Deadly Days, developed by Pixelsplit and published by Assemble Entertainment and WhisperGames, is a charming roguelike set in a zombie apocalypse. The game features tropes from both genres: scavenging for supplies and recruiting other survivors, all while exploring randomly generated levels and experiencing frequent deaths. This combination makes for fun, addicting gameplay that had me playing “just one more run” again and again.
Before I even started the tutorial, this game had me hooked with its presentation. The whole experience has a silly tone that had me smiling or laughing throughout each run. The pixel art and animation keep Deadly Days from being a gritty zombie game, and the music ranges from campy to energetic with multiple tracks that will stay stuck in your head. Plenty of wacky characters and comedic bits also help keep the game lighthearted, and I greatly appreciated that.
Each run has the player exploring randomly generated maps, looting buildings, and mowing down hordes of zombies. Rather than move each of your survivors individually, you select a point on the map for all of them to go towards, and they will attack any nearby zombies on their own. You also have a variety of special powers that you can use to either buff your survivors or deal with the hordes around you.
Combining all of these mechanics, Deadly Days almost feels like a real time strategy game. You have to constantly manage your group’s position, keep the zombie hordes from growing too large, and loot everything you can. Each mission is pretty short, and this works in the game’s favor. The bite-sized experience makes you want to get as much done as you can, and there’s always something new to grab your attention.
In between levels, you return to your base to prepare for the next mission. You can equip your survivors with new weapons, choose your powers, and select base items. Your base items will give you passive bonuses, and there are interesting synergies that can be found between them. I do wish you had a little more choice over which items and powers you found, but they are usually random loot rewards. Ultimately, RNG is just something you have to accept with roguelikes, but having more options to build towards specific strategies would have been nice.
The gameplay loop of going on a mission, optimizing your build, and so on is pretty fun. Each mission is quick and exciting, and you get to make meaningful decisions at base. However, I would’ve appreciated more variety between missions. Each mission type is essentially the same as the typical “Scavenge”, but with a larger building that has better loot, such as a hospital or supermarket. Roguelikes often have the player doing the same thing over and over, but this one seems a little more repetitive than most.
Ultimately, Deadly Days is a ton of fun. As a big fan of roguelikes, this is a game I could sink a lot of hours into. It’s good for a quick gaming session or spending all night grinding through some runs. Despite my nitpicks, this is definitely an engaging and entertaining experience.
Final Score: 7/10
Check Out the Deadly Days Trailer:
Deadly Days is out on PlayStation via the PlayStation Store, Xbox via the Microsoft Store, as well as on PC via Steam and Nintendo Switch.
Steam Review
Gaming has always been a huge part of my life. I've always appreciated how they can test an individual's skills as well as bring people together. In particular, The Legend of Zelda franchise has some of my favorite games of all time for the sense of wonder I get each time I return to them.
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