Dragon is Dead Review – A Promising Shell with Repetitive Core

Dragon is Dead Review

I enjoy reviewing games of just about every genre, but I’ll happily admit a soft spot for action RPGs, roguelikes, Soulslikes, Metroidvanias and their kin. The only downside is that there are so many of them that after a while, they start to blur together. It’s always a pleasure and a bit of a relief when a new game tries to break memorably free of the template. There are a lot of ways to do it, too, like art direction, narrative and mechanics. Let’s see if Dragon is Dead takes a few chances and emerges with a fresh take on the genre.

One More Run

Dragon is Dead is a fantasy RPG based on a classic, hack-and-slash roguelike loop. Start at the beginning of the game, fight until you die and then start over with all your gold, skills and progression gone. Because this is a roguelite, however, you keep your gear and gems that allow you to purchase boosts or modify your stats. This means that you always have a least a little more chance at success the next time around, even though loot drops are random. Beating each boss inches along towards that final terrifying dragon, Guernian. However, when you die and restart, you still have to defeat all the bosses along the way and of course kill all the low-level enemies all over again.

There’s no character creator per se, but a branching skill tree allows the player to imbue weapons with such effects as elemental magic. Armor and weapon drops make each run unique. At the end of each small area, players can pick from a few different rewards. Interestingly, purchasing buffs mid-level usually come with some sort of stat-reducing penalty, adding a bit of tradeoff to the optional deal. Healing items are always in short supply. Sudden spikes in difficulty and the RNG-dictated chance of a poor run are frustrating. You eventually learn the routine. It’s too bad the repeated runs aren’t more interesting.

In the Thick of It

Combat in Dragon is Dead doesn’t iterate much on the formula. Jumps, double jumps and dodge rolls keep the player out of harm’s way most of the time. Progression is pretty quick, so building through a chosen upgrade path works well. But I had plenty of dud runs, too, where I reached a boss with low health and no way to restore it. Areas in which to fight are extremely small, meaning that it’s nearly impossible to control crowds effectively or roll out of way without running into another enemy. The enemy casters and archers are destructive at an unfairly long distance. Maybe most annoying was the way enemies spawned behind the player or other enemies, making them difficult to attack.

I’m all for challenge and difficulty, but Dragon is Dead needs more than a bit of balancing. There are plenty of times when success is not skill-based, but reliant on lucky RNG drops. Stumbling on good loot should make a run easier for sure. But in the absence of it, a player should have a fallback mechanic and Dragon is Dead seems loathe to provide it. Refighting already defeated bosses seems like an unnecessary chore.

Pretty Pixels

Another niggle I had with the game’s combat actually relates to Dragon is Dead’s art. There are aspects of the game’s lush pixel-art design that are quite attractive, moody and detailed. The environments focus on haunted woods, ancient-looking dungeons and moody castles, all with a fairly somber color palette. Some of the enemies, however, are collections of relatively undefined pixels. This made for some difficult-to-read combat situations where it was unclear whether I was making contact or how/if the enemy was doing damage to me. On a positive note, the game’s bosses were visually impressive and often fun to fight, at least for the first time.

In terms of level design, there’s nothing that really stands out. There’s a bit of verticality, but little in the way of secrets to discover. Unfortunately there are also long stretches where literally nothing’s going on.

Dragon is Dead’s narrative doesn’t reach for the stars in terms of originality. It’s a story of a world corrupted by a malevolent force, the dragon Guernian. That doesn’t concern me. Plenty of otherwise excellent RPGs have mediocre stories. What did annoy me was the way the bland, expository, unvoiced dialogue was dribbled out one tedious sentence at a time. It has been a long time since I skipped through dialogue with such absolute disinterest or impatience. It’s a shame because there was no doubt lots of lore that might have been interesting had it been delivered in a more engaging way. Each run means skipping through NPC dialogue all over again.

Question Answered: Nothing Stands Out

I won’t say that Dragon is Dead isn’t sometimes a good time. Its system of upgrades and progression mechanics can lead to powerful characters. At the same time, rarely are repetitive runs through the same areas memorable. I think ultimately Dragon is Dead would have been a more enjoyable game framed as a traditional hack-and-slash Souslike ARPG, where its combat and character building could shine. In its present form, the roguelite elements, repetitive runs, generic setting and dull writing overshadow the genuinely enjoyable elements.

***PC code provided by the publisher for review***