Help Me Understand this game

[Energist]

The art style is great. Really unique. The UI is also very clean. Overall, the presentation is stellar.

The gameplay is really obtuse.

Attack animations seem to be random. Left, right, thrust etc. Not sure how to control them.

Enemies have tons of hit points, and there are tons of enemies. It doesn't seem like I'm supposed to be wacking away at these enemies for 10+ hits when there's 7+ enemies on screen and 3 of them are summoning more every few seconds...

My weapon breaks?! Why? Where am I supposed to get another one?

I keep dying because I do hardly any damage, there are tons of enemies, and all I can do is spam them with shoves, kicks and hits that do hardly any damage.

I appreciate that the game is challenging. It's certainly not boring, but I'm not making any progress here. I end every run the same way, being bukakke'd by 6+ guys with 10,000 hitpoints while I beat them with my fist because my weapon broke.

[Samseng Yik]

Not sure how you survive gaming until now.
You remind me someone who never played any video game before, then having emotional breakdown when playing the very first mario game and no idea how to jump over the 1st goomba

Lot is every floor guarentee. Weapon drop rates are much higher than armor.
Not sure do you even try to press " T " key to see progress unlock, or "ESC" about combo available.
I mean do you even check the UI ?
Do you even understand loot game RPG statistic ?

Or maybe just throw all of this out of window.
Just simply search a youtuber video who freshly start play the game (and first few run failure) how they improve and get better

[Samseng Yik]

OK it is similar to vermintide for hack and slash part, like attack combo.
But loot is all around the floor (see blue headless armor sitting at the floor)

Beginner tips is focus on using the most basic combo
- bash + attack = quick power strike without needing to charge your attack , deal much more damage and help close the gap with the charge
- kick + attack = as good as previous combo, but quicker, will not move you forward, and stab. Some weapon is much better with stab than power strike

[Hatless]

Don't mind the psychopaths. They can't help being as they are.

The honest answer is that the game has got into a bit a design spiral where it's balanced around an experienced player using a fully-unlocked moveset, but the only way to unlock moves is to beat most of the game. Which is a bad situation, but it's what it is. Until the next balance patch.

Barring "go back in time and unlock everything when the game was easier," I can only suggest grinding the early stages in different orders to unlock stronger classes and skills before playing for real.

[Energist]

Originally posted by Samseng Yik:

Not sure how you survive gaming until now.
You remind me someone who never played any video game before, then having emotional breakdown when playing the very first mario game and no idea how to jump over the 1st goomba

Lot is every floor guarentee. Weapon drop rates are much higher than armor.
Not sure do you even try to press " T " key to see progress unlock, or "ESC" about combo available.
I mean do you even check the UI ?
Do you even understand loot game RPG statistic ?

Or maybe just throw all of this out of window.
Just simply search a youtuber video who freshly start play the game (and first few run failure) how they improve and get better

The only one having a breakdown here is you. I came to ask people for some civil advise.

I'm sorry that not everyone immediately loves your favorite game buddy.

[Energist]

Originally posted by Samseng Yik:

OK it is similar to vermintide for hack and slash part, like attack combo.
But loot is all around the floor (see blue headless armor sitting at the floor)

Beginner tips is focus on using the most basic combo
- bash + attack = quick power strike without needing to charge your attack , deal much more damage and help close the gap with the charge
- kick + attack = as good as previous combo, but quicker, will not move you forward, and stab. Some weapon is much better with stab than power strike

I think I have figured this stuff out.

The weapon breaking was throwing me off.

[Energist]

Originally posted by Hatless:

Don't mind the psychopaths. They can't help being as they are.

The honest answer is that the game has got into a bit a design spiral where it's balanced around an experienced player using a fully-unlocked moveset, but the only way to unlock moves is to beat most of the game. Which is a bad situation, but it's what it is. Until the next balance patch.

Barring "go back in time and unlock everything when the game was easier," I can only suggest grinding the early stages in different orders to unlock stronger classes and skills before playing for real.

I see. I guess it makes sense. I'm figuring out quite a few things. Like the mana potion restores weapon durability ( strange). It also seems like power attacks are supposed to be used much more frequently.

Appreciate the feedback.

The art style is evocative, and totally cool, so I will most likely keep the game.

I'm just missing the depth part. I don't feel like I am having much impact, and the options available to me seem fairly inconsequential when there are so many enemies to deal with.

It probably comes back to the classes, but the game explains the default class is the intended experience.

[Samseng Yik]

At the early stage, you have limited option.
So best you can do is try to unlock stuff that you haven't, example take cave A instead of dungeon A.

Those unlock will slowly give you enough option to play better.
If you unlocked berserker, it is an easier class to learn the game because whirlwind automatic make you invulnerable.

1 important thing is you can cancel your attack animation almost instantly into parrying, parry make your next attack instant whirlwind and short moment invulnerable.

I apologize for my earlier bad reply without empathy.
I forgot I get used to brutal hard action rogue ish soul ish game and this is also a niche game

[Energist]

Originally posted by Samseng Yik:

At the early stage, you have limited option.
So best you can do is try to unlock stuff that you haven't, example take cave A instead of dungeon A.

Those unlock will slowly give you enough option to play better.
If you unlocked berserker, it is an easier class to learn the game because whirlwind automatic make you invulnerable.

1 important thing is you can cancel your attack animation almost instantly into parrying, parry make your next attack instant whirlwind and short moment invulnerable.

I apologize for my earlier bad reply without empathy.
I forgot I get used to brutal hard action rogue ish soul ish game and this is also a niche game

No worries, appreciate your input.

Yeah I like hard games. Don't mind getting my teeth knocked out. I just don't understand what I'm supposed to do other than left click spam my way to to defeat.

I unlocked the monk class somehow. I'll give that one a try and see what changes.

[The Sharpest Image]

Originally posted by Energist:

The art style is great. Really unique. The UI is also very clean. Overall, the presentation is stellar.

The gameplay is really obtuse.

Attack animations seem to be random. Left, right, thrust etc. Not sure how to control them.

Enemies have tons of hit points, and there are tons of enemies. It doesn't seem like I'm supposed to be wacking away at these enemies for 10+ hits when there's 7+ enemies on screen and 3 of them are summoning more every few seconds...

My weapon breaks?! Why? Where am I supposed to get another one?

I keep dying because I do hardly any damage, there are tons of enemies, and all I can do is spam them with shoves, kicks and hits that do hardly any damage.

I appreciate that the game is challenging. It's certainly not boring, but I'm not making any progress here. I end every run the same way, being bukakke'd by 6+ guys with 10,000 hitpoints while I beat them with my fist because my weapon broke.

Attack animations are weapon-dependent and consistent from weapon to weapon. HOWEVER, there are combos triggered by specific input strings. You start with two basic combos, Thrust (KICK -> ATTACK) and Power Strike (BASH -> ATTACK).

You can unlock more combos, weapons, and progression tools as you clear each of the game's 50 levels (Dungeon, Cave, and Forest A1-5, B1-5, and C1-5; Trials A1, B1, C1, the Maw of Sin, and the Final Trial).

You will also unlock more characters naturally as you complete run after run. The strongest character for beginners is probably the Paladin; their shield makes parry timings very forgiving, which helps a lot in general, but especially when you have the Retaliation (PARRY -> WHIRLWIND) Combo from Cave C-3.

Once you are more comfortable with parry timing, the Berserker becomes the strongest class for completing runs due to their starting skill, which grants them invincibility during Whirlwind.

In addition to having easier access to a weapon that always triggers Whirlwind on a standard attack (the Divine Radiance), the Berserker can also easily trigger Whirlwinds via retaliation and other combos and prioritize acquiring the Juggernaut skill that makes their Whirlwinds last longer.

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When it comes to general combat, only optimized runs (e.g. a Monk with Caestus gauntlets, 10 points in Savagery, and the Body Slam item skill) will reliably gib enemies in one or two hits.

Instead, you can defeat enemies more easily by cutting off four of their limbs (which includes the arms, legs, and head). As you damage a limb, it will change color until it explodes in a cloud of blood. The spear and similar weapons are good at this because they're precise and can be used from a safe distance.

Practice some of the combos you unlock in the Graveyard and focus specifically on chaining them into one another. For instance, there's a combo that allows you to interrupt a Whirlwind with a powerful Thrust, and that Thrust can lead into other combos.

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During a run, you should always be swapping out your gear until you essentially complete your build, as the level range for gear drops gets higher the further into the game you go.

The Weapon and Armor Mastery skills increase the level of their respective drops, Curses increase the minimum level of all drops, and a high Luck stat increases the likelihood of finding "rare" items (either Ultra-Rare gear or items with an item skill and up to two additional stat bonuses).

Certain armor skills are almost always useful: Cheat Death (prevents you from dying, takes 30 seconds to recharge), Thorns (instantly kills enemies that hit you), Trapper (instantly kills enemies pushed into traps) Escape Artist (you can't be slowed by traps, chilling scares, or elite enemy effects; poison is less effective), and Mana Shield (halves incoming damage).

Other skills are more situational and depend on your build and class (Monk and Vampire almost always benefit from Body Slam, Monk doesn't benefit from Roundhouse Kick, Berserker doesn't benefit Berserker Rage, etc.)

Weapon skills are more a matter of what best synergizes with the rest of your build, but some skills like Iron Grip (increases weapon durability) are almost always useful. If you finish Trial B1, you can use both of your weapon skills simultaneously; this does not benefit Monk unless you found weapons with skills during your run, which is very unlikely.

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You should always enter portal levels whenever you find them. Although you risk 10% of your health, a piece of equipment, and the possibility that you might be hurt or killed by traps whenever you attempt one, they all offer AT LEAST one of the following: anvils (stronger than the one in the starting area), places to purge curses, plentiful gold essence, and multiple skill increases.

Curses and Trials are more contextual. If my build is strong, I will always take Eclipse (+4 to drop level, gives bosses Elite enemy abilities and makes them drops skill chests) because it's basically a "win more" button that further accelerates my build. I will almost never take either of the curses that trigger when you cut off a limb, however (chance for enemies to go berserk and/or spawn a clone), because they can easily cause fights to spiral out of control.