to press an arrow key with the beat of the current musical track. The lower portion of the screen has a sort of Guitar Hero style scroll where bars flow to the beat of the music, working their way to the center of the screen where an actual heart beats, signaling you to press a key to perform an action. It’s a quirky little system, but one you get the feel for it, it opens up a whole new strategic experience not seen in most roguelikes. Timing is the key to everything, as moving and attacking can only be done to the
beat of the music. Enemies also have
the same rules, so dealing with a large
group of enemies is both insanely
difficult and strangely rewarding.
As with most games of this nature death
will be a constant companion, but unlike most games I’ve tried, and died with, Crypt of the NecroDancer feels pretty fair. Yes, dying a lot sucks just as much as ever, but with the rhythm mechanic, I never really felt cheated by the games enemies. The fact that I’m a former musician also had me coming back for more, as the game almost felt like a sort of practice aid in many ways. It also made me feel like I had some sort of advantage when playing because of my background, and that also helped in keeping me hooked. The roguelike genre can always be a pain in the ass when it comes to deaths, but here you actually feel like you are learning from death, as opposed to cursing wildly at the game.
Just as with movement, combat is handled in the same way. Attacking enemies is done by timing your jump (movement) on said enemies, but you’ll also have access to a variety of weapons to aid on your adventure. Each weapon that you collect, or purchase from the hub store, has unique properties that offer you some sort of tactical advantage against various enemies. Some will up your attack range, some can be thrown at enemies, some have magical properties that offer up massive damage, and many also come in enchanted versions. Likewise, armor and items can also be snagged to help you better deal with the hazards you’ll face. until death comes a knocking.
Crypt of the NecroDancer
PC
" Moving and attacking require you to press an arrow key with the beat..."