A Robot Named Fight is a metroidvania roguelike focused on exploration and item collection. Explore a different, procedurally-generated, labyrinth each playthrough and discover randomized power ups that allow you to traverse obstacles, find secrets and explode meat beasts.
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Do we not talk about the level design of Metroid enough? Of Metroidvanias/search action titles in general? Is it not one of, if not THE most important aspect to these titles, both a casual play perspective and those of sequence breakers and speed runners?
This is a game that removes that fundamental part of these titles, replacing it with a random arrangement of pre-designed rooms that essentially exist in isolation. No matter how good one specific bit of design can be, one well-designed landmark, it is an island unto itself, interacting not one bit with the world outside of it. To turn a search action title into a roguelike in this specific manner feels utterly, woefully pointless.
It’s not like parts of this aren’t proven ideas heading in. Randomisers match the same thrilling ‘what power-up will I get here’ feeling that Fight provides, but without the sort of genius level design of a Super Metroid, the ability to skillfully navigate without the intended power-ups are lost, and so a power-up that allows progress HAS to be in the rough area you’re playing within. The concepts are proven, it’s in the execution that they fail.
Some positives. It looks good, and the unpleasant fleshiness of enemies and environments carries the machines vs meat theming of the storyline really well. It feels good to play, power-ups depending, and by the end of a run you feel obscenely powerful, firing endless projectiles all over the screen constantly. That visual and feeling is at the centre of many a quality roguelike, and the creators should be proud of that.
The music is inoffensive, which is to say I barely noticed it. Almost criminal in a search action title, but not the worst thing in gaming overall. There’s just a high bar here.
And that’s… maybe all there is to say. I didn’t hate this, despite the fundamental failure that’s at its core. That’s worth something, but that something only amounts to two stars. If I believed in half stars it may be higher, but I don’t, so it isn’t. Get it cheap if you get the chance, don’t if you don’t.
you absolutely can still sequence break, and you unlock a key retro ability by doing so, but in this game all that really means is ‘I made it through a hot/dark room without dying’.
This is a game that removes that fundamental part of these titles, replacing it with a random arrangement of pre-designed rooms that essentially exist in isolation. No matter how good one specific bit of design can be, one well-designed landmark, it is an island unto itself, interacting not one bit with the world outside of it. To turn a search action title into a roguelike in this specific manner feels utterly, woefully pointless.
It’s not like parts of this aren’t proven ideas heading in. Randomisers match the same thrilling ‘what power-up will I get here’ feeling that Fight provides, but without the sort of genius level design of a Super Metroid, the ability to skillfully navigate without the intended power-ups are lost, and so a power-up that allows progress HAS to be in the rough area you’re playing within. The concepts are proven, it’s in the execution that they fail.
Some positives. It looks good, and the unpleasant fleshiness of enemies and environments carries the machines vs meat theming of the storyline really well. It feels good to play, power-ups depending, and by the end of a run you feel obscenely powerful, firing endless projectiles all over the screen constantly. That visual and feeling is at the centre of many a quality roguelike, and the creators should be proud of that.
The music is inoffensive, which is to say I barely noticed it. Almost criminal in a search action title, but not the worst thing in gaming overall. There’s just a high bar here.
And that’s… maybe all there is to say. I didn’t hate this, despite the fundamental failure that’s at its core. That’s worth something, but that something only amounts to two stars. If I believed in half stars it may be higher, but I don’t, so it isn’t. Get it cheap if you get the chance, don’t if you don’t.
you absolutely can still sequence break, and you unlock a key retro ability by doing so, but in this game all that really means is ‘I made it through a hot/dark room without dying’.
Un metroid-like couplé à un rogue-like. Pas fan de la direction artistique mais le concept est original.
Meh.
For what it is, I think it does a good job. It's a mix of Megaman and Metroid as a roguelite, and you can definitely tell! The music isn't anything to write home about, but the design of all the enemies really gets my Jimmies a'rustlin'
Super fun metroidvania roguelike. The areas, the monsters, the bosses, the upgrades, everything is a blast.
My only complaint is that I wish you got something to help your next run when you die. Feels kinda bad to get over an hour into the playthrough, die, and have nothing to show for it for the next run.
My only complaint is that I wish you got something to help your next run when you die. Feels kinda bad to get over an hour into the playthrough, die, and have nothing to show for it for the next run.
A Robot Named Fight! didn't exactly convince me that procedural generation is superior to hand crafted levels when it comes to metroidvanias, but it's still a technically impressive feat to actually make something like this, especially for a lone developer.
The game itself is quite fun too. I didn't like the movement at first but that's only because the mechanic has to accomodate for a random number of speed upgrades. However, I quickly got used to it.
The random upgrades for progression work really well too, although getting an otherwise useless ability to traverse the terrain instead of a shot modifier or weapon is still kinda lame. That's just how this genre works; not all runs can be winners.
The game itself is quite fun too. I didn't like the movement at first but that's only because the mechanic has to accomodate for a random number of speed upgrades. However, I quickly got used to it.
The random upgrades for progression work really well too, although getting an otherwise useless ability to traverse the terrain instead of a shot modifier or weapon is still kinda lame. That's just how this genre works; not all runs can be winners.