A Review: Very unexpected surprise

[fnLandShark]

So I saw this game pop up on Game Pass. The name intrigued me, so I clicked on the store page and watched the trailer and browsed the screenshots. I instantly said to myself, hey what's to lose? Let's download it.

Boy oh boy, this game is a gem in the making. The foundation that is there is pretty decent.

I've read the reviews that claim that the mechanics are too punishing, the combat is boring, the whole game is a scam blah blah blah whatever. I don't care about such trivial and pointless opinions. I've played roughly 8 hours and I'm practically in love.

Let's start with the few cons I've noticed-

Man, that damage scaling is no joke. It's not problematic, but it can definitely get out of control. You've really got to be aware of whats going on around you and stay on the move. I do wish the dodge skill was a little bit more...... dodgy? Is that the right way to say it?

"Arena" sizes and layouts can be a little bit weird, too. I wish there was more open terrain rather than a series of hallways, but it's not that bad. It's only bad when you accidentally corner yourself in a cul-de-sac and get rampaged by melee units. But that goes back on the first con of you having to be situationally aware.

The Communicator is a bit confusing to understand, but that is not too important outside of the story and finding good traders.


Now onto the good stuff-

This game is GORGEOUS. I'm not usually a fan of 2D pixel art, but I would HARDLY call this "pixel art". Pixel art makes me think of something like Binding of Isaac or Enter the Gungeon. The amount of detail in any given sprite in Undungeon is insane. Sometimes the game feels like a vaporwave nightmare with all the glitchy effects and whatnot. IDK if vaporwave nightmare is the right term, this art style is super unique to me. Like I said, not a fan of the 2D genre.

The builds and the crafting is excellent. I've read the complaints that it's too hard and unfair that equipment degrades and organs break. Whatever, man. This isn't an easymode kid's game. Scavenge everything, explore everything, break everything, learn to properly trade, do those side quests, save the friendly NPC's on the overworld. You'll have enough resources to get by, I promise. The crafting system isn't even that complex, either. Kill new enemies, get new organ blueprints. Save up organ resources, craft the organ. No organ resources? Learn when to kill the enemy and learn when to obliterate them. Autopsying wildlife is easy easy.

The story is kinda lit. I really like it. The first two hours in, it kinda made me sick thinking about it. Reality dissolving, descending into utter nothingness and your only hope is to travel through multiple universes and create a whole new reality? That kind of cosmic horror is right up my alley. The only other game that really did it good enough was No Man's Sky (Say what you will about the game, that's fine. But the story is excellent, glaring plot holes and cheesy cliches aside.)

The combat is different, that's for sure. With a little thought and planning and knowing how to use the mechanics to your advantage, you can survive. You will get stomped a lot if you're not playing smart. Even if you play smart, you will get stomped sometimes. But it's not hard for the sake of being hard like the whole "Souls-like" subgenre. You can have some fun in combat. It never feels too much like a burden or a chore.



Overall?
I'm looking at Undungeon as a 7/10.

The game has it's rough spots for sure. Some options for accessibility could be added, but aren't vital in my opinion. I understand that this game under-delivered from its kickstarter promises, but as I said, I don't know anything about that. I just discovered this game a few days ago. But as far as the future goes, the foundation of a truly 9/10 game is built into the release. A few hotfixes/patches and maybe a free DLC or two mixed with some real paid expansions could give us a game that is worthy of an indie classic.

Also, as I said, I played this on Game Pass; hence why I didn't just post a regular review. I figured I could still give prospective players a piece of my opinion as well as let the developers know what they're doing right and doing wrong.

To the devs:
I wish you the best of luck with Undungeon. Work hard to improve it as best as you can.

To anyone debating on buying it:
Buy it. Don't feel like buying it? Game Pass has a promotion going on right now, 3 months for ONE US DOLLAR. Download Undungeon and try out a few other games as well. Undungeon is well worth the 20USD as it is, and your support will allow the devs to further develop the game into something far better than it is.

[Antishyr]

Hey there!

Just wanted to that you for the thorough review. Glad you're having fun.