Friday 7 January 2011

Epic Dungeon - 360

This indie developed dungeon crawler by Eyehook was released last month but it deserves a mention here as it’s magnificent.

Taking inspiration from classics such as Rogue, Angband and Shiren The Wanderer, Epic Dungeon is a game of survival where one false move will cost you dearly.

Like the above mentioned games, death in Epic Dungeon is permanent. When you die there’s no going back to a previous save - you have to start the adventure from scratch. But before you dismiss this gameplay quirk, it’s worth noting that Roguelikes offer a depth of experience sadly absent from many big-budget titles.

Moves and routes through levels must be carefully planned and luck also plays its part. Unlike traditional Roguelikes, Epic Dungeon doesn’t favour turn-based moves. Instead, the action is constant, with the player always under threat from rats, witches, orcs and goblins.

New weapons, armour and items are scattered throughout the game’s randomly generated levels, so no two games are ever the same.

Epic Dungeon also gives a nod to old Choose Your own Adventure books by giving the player decisions to make as they progress - will you join in a drunken sing-song with a bunch of wart-covered orcs, or will you wade in with your sharpened blade instead?

With a choice of three classes, various skill ups to choose from and bags of replay value, Epic Dungeon is not to be missed. It also only costs 80 Microsoft points - less than a bar of chocolate, so there’s no excuse not to give it a try.