Dragon is Dead review

With the roguelike variability of Dead Cells, the ominous artistry of Blasphemous, and Diablo’s fondness for loot, Dragon is Dead is a game with several unmistakable inspirations. Team Suneat’s (Blade Assault) side-scrolling title flings you into an unforgiving world overrun by belligerent demons and the shadow of a black dragon who dared to defy the gods.

There’s plenty of games that attempt to deliver atmosphere. But Dragon Dead achieves this with its detailed, decaying backdrops, elegiac soundscape, and several animations that undoubtedly recall Ayami Kojima’s artistry in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Stages are soaked in crimson reds, shadowy blues, and hints of plum-tinged corruption. Enemies move with a tortured gait and launch projectiles at enraged speeds. Nearly every pixel in Dragon is Dead is used to depict a wretched world that’s eager to kill its everlasting protagonist. That said, the one fault is the game’s procedurally-generated level layouts, which produce standardized variants of multi-tier walkways.

Dodge, Unleash Hell, then Repeat

Given the game’s disappointingly simple level architecture, combat is one of the prominent showpieces here. Players can choose from three distinct character classes with the Spellblade summoning elemental magic to complement melee attacks while the Hunter of the Beast boasts an expectedly feral style that use ranged attacks and plenty of poison. But if you prefer a hard-hitting character that sacrifices speed for extraordinary vitality, the Berserker can be an appealing choice. He smites and severs foes like a demon-killing dynamo.

Beyond their divergent approaches to combat, each character has their own abilities and progression paths. That said, classes are united by responsive, combo-heavy offensives as well as lithe leaping, defensive dodging, and the ability to stun foes. Like many of its contemporaries, Dragon rewards precision and the ability to read enemy ‘tells’, striking a reasonably fair balance between challenge and fairness. As with any roguelike, you’ll perish often, with death causing you to forfeit your character level, skills and any artifacts. Mercifully, you get to keep your gear and any found runes. Since you’re technically immortal, running out of health presents an opportunity to upgrade, strategize, and push further next time.

DIY Builds and Progression

Although your first few runs will likely result in disheartening letdowns, a gripping sense of progress soon takes hold. You’ll get to reuse the best weapons and armor that you’ve found, allowing you to cleave through enemies at a faster rate, accelerating the rate you can unlock nodes on each character’s tech tree. This is Dragon is Dead’s second strength, allowing, for example, the Spellblade to harness ever-growing arsenals of ice, lightning, and fire. Pleasingly, these often synergize with the game’s Diablo-esque item management component, with skills and artifacts all working together. Given the sheer number of outcomes, the game’s depth can occasionally dip toward imbalance. Some skills feel vastly more effective than others. And while you can collect and combine runes to craft legendary weapons, gear progression can be a bit RNG-based at times.

Dragon is Dead occasionally flirts with frustration, especially when multiple adversaries fling lightning-fast projectiles at players. Later, some foes utilize shielding. When this occurs, you’ll have a narrow window of opportunity for a counterstrike when they are attacking. There are moments when it feels like the game is inviting you to try a different class or build, but there’s not quite enough signaling to determine how you should progress. When this intermittingly occurred, I’d usually grind to gain an advantage. But the drudgery soon became a chore.

Underwhelming Exposition, If That Matters

Dragon is Dead leans toward minimalist storytelling, using environmental clues and cryptic NPC interactions to shape its dark mythology. But all too often, interaction took six dialog windows to convey what two could communicate. I recognize that Team Suneat is attempting to cultivate a sense of dread and despair, but the exchanges didn’t off much world-building or pulpy exposition. Mostly, they felt like filler, which is a missed opportunity.

Undoubtedly, Dragon is Dead is a worthwhile addition to the action-roguelite genre. With high customizable combat and character builds, the game sporadically outshines its peers. I could see loot-chasers investing several weeks toward the pursuit of top-tier gear. But know that the journey is frequently unremittingly hard, with rewards only coming to those willing to invest the time. If that describes your temperament, Dragon won’t disappoint.

Dragon is Dead was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.