Super Dungeon Bros
Score: 70% ESRB: Everyone 10+ Publisher: Wired Productions Developer: React Games Media: Download/1 Players: 1 - 4 (Co-op; Online) Genre: Arcade/ Action/ Roguelike
Graphics & Sound: Super​ ​Dungeon​ ​Bros​ ​is​ ​a​ ​Dungeon​ ​Crawler​ ​in​ ​which​ ​a​ ​group​ ​of​ ​bros​ ​is​ ​given​ ​a​ ​quest​ ​from​ ​an​ ​unlikely source:​ ​a​ ​vinyl​ ​record.​ ​Well,​ ​a​ ​record​ ​played​ ​backwards,​ ​unleashing​ ​its​ ​quest​ -giving​ ​magic.​ ​The​ ​record,​ ​the bros ​names​ ​(like​ ​Axl​ ​and​ ​Ozzie),​ ​and​ ​the​ ​rock​ ​theme​ ​throughout​ ​the​ ​background​ ​soundtrack​ ​all​ ​make​ ​it​ ​clear that​ ​this​ ​is​ ​a​ ​rock/metal​ ​inspired​ ​journey. The​ ​skeletons,​ ​the​ ​candles,​ ​the​ ​hellscape​ ​-​ ​it​ ​all​ ​fits​ ​together.​ ​I’m not​ ​sure​ ​about​ ​the​ ​bros​ ​and​ ​their​ ​penchant​ ​for​ ​wearing​ ​armor​ ​around​ ​the​ ​house,​ ​but​ ​hey,​ ​that​ ​probably​ ​works too.​ ​Rock​ ​on. One​ ​thing​ ​I​ ​really​ ​enjoy​ ​about​ ​Dungeon​ ​Bros​ ​is​ ​the​ ​funny​ ​one​ -liners​ ​each​ ​individual​ ​character​ ​will​ ​say. Their​ ​banter​ ​ranges​ ​from​ ​dorky​ ​callouts​ ​like​ ​"schwing!"​(damn,​ ​do​ ​the​ ​kids​ ​playing​ ​this​ ​have​ ​any​ ​idea​ ​what Wayne’s​ ​World​ ​is?),​ ​to​ ​singing​ ​"We​ ​are​ ​the​ ​champions,​ ​my​ ​bros,"​ ​to​ ​well,​ ​giggling.​ ​And​ ​when​ ​you​ ​play as​ ​the​ ​female​ ​bros​ ​(bro-ettes?),​ ​you​ ​unlock​ ​even​ ​more​ ​personalities.​ ​For​ ​some​ ​reason​ ,​I’m​ ​cracked​ ​up​ ​by​ ​the "couldn’t​ ​care​ ​less”" ​attitude​ ​of​ ​Nyx,​ who admittedly does manage to summon just a little bit of care about gluten. However, I don’t really care for the art style, which is pretty simplistic, but not very impactful.​ ​The​ ​bros​ ​are​ ​all​ ​different​ ​in​ ​style,​ ​but they’re​ ​so​ ​tiny​ ​on​ ​screen​ ​that​ ,​for​ ​the​ ​most​ ​part,​ ​it​ ​doesn’t​ ​matter.​ ​Popping​ ​out​ ​some​ ​distinguishing​ ​features might​ ​have​ ​helped​ ​in​ ​this​ ​situation.​ ​And​ ​although​ ​it​ ​makes​ ​the​ ​bros​ ​pretty​ ​easy​ ​to​ ​see,​ ​the​ ​backgrounds​ ​are fairly​ ​monochromatic.
Gameplay: It’s​ ​good​ ​to​ ​have​ ​friends​ ​in​ ​Super​ ​Dungeon​ ​Bros,​ ​for​ ​a​ ​number​ ​of​ ​reasons.​ ​For​ ​one,​ ​you​ ​can​ ​make better​ ​use​ ​of​ ​various​ ​weapons​ ​such​ ​as​ ​ranged​ ​bows​ ​and​ ​up-close​ ​swords.​ ​Another​ ​reason​ ​is​ ​the​ ​use​ ​of revivals.​ ​You​ ​can​ ​revive​ ​each​ ​other​ ​and​ ​avoid​ ​the​ ​use​ ​of​ ​team​ ​lives,​ ​thereby​ ​extending​ ​your​ ​time​ ​in​ ​the dungeon​ ​by​ ​that​ ​much​ ​more.​ ​And​ ​hey,​ ​it’s​ ​always​ ​fun​ ​to​ ​have​ ​a​ ​friend​ ​along. Procedurally-generated (roguelike) dungeons are what Dungeon Bros is all about, which means you never play quite the same configuration of dungeon twice. Sure,​ ​that’s​ ​the​ ​theory,​ ​but​ ​in​ ​practice,​ ​it​ ​was​ ​hard​ ​to​ ​tell the​ ​difference​ ​between​ ​playthroughs.​ ​A​ ​spike​ ​here​ ​instead​ ​of​ ​there,​ ​two​ ​of​ ​those​ ​chest​ ​there​ ​instead​ ​of​ ​one​ ​- meh.​ ​But​ ​still,​ ​if​ ​that’s​ ​your​ ​thing,​ ​Dungeon​ ​Bros​ ​has​ ​you​ ​covered. Speaking​ ​of​ ​friends,​ ​you​ ​can​ ​play​ ​online,​ ​or​ ​you​ ​can​ ​do​ ​some​ ​couch​ ​co-op​ ​in​ ​Dungeon​ ​Bros.​ ​There​ ​is quite​ ​a​ ​bit​ ​of​ ​cross-platform​ ​co-op​ ​in​ ​the​ ​works​ ​as​ ​well,​ ​so​ ​you’ll​ ​be​ ​able​ ​to​ ​play​ ​Windows​ ​players​ ​as​ ​well (PlayStation​ ​users​ ​will​ ​get​ ​cross-platform​ ​play​ ​with​ ​Steam​ ​users). You​ ​can​ ​buy​ ​shards,​ ​the​ ​currency​ ​of​ ​the​ ​game,​ ​which​ ​gets​ ​you​ ​new​ ​gear​ ​and​ ​other upgrades.​ ​​Since​ ​this​ ​is​ ​a​ ​procedurally​-generated​ ​game,​ ​you​ ​can​ ​almost​ ​guarantee​ ​you​ ​won’t​ ​get​ ​exactly​ ​the loot​ ​you​ ​want,​ ​and that will, in theory, fuel purchases. I’ll​ ​admit,​ ​in​-game​ ​purchases​ ​are​ ​still​ ​a​ ​bit​ ​of​ ​a​ ​turn-off​ ​for​ ​me.​ ​I​ ​know,​ ​we’re​ ​approaching​ ​2017,​ ​and​ ​this​ ​sort​ ​of thing​ ​is​ ​here​ ​to​ ​stay. S​till, I'm not really into systems that are so grind-heavy that buying your way out is a tempting option.​​
Difficulty: Threat meter is the name of the game when it comes to difficulty in Super Dungeon Bros. Hang around too long and the threat meter will go up, sending waves and waves of enemies against you. It’s a balance between wanting to get everything in a dungeon and wanting to get out alive. Of course, having more bros with you will help, but this unfortunately means the Single Player Mode is going to be tough going. It’s almost unfairly tough. It is also a bit difficult to tell what's going on when mobs of enemies hit the screen. You can get lost easily, trying to figure out if any of your attacks are being effective.
Game Mechanics: Super Dungeon Bros is not particularly hard to pick up, though with all the little tricks and quirks to learn, it can take a while to get really proficient. But overall, it’s responsive enough, and you can dodge spikes, jump chasms, and hack away with proficiency relatively quickly. It doesn’t feel particularly quick and nimble, but you can do what you need to do. Another drawback is the very high load time. I mean, you’ll sit around for at least a minute on some screens, which seems excessive for a game this simple. I admit I am not super into the theme of bros and metal for games (even though I am a fan of the music genre), but I still don’t think there’s enough of a hook there to build a whole game around. And the metal in this game seemed a bit… subdued. It’s more of a silly, fantasy ride into baby rock. Still, if you want a good way to kill some time with some buddies, Super Dungeon Bros is pretty easy to pick up and get going. I’m just not sure if there’s enough to keep you coming back when there are so many of these types of games out there.
-Fights with Fire, GameVortex Communications AKA Christin Deville
Related Links: Super Dungeon Bros Official Site Our Review of Wayne's World
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