Developer: Crooked Games
Platform: PC (Reviewed)
Genre: Action
Publisher: Take IT Studio!
Death Kid is a cryptic arena brawler. The game was developed by Crooked Games, published by Crooked Games, and Take IT Studio!. The game is available on PC with a future release on console.Â
The Death Kid is cursed with immortality, and deep in the forest is a well that is divided by several floors, each defended by vile creatures. The game’s narrative revolves around breaking eight seals to reach the bottom of the viscous well to get the wheel of life and death into motion. It is up to you to protect the three souls trapped between life and death as you take on hordes of creatures.Â
The controls for Death Kid offer responsive, smooth controls, which are crucial for the fast-paced, arena-style combat. The game works effectively on a keyboard/mouse or with the use of a controller. I felt that with the style of the game, the controller was much better to use. Gameplay performance is excellent, as players can engage in close battles while utilising a variety of powerful abilities. The tutorial for Death Kid was very good, as it left no details out and thoroughly explained every mechanic and skill.Â
Death Kid features high-quality pixel art animations that bring the underworld to life. A mix of vibrant and dull lighting adds emphasis to the battles you get to take on in the game. The visuals resemble Moonlighter and Hollow Knight with crisp, minimalist yet detailed elements. The game has a town-down view to give players a better look at the arena, and I enjoyed how each level has a different colour scheme and various enemies with differing behaviours. The design for the protagonist resembles the Grim Reaper, and other enemy designs are expressive through animations. Animations are smooth and go hand in hand with the combat in the game. The atmosphere of Death Kid is enhanced by the audio that complements the mysterious and dark setting. The music consists of low, drum-like beats that sequence well with the character’s attacks.Â
The game consists of eight levels, with a roguelite element to it. If all three souls die, then you restart from level one. The aim of the game is to complete all eight levels in one go and defeat the boss at the very end. Rather than completely starting over, I do like that your abilities and skill points can be used even after a restart. I like that the game is challenging but not challenging to the extent that I would start getting annoyed about dying over and over again.
In Death Kid, the objective at each level is for you to protect three different souls that sit at the centre of the arena. If enemies get close to the souls, their health bars start to decrease. Rather than the main character having a health bar, those souls are what players need to protect the most.Â
In terms of the combat, I enjoyed that you don’t get bombarded by enemies but rather get waves of enemies that you can easily tackle as you take them one at a time. The combat is quite nice, where you can use evade attacks through dodges, and use punch and kick attacks. After each death, you get brought to a hub area where you can increase your character’s stats, and the game does include some dialogue between ‘your guide’, which is always nice to read up on. As you unlock skills/abilities, you can also test them out before going back into the well. In the actual battle, skills will build up slowly as you kill enemies, which is balanced nicely and adds a bit more challenge to the game. There were instances where it felt like the skills were overlooked, as you could complete some levels without even using any major abilities.Â
Death Kid is a simple and relatively short game that, for some, may take two hours, depending on how familiar you become with the mechanics and enemies in this game. Usually, after a few runs, you start understanding a pattern, and it does not entirely differ. At each level, you will have three stages of hordes, which become more and more difficult. I found that the best approach is to understand the pattern and strategise attacks in a way that would keep enemies from reaching the souls.Â
If you are looking for a simple combat arena game, then this game is just for you. Death Kid offers a skill-based combat with captivating visuals and an intriguing narrative. The game emphasises rougelite elements and strategic gameplay. Take on a challenge in this underworld-themed arena brawler. Be sure to check out Death Kid!
Overall: 9/10
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