Second version of dungeons are insane *SPOILERS*

[Nathaniel Prime]

I wouldn't say I'm a grandmaster of roguelites, but I can do well...I regularly get pretty high on daily run leaderboards on 20XX and have a 62 win streak on Hades while maxing out the heat bounties for all the weapons. And I am getting crushed in the second version dungeons. I think it would be easier except that the camera angle makes it impossible to see much, especially if you try to lock on. I am using maxed Ray as my mentor and Go Getter (increased move and attack speed) as my skill. Any tips for how to proceed?

The game was fun until now. It's a shame I seem to be stuck in the crappy version of the main area too, it was so light and fun before and now it's just an unfun bummer to be in.

[Netsa]

Well, this is an entirely different game. Just because they're in the same genre doesn't mean they're the same game.

The dungeon upgrades are a pretty big difficulty spike, but they aren't actually that hard once you figure out what to do (of course, good RNG helps, too). I have a couple of tips, but keep in mind that this is just how I played the game. You might find another way to be easier than this:

- Never use lock on. It jerks the camera, it shortens your dodge, and it doesn't really have any benefits. The only exception is ranged weapons, since they're pretty difficult to aim otherwise. Oh, and keep in mind that your dodges actually have significant iframes.
- Pick Free Hand. It turns all normal two-handed weapons into one-handed weapons, which means you can use higher-damage weapons, but swing them with very high attack speed. It's probably my favorite skill in the game. Higher damage lets me kill things faster, and faster attack speeds leave me less open.
- Don't use Ray as mentor. Again, this is personal opinion, but pretty much every other mentor grants better skills. His only really useful ability is the extra free skill, but that's RNG. Tappi will let you buy overpowered items, Kara will give you overpowered apps, Fern will give you overpowered sodas, Swomp will be overpowered for you. Ray leans on his fancy car while saddling you with crippling debt.
- Finally, slow down. I've found that most of the damage I take is because, frankly, it's hard to see anything, especially in Styx. Take a moment to just dodge around the room and really look at what enemies you're fighting. You will get better at dodging, and you will have a better idea of where the damage you're taking is coming from.

You're right about the main area, though. It stays like that permanently.

[Nathaniel Prime]

It stays like that forever?! Damn, I was rushing trying to get it back to normal. Such a bummer, hopefully they fix that :(

Thank you for all the advice, I'll give all those tips a shot! I'm using Ray for the extra skill, since he's the only one I maxed out so far. I'll try out the others too. I was just putting the quests on hold until I returned the main area back to normal so I could get the nice atmosphere and music back, but I guess that's not gonna happen.

[Nathaniel Prime]

Meh. I finished Joblin but Winkydink is still too damn hard. I've been playing it for hours, and it's just not fun. What a shame, the devs did a great job on the first half before screwing up on the second.

[Netsa]

Originally posted by Nathaniel Prime:

Meh. I finished Joblin but Winkydink is still too damn hard. I've been playing it for hours, and it's just not fun. What a shame, the devs did a great job on the first half before screwing up on the second.

And Styx is even harder! The difficulty in Winkydink is mostly gimmicky, though, in my opinion. The only frustrating enemies are the ones that teleport around, but their projectiles are easier to manage than the Joblin gunners. The rest is just spammy fire pits and the spammy spam boss. Try a different setup and things might get way easier.
- Get the companion monsters from the Winkydink special areas. You can go to the X to reject up to 2 monsters that look like they would be a pain to fight. Friends attract a lot of attention for you, even if they die easily.
- On the same note, if you see the skill "Win Friends & Influence Monsters", always take it. It's the skill that grants a chance that the last monster alive in the room will join you instead of you having to kill it. The proc rate for this skill is very high. Meaning, it will make it so you start at least half of your fights with a free meatshield.
- I also recommend checking the wiki to look at the descriptions for certain skills. It has better explanations for a few items than what's provided in the game, and can shed more light on what's worth picking up or setting as a freebie.

Assist mode is also an option if you ever want to continue the game. Using it doesn't lock out achievements or anything, and I wouldn't blame you for turning it on. Going Under has a lot of weird/stupid battle mechanics that seem to be there just to make things "hard", without feeling as natural as they do in other "hard" games. For instance, the dodge delay, certain negative upgrades, the inability to block, AoE damage doing way more to you than it ever will to enemies, everything about throwing without having multiple buffs for it, etc.

Regardless, I think it's worth experiencing the full game if you can hack it.