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Dead Cells trailer - Castlevania meets permadeath, a vibrant pixel art "roguevania"

S

Saucycarpdog

Member
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1ZGq1mk1KM

maxresdefault.jpg


http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=669872308
Dead Cells is a roguelike, Castlevania-inspired action-platformer, allowing you to explore a sprawling, ever-changing castle… assuming you’re able to fight your way past its keepers. To beat the game you’ll have to master 2D souls-like combat with the ever present threat of permadeath looming. No checkpoints. Kill, die, learn, repeat.

-RogueVania: The progressive exploration of an interconnected world, with the replayability of a roguelike and the adrenaline pumping threat of permadeath.

-Souls-like combat: Pattern-based bosses and minions, weapons and spells with unique gameplay. Make do with what you have and don’t forget to roll.

-Nonlinear progression: Unlock new levels with every death and explore undiscovered parts of the castle as you prepare for the inevitable bosses.

-Exploration: Secret rooms, hidden passages, charming landscapes. Death is now your way of backtracking.
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Saw this on Steam Greenlight and thought it looked beautiful. I love it when devs aren't afraid to make a game colorful, especially a Castlevania inspired game.
 
A

AXE

Member
I have no problems with permadeath if the game provides me enough freedom to do what I can.

Bring it.
 
H

HotHamBoy

Member
Icyflamez96 said:
I'll maybe give you the souls one but the other two are terms with clear meaning when describing what a game will entail.
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Lol, it's not a criticism, just an observation.

I happen to enjoy all of those things.

Castevania combat is already pretty Souls-lite. Movement and actions emphasis commitment and are very deliberate, it's all about memorizing enemy behaviors and waiting for openings. There's just not as much punishment for mistakes in Castlevania.

Maybe Bloodborne is closer, especially with the threaded cane.
 
K

KarmaCow

Member
I was dreading that this would be a nonsensiscal Roguelike + Metroidvania but fortunately it doesn't seem to be that. The game certainly looks interesting, but I'm still apprehensive about any game that rides the coattails of other games this hard though.
 
K

KDR_11k

Member
Roguelike metroidvania sounds a bit like vinegar-flavored marshmallows to me, two things that just don't belong together. A game about exploring a world but the world is randomized and goes away if you die? Plus it really negates the sense of context change when you get new abilities that make previously useless seeming things very useful because you're bound to quickly learn what powers are available and what interacts with them.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
The levels arent completely generated. They are persistent hand-crafted aspects to keep the areas from being too random

From the devlog:
We will talk a little bit more about the procedural content soon, but here are 3 sample maps we currently use ingame. They are all generated, but we use many hand-crafted elements to ensure the overall level design quality is not "too random", if you see what I mean ;)

First map: a typical sewer
Second one: a small dungeon that feature large rooms
Third one: a level that takes place on roofs

499f5ea4_2.jpg
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S

Speely

Banned
More_Badass said:
I remember seeing this game years ago. The visuals have come a long way. Back then it was more of a tower defense hybrid

266d5e91_8368070.jpg
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You literally know everything about indie games. It's quite impressive.

This game looks awesome. I was sorta sold on the description alone, but watching the trailer got me pretty hyped beyond that. It's nice to see devs taking chances with straight-up permadeath.
 
Shifty

Shifty

Member
Looks cool, though I hope the levels lean more toward handcrafted than randomised. The metroidvania aspect will be more or less moot if the world gets thrown out every time you die.

More_Badass said:
Come on, Saucy. You cant post about a game like Dead Cells without GIFs

...
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RIP mobile users, but damn if it doesn't look slick. Those animations are fantastic.
 
C

Comfort Jones

Banned
It's depressing that "Souls like" is the buzzword to describe enemies and bosses having attack patterns. You know, one of the most basic tenets of most enemy ai systems.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
Comfort Jones said:
It's depressing that "Souls like" is the buzzword to describe enemies and bosses having attack patterns. You know, one of the most basic tenets of most enemy ai systems.
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He does discuss this and the use of Castlevania in the devlog. Might not have been the best choice of words.
 
C

Comfort Jones

Banned
More_Badass said:
He does discuss this and the use of Castlevania in the devlog. Might not have been the best choice of words.
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I'll give it a look. Tbh in the future whenever I can make my own game I really think it'll be a good idea to avoid naming any other games.

To the game's credit the trailer itself looks quite nice. Will keep an eye on this.
 
L

Lord British

Member
I'm concerned that this game may turn out to have no soul and a distinct lack of control. I don't know yet whether or not it was cut from the mould of the anti-social.
 
Corpsepyre

Corpsepyre

Banned
Can't wait for the day I won't have to read 'souls-like' in descriptions.

This does look interesting though, save for this permadeath b.s
 
T

The_Darkest_Red

Member
I'm not totally opposed to procedurally generated content but I have to admit I'm always a little disappointed to see a game like this go the direction of a roguelike. Those games are fine and I've enjoyed my fair share but nothing beats a tightly designed Metroidvania style adventure. Hopefully this game can change that view for me.
 
H

Head.spawn

Junior Member
Looks cool, definitely interested.
Hexer06 said:
Dam that looks pretty awesome. Like ppl said, I'm always up for another Rogue Legacy type game. If you guys haven't seen it, check out Sundered on Kickstarter(already funded with 27 days to go!). Metroidvania where you unlock skills every death (Rogue Legacy style). It's coming out for PC and PS4 and it's made by the devs who did Jotun. Looks amazing!

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/thunderlotus/sundered-a-horrifying-fight-for-survival-and-sanit
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Thanks for that, forgot this was going up.
 
R

Roarer

Member
Looks pretty cool. Wish they'd do a better job of conveying what makes the game unique instead of throwing around genre buzzwords. Right now I'm intrigued by the visuals and the style, but I have no idea why I should care about the gameplay other than "it's like those other games you like and have played already".
 
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