- Developer: Veewo Games
- Publisher: Team17
- Release Date: 7/14/2020
- Price: £15.99 / $19.99
- Review code provided by Team17.
INTRODUCING – NEON ABYSS SWITCH REVIEW
Roguelikes are quite abundant on the Switch these days. The genre has proved to be quite rewarding and satisfying to those who like challenge. After all, gameplay that changes as your character dies and returns to life can be quite fun to experience. The more you play, the better you get and the further you can progress. Upgrades can occur to help on the next run to make your character even stronger.
Neon Abyss takes this a step further and allows for over the top and insane builds to be had as you make runs through dungeons to defeat more and more bosses! Let’s dive into this action-packed, 2D roguelike action-platformer coined “frantic” by the developers themselves!
LET’S GET REVENGE!
The story of Neon Abyss opens with you sitting on a chair with Hades. He request that you help destroy the Titan group and put an end to their reign. You seek revenge for the destruction of your family. You take a drink offered by Hades and immediately fall through the floor into your first dungeon with a gun in hand. From there, you will try to defeat the many mini-bosses on your way to defeating some of the major bosses in the game.
GUNS, ITEMS, AND PETS GALORE!
The gameplay within Neon Abyss is quite solid. It’s definitely an engaging run-and-gun roguelike where you follow the traditional formula of moving room to room while trying not to die. There are new items to be found that make for interesting changes to the experience. These include guns like the guitar that shoots notes into a shield around you, to the cat that shoots in all directions, and many more options. You are able to unlock more hearts for yourself to increase your health, as well as grab some shields to resist damage. I also enjoy the fact that there is a skill tree available to unlock new ways of play as you progress within the game.
You have the ability to find eggs that can hatch into different creatures with unique abilities throughout the different dungeon runs as well. These have abilities that range from throwing bombs all over the field to shooting a massive array of bullets and a ton more too. They follow you around from room to room, however the eggs don’t always hatch successfully. I had fun with this throughout the playthrough as I felt like I had Pokémon following me around helping to do my bidding.
There are fun mini-games within Neon Abyss as well. There is a piano mini-game where you hop on the different notes to make music. You are able to fish as well to loot some unique items. These mini-games allow you to take a break from the always exciting gameplay and crazy bullet walls that can ensue from being surrounded by enemies.
TURN THE SYNTHWAVE TO 10!
The art within Neon Abyss is 2D in nature, but there definitely is a ton of colors thrown in! While the dungeon areas tend to look more or less the same, the variety of weapons and items available is truly wonderful. Each item looks different from one another and the pixel art works well here. I enjoyed the hub area quite a bit with all of the dancing and music there, along with the different colors that are used throughout the game.
The audio features many synthwave and EDM-based tracks to listen to both within the bar (hub area) and through the different dungeons you will progress through. The music is upbeat and in a quick tempo that makes you want to defeat enemies quickly and never stop moving. This definitely had me staying on my toes in many fights. The music also has the added feature of increasing in volume when enemies spawn on a given room or floor.
SOLID MECHANICS!
From a technical standpoint, Neon Abyss had no noticeable bugs or errors that I could see throughout my playthrough. I didn’t notice much of a difference at all between docked and handheld mode. There were seamless transitions from room to room and floor to floor. The load times between levels are quite quick too. I didn’t notice any stuttering or issues with lag throughout my playthrough either, even when there were tons of particles and bullets on the screen!
YOUR PROGRESS IS REWARDED
Neon Abyss is a wonderful roguelike with awesome features throughout. There are TONS of different items to grab and learn to suit your playstyle for a particular run. You are able to unlock additional characters who have their own twist on the elements within the game. Some have more health, some provide more bombs, and other features too. The progress you make in Neon Abyss is very noticeable and it kept me wanting to go back for more. I can’t recommend this roguelike enough!
PROS
- Awesome artwork
- EDM & synthwave soundtrack
- Multiple endings
- Numerous guns & items to unlock
- Hours of content
CONS
- Difficulty scales quickly
- Areas tend to look similar
- Mini-bosses lack variety
Verdict
If you enjoy slaying enemies while rocking out to synthwave music, then Neon Abyss is the roguelike for you!
