Good game design doesn’t have an expiration date, and Dead Cells, which is nearing its 10th year, is the ideal example. The title, made by Motion Twin, presents such an appealing combination of genres that even those who, like myself, might not be all that into platformers, will find it nearly irresistible.
On the surface level, yes, the game is a beautifully made pixel art platformer. But, below that, a complex procedural metroid universe clashes head-on into a punishing roguelike, even touching upon some soulslike mechanics. For many companies, this mixture would prove to be too demanding or confusing to the degree that even the team wouldn’t be sure what exactly they are making.
On the surface level, yes, the game is a beautifully made pixel art platformer. But, below that, a complex procedural metroid universe clashes head-on into a punishing roguelike, even touching upon some soulslike mechanics. For many companies, this mixture would prove to be too demanding or confusing to the degree that even the team wouldn’t be sure what exactly they are making.
Yet, the Motion Twin crew managed to keep their bearing and ultimately make a modern indie classic. The game, featuring a bodiless mass of cells using dead prisoners to try and escape a hellish fantasy prison, grips fast and grips strong. That way, the desire to make subsequent runs, after the failure of the last one, is nearly magnetic and somehow, oddly satisfying, despite a very obscure metagame progression mechanism.
In the mind of the player, these elements come together as a balanced system of challenge and reward, always bringing new things to explore and utilize, but never swamping the player with its unquestionable complexities. Play Dead Cells, you’ll enjoy it immensely if you’re a fan of roguelikes or metroid platformers, but chances are that this game could make you into one as well.
In the mind of the player, these elements come together as a balanced system of challenge and reward, always bringing new things to explore and utilize, but never swamping the player with its unquestionable complexities. Play Dead Cells, you’ll enjoy it immensely if you’re a fan of roguelikes or metroid platformers, but chances are that this game could make you into one as well.