Hung after defeating him, it turns out that he was the rope, and not the man strangled by it, and the misconception was a constant thorn in his side. But wait! If you read the journal entry about Mr. Hung,” and, as it turns out, the name was not an attempt at innuendo, but a reference to the fact that he was an office worker hanging from an actual noose. An example of the latter: I encountered a miniboss named “W. Speaking of jarring: Have a Nice Death’s humor ranges from satirically incisive (interns are barred from using any powers or garnering any useful abilities) to downright cringey. Image: Magic Design Studios/Gearbox Publishing It’s possible that I just need to change my thinking with regard to my loadouts in future runs, but as it stands, Gordon is an unwelcome difficulty spike at the end of a diverting cruise. There are upgrades called “curses” that can improve a weapon or ability but also bestow a debilitating nerf, along with challenges and modifiers that might make future runs more difficult - but all in all, I’ve found Have a Nice Death to be a bit too forgiving, right up to the point where it’s brutally tough. Even the second area, the Industrial Pollution Department, seems lacking in major challenges, barring the final boss of the area, one Mr. Most fights in the first area (the Hall of Eternity) have been a breeze on each run, including each encounter with Brad, the Chad in charge of office security. On a mechanical level, Have a Nice Death is immediately responsive and satisfying. As Death, you’re nimble, able to chain slashes of your scythe into midair dashes that bring you to the next flying enemy, before slamming into the ground beneath you and crushing an otherwise stubborn opponent (decked out in a Dwight Schrute-esque getup, of course). Weapon stats shift from run to run, but also throughout each run, so you’re encouraged to be flexible with your arsenal and swap out any weapon that’s not getting the job done. After dying and starting a new run, you might switch to a weapon combination consisting of a massive hammer and an area-of-effect fire attack. (The scythe, appropriately, appears to be a permanently equipped item.) Over the course of a run, you might find a spear whose attack doubles as a dash past bigger enemies you might then complement said spear with a duo of hornets that will home in on the nearest bad guy. On each run, you begin with Death’s trusty scythe, and build a loadout from there. Image: Magic Design Studios/Gearbox PublishingĪs Death, your objective is to travel through the various departments of Death Incorporated, reprimanding (read: beating up) unruly employees and correcting corporate clusterfucks as you go. And in an increasingly crowded genre, a long-term progression loop can make or break a game. But I’m still not sold on its long-term progression loop. Have a Nice Death got its hooks into me early with its tight combat, slick platforming, and a slew of creative enemy types. I played three hours of the game this week, during which I slashed my way through the first two areas of Magic Design’s bureaucratic hell, gathering macabre new weapons and fighting dark yet cartoonish manifestations of corporate culture. Its protagonist is none other than Death himself, whittled down to a nub by burnout and ennui thanks to the grind of never-ending paperwork and office politics. Now, here is Have a Nice Death, a project from Magic Design Studios, which will be fully released on March 22 after a year in early access. And just this week, Dead Cells, one of the early staples in the roguelike resurgence, received a new DLC in partnership with one of the medium’s most revered series. Indie darling turned multiplatform powerhouse Hades all but dominated 2020’s award season Returnal showcased the PlayStation 5’s staying power in 2021 Cult of the Lamb, Vampire Survivors, Rogue Legacy 2, and Nobody Saves the World meshed roguelike mechanics with an array of other genres last year. Are roguelikes today’s defining video game genre? It’s a hard argument to oppose.
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