Passtech Games, a talented French studio, which throws us a good roguelite Hades-like. A lots of weapons available (a right hand weapon, a left hand weapon and a two handed weapon). You recover gold with each room crossed but also corruption and with each level of 100pts of corruption, you undergo a curse which will force you to adapt your build and your gameplay. An excellent roguelite, with in particular a super pleasant graphic style (3D cell-shading). Small flat on the narration which is unfortunately not very developed and which makes you go around in circles in the long run by farming the crystal skulls, a little more storytelling would have been cool to keep the interest of relaunching fresh runs (like Hades does).

Curse of the Dead Gods is a well made roguelike that is experientially similar to Hades. I like it, but won't stick with it for much longer.

Curse of the Dead Gods has very solid combat mechanics that are focused around a stamina system that is used to execute melee combos, ranged attacks, and to dodge. I like this system, though it does take a bit of getting used to and has some rough edges. It encourages more cautious play and creates a natural ebb and flow to the combat as you sometimes have to retreat to regain your stamina.
The way stamina works does create a bit too much uncertainty in the combat for me, unfortunately. Your dodge only works while you have stamina and when you attack with stamina, the final hit in your combo is a more powerful version of itself that uses stamina. The result is that I often unexpectedly find myself failing to dodge out of an attack unexpectedly. The limited i-frames on the dodge make it even worse, since sometimes you don't dodge because of your stamina, and sometimes you fail to dodge because you got hit, with the end result being that the reason for your failure is unclear. (so you try to dodge again but you actually were out of stamina so you get hit again or you just used your last stamina dodging incorrectly so now you are out of stamina so you get hit again, etc...)

There are multiple weapon types, each of which goes into a main-hand slot, an offhand slot, or a 2-hander slot. Each of them offers a unique moveset and the main and offhand weapons combo into each other in unique and satisfying ways that make the different options fun to explore.
In addition, you accrue relics (straight, small bonuses) and curses (larger positive bonuses with a drawback) as you fight through the temple. Some of these are interesting, but most of them don't change your playstyle too much. I didn't find enough variety in runs other than the weapon itself, unfortunately, which is a pretty big flaw for a game of this type.

The narrative in Curse of the Dead Gods is basically non-existent, but the theming is very strong. You are a guy fighting his way through an Aztec temple for some reason that isn't super clear. Everything is very evocative and in line with the Mesoamerican style of the setting (with a bit of Elder God thrown in) and I enjoy fighting my way through this world even if I don't know why I am doing it.
The game looks great. It is a bit reminiscent of Mignola's art, but with more detail. Heavy use of light and shadow in the art lend itself well to some light and shadow based gameplay that is minorly important as well.

I had a good time with Curse of the Dead Gods, though I don't think there is quite enough here for me to stick with it. I want a bit more uniqueness from run to run and I think the mechanics are just a bit too finicky to really keep me around on their strength alone.
If you are done with Hades and want a similar experience, can't hurt to try this one out!

Platinum trophy #200

Very similar to Hades but don't write this off as a cheap knock-off. It's worthy of your time

Fun: 10/10
Grind: 11/10 (oo pramis grabe. Will explain below bakit)
Playtime: 41 hours & 58 mins (according to the in game timer but tbh it's much longer cuz I kept save scumming)

At first I dismissed this game as a cheap knock off version of Hades but I'm so glad I gave it another go because hell, I was so wrong. I thought that this was just a simple Hades copy with a Mayan/Aztec theme (technically it's Mesoamerican mythology). Tbh since I already platinum-ed Hades 2 times already, I wanted to plat it again for the 3rd and last time but alas I couldn't find an R2 version 😔. Sorry napahaba nanaman ang aking story time, pag usapan na natin yung mismong game.

Curse of the Dead Gods is mechanically very similar to Hades but once you've actually dig in and played there are plenty different things. A very obvious difference is the parry system and stamina system. In this game there is a visible counter that would indicate that times you can dodge or execute more powerful moves. This system makes combat more strategic, you have to weigh in your stamina if you should go be aggressive or play defensively. In a way this makes the combat of Curse more slow and deliberate. It's not purely reaction, timing takes place too because you would also contemplate if you'll parry or just dodge. At yung weapon dito you can change in the middle of the run, instead of being tied to just 1 weapon. That's just to name a few, madami pa cool stuff you learn as you play. It's different and unique.

I just hate it kasi how lots would dismiss the game immediately just because of the similarities with Hades. Take it from me, this is a solid roguelike, worthy of your time. Kung ang Hades sakin ay 5 out of 5, Curse of the Dead Gods is a soild 4.5 out of 5. Yung .5 na kulang for me is the story telling. There is lore through the text in the codex bestiary but the home base is empty, no one to talk to. In my opinion, having those dialogues kasi gives the run a purpose. After dying or succeeding in a run, you look forward to the plot advancing.

Problematic trophy: Memoirs (Write all Bestiary entries with their complete sketches)
This is why I scored this game a Grind level of 11/10. To complete a sketch you must defeat an enemy without getting hit. And that includes bosses. So yeah, this is why I kept save scumming. According to psnprofiles ultra rare daw yung plat nito and I think it's cuz of this trophy hahaha. Pero ayan, kinaya naman. So if anyone needs any help, tips, builds guides, for this game. Or even Hades for that matter. Ask away, I would be happy to help.

Happy Gaming everyone! ❤️