I reaaally wanted to like this game. I love the art direction, music, character design, and unique premise, but the actual gameplay feels clunky and unfinished.

The speed that weapons break makes comparing or strategizing around them either a nonstop chore, or too ephemeral to form any attachment to or excitement about. They're also just too similar in how they play, especially with the lack of level or enemy variety to take advantage of their differences.

The camera requires too much attention for a relatively fast-paced game. You have to react to enemy "tells" that often aren't even on screen because the camera isn't in the right position. Needing to constantly switch between using the face buttons and right stick for camera control on top of paying attention to item management and enemy tells & positioning is a lot to pay attention to and quickly becomes overwhelming.

It looks like there's only 3 short dungeons that all feel like reskins of the same square, rectangle, and slightly bigger square? The pacing between combat rooms and upgrade/shop rooms also feels off to me, like a single combat is enough to get into the flow, just to have that flow broken by deciding between upgrades or which weapon I want to use for the next 5 seconds instead of spending more time actually using those rewards. (In contrast, I think downwell is a great example of a game with a similar minimalist roguelike approach that gets this balance right.)

I didn't feel a meaningful sense of progression from level to level or with each upgrade in the way I'd expect from a roguelike. The short repetitive dungeons don't create a sense of exploration or varied challenge I'd expect from a roguelike. The constantly breaking/rotating weapons are too short-lived to invest in and don't lend themselves to interesting synergies or playstyles.

I think the game had a ton of potential but feels like a half-baked compromise between ideas, just a pivot or two away from becoming something really incredible.

I reaaally wanted to like this game. I love the art direction, music, character design, and unique premise, but the actual gameplay feels clunky and unfinished. The speed that weapons break makes comparing or strategizing around them either a nonstop chore, or too ephemeral to form any attachment to or excitement about. They're also just too similar in how they play, especially with the lack of level or enemy variety to take advantage of their differences. The camera requires too much attention for a relatively fast-paced game. You have to react to enemy "tells" that often aren't even on screen because the camera isn't in the right position. Needing to constantly switch between using the face buttons and right stick for camera control on top of paying attention to item management and enemy tells & positioning is a lot to pay attention to and quickly becomes overwhelming. It looks like there's only 3 short dungeons that all feel like reskins of the same square, rectangle, and slightly bigger square? The pacing between combat rooms and upgrade/shop rooms also feels off to me, like a single combat is enough to get into the flow, just to have that flow broken by deciding between upgrades or which weapon I want to use for the next 5 seconds instead of spending more time actually using those rewards. (In contrast, I think downwell is a great example of a game with a similar minimalist roguelike approach that gets this balance right.) I didn't feel a meaningful sense of progression from level to level or with each upgrade in the way I'd expect from a roguelike. The short repetitive dungeons don't create a sense of exploration or varied challenge I'd expect from a roguelike. The constantly breaking/rotating weapons are too short-lived to invest in and don't lend themselves to interesting synergies or playstyles. I think the game had a ton of potential but feels like a half-baked compromise between ideas, just a pivot or two away from becoming something really incredible.