I think I am allergic to roguelike games.
Which is a shame because it makes reviewing the latest from PlayStark Games and PQube a bit tricky. You see, Die After Sunset is billed as an action packed roguelike adventure. Now I like action and adventures, so maybe it’ll be a case of two outta three ain’t bad.
We’ll start with the story as there has been an attempt at a narrative made, even if it feels like it has come straight out of the Big Book of Game Cliches. It’s here where it seems as though some bad guys have travelled through time, us following, as we attempt to save the world. We’ll do this by going to five different time zones in order to get rid of the Murkor Menace, shooting them until they fall. That is, however, about all there is to the story.
The presentation side of things is pretty good, all things considered. Die After Sunset is definitely on the cartoony side of whatever spectrum these games sit on, and has more than a touch of the Fortnite about it. Our heroes are the usual colourful crowd, the enemies are by turns both cute and terrifying, and the world is a vibrant place to be in. The game plays out in a third person perspective, with the camera nailed onto the shoulder of the hero we choose, working mostly as a shooter as we have to take down waves of foes.
Honestly, the sound is all groovy as well, with the usual battle sound effects present alongside some music that does the job and isn’t too obtrusive. All in all it just works. Nothing to moan about here.
So, how about the actual gameplay, how does that work? Well, the premise is good, including a couple of things that set it aside from other games in this genre. The first of these are the Murkors themselves. You see, if you fight them in the sunlight, they are pretty much a pushover, and look almost cute. However, if they get into a shadow or a cave, for instance, being in the shade makes them transform to a much bigger, less friendly form; they also seem to get tougher, taking more bullets to put down. There are weapons that you can use to turn this weakness to your advantage, such as grenades that explode and leave an area of light behind, weakening the Murkors.
As we spawn into a level in Die After Sunset, there is a certain amount of time until the boss of the level shows up. What happens before then is up to us: we can spend this time exploring, looking for new items to help us in the upcoming boss fight, and the best way to get new gear is to complete the various missions that are found in the world. There are nineteen missions in total, dealt out in a random manner, making every run at the game different. There are various different types of missions to try too, from one involving stopping the aliens stealing clothing to missions that require us to put a halt to the Murkors from reaching a certain point. Variety is the spice of life!
After a mission, a star rating based on our performance is given, and the more stars obtained, the better gear gifted. And of course, better gear means you are more likely to survive the boss fight. Doing these missions is most definitely in your interest.
The bosses are quite large, but you will need to hunt them down once they appear. It’s here where Die After Sunset falls down and the directions given on the screen are not great. It took me a few attempts to even find the first boss, let alone beat it, and so learning where the bosses appear is a good idea.
But then we have that roguelike part of the game as well, tied to collecting Mukus (pronounced “mucus”) which is used to buy new abilities and make our characters stronger for the next run. You’ll need it too as each run requires you to finish each of the five stages in one sitting, which is quite a big ask. Obviously the gear you find on each run is vital, and it won’t be long before you start to build up a preference for certain bits of kit over others. Of course, if that kit isn’t on the list of gear for that run…
In conclusion, what we have here in Die After Sunset is a roguelike shooter with a bit of a twist. The whole light/dark thing does make a difference to the gameplay, and the way that the events are randomly assigned to the levels means that there is a bit of longevity built in. However, it doesn’t take long for things to become a little bit tedious. There’s nothing particularly wrong with Die After Sunset, but I struggled to have anything grip me to keep playing.
For the roguelike connoisseur, Die After Sunset may well be right up your alley, but if not, it’ll probably leave you a little cold.
