In a world indie more and more vast and varied, that of dungeon crawler it is a genre that always manages to get noticed, thanks to prominent productions with great potential. In fact, it had great potential Desktop Dungeonsa very interesting independent project developed by QCF Design and published in the now distant 2013. A title that certainly didn’t look good – it was 2013, sure, but a bit for technical limitations a bit for budget constraints, graphically the game was really backward – but that showed its teeth thanks to a really gameplay solid and an intriguing concept, as evidenced by the numerous awards won at the time. For this reason, the preview presentation of Desktop Dungeons: Rewind immediately intrigued us. A very eye-catching remake, which uses the opportunity not only to package a technical sector that can do justice to the title, but also to review and modernize the gameplay of the game, and deepen its lore.
Die, rewind and try again
One glance is enough to understand how big the gap is between the original QCF Design title and this new version. It is the very first announcement trailer, to launch us into a world certainly familiar to those who had already played the title in 2013, but totally renewed, with bright colors and a completely different design. In Desktop Dungeons: Rewind we are in fact in a dungeon crawler that retraces what was seen in the original game, but with some interesting changes, both in style and in gameplay.
To venture out to discover the various dungeon, we will have a group of heroes at our disposal. These have one thing in common: they are expendable. Yes, because, as it was easy to imagine, in this game you die and you die. If, however, most of the rogues have accustomed us to permadeath of the characters – permanent death – and therefore the impossibility of reusing that specific character once we have lost him in battle, Desktop Dungeons: Rewind introduces a really interesting mechanic: the rewind.
Rewind, literally “rewind”The actions that have been performed by the player, with the possibility of escaping the character’s death. This rewind mechanic, an absolute novelty compared to the original title, allows you to choose, when the life points are exhausted, to rewind the game and start over from a previous point to that fatal confrontation. It is certainly an interesting novelty, which perhaps conflicts with the very spirit of roguelikes, but it also gives an extra value from the point of view of accessibility, without necessarily affecting those who want a harder experience. It will certainly be interesting to discover this mechanic at its best, to understand how it was conceived and deepened by the development team.
A second chance
During the preview, it was reiterated that the importance of second chances will be fundamental in Desktop Dungeons: Rewinda dungeon crawler with visual isometric that focuses a lot on the tactical aspect of the genre. With various dungeons structured on grill, the player will have the possibility to move on the various squares. However, every action of the player also corresponds to the action of all the various enemies that swarm in the area. A thorough study of the surrounding environment will therefore be necessary in order not to stumble into fatal errors. Errors that, however, as we have seen, can be “corrected” thanks to the rewind mechanics.
There are also some perks, skills and pieces of equipment that may be purchased to enhance and better prepare the character we have chosen to use. From throwing fireballs on opponents, to swapping places with the latter, the skills and items usable in battle they seem like a lot and we expect that, if well combined, they can give life to a complex and fun gameplay.
Before leaving, we remind you that Desktop Dungeons: Rewinda remake of the original indie title released in 2013, will be developed by the same development team and will be released by Prismatika. We also remind you that it is already possible to add the game to your wishlist on Steam, pending the announcement of the official release date.
