Backtracks back, alright!
Developed by White Rabbit, Death’s Gambit: Afterlife is a 2D action Metroidvania that builds on and refines the original Death’s Gambit experience. While I didn’t play the original release due to my disdain of “rogue-lites” I can’t speak too much on how the multiple updates the team has added compares to the vanilla version but Death’s Gambit: Afterlife is an enjoyable albeit HUGE “Metroidvania” game.
Death’s Gambit: Afterlife starts off quite unceremoniously; as a soldier named Sorun awakens near a pile of corpses. Right off the bat, DG:A showcases some beautiful pixel graphics; bodies are stacked up and burning, swords and other weapons of war are strewn across the battlefield. You can almost smell the heavy smoke as it rolls on the air; It is a beautiful sight to behold all delivered in wonderous pixel graphics. As Sourn makes his way he runs into a soldier who calls him a “coward” and orders him to return home. Sourn is a man of few words, and set about to return home until he runs into the grim reaper himself; Death. Always the salesman; Death explains that he needs Sourn to do something for him and if Sourn can play his part, then he will be rewarded with immortality.
MSRP: $19.99
Platforms: PC (reviewed), Switch
One of my biggest problems with Dark Souls and some of the others is the seemingly lack of story at the onset of an adventure. Death’s Gambit does a good job of putting the story elements at the front, to really set the tone for the grimdark adventure. While the scope of what Death wants from Sourn will be slowly revealed as the player progresses; the moment to moment gameplay is what will keep people coming back to get to the bottom of this task. And this is Death’s Gambit’s greatest accomplishment, the story and what you glean from it goes hand in hand with the gameplay. When Sourn “dies” sometimes he will be treated to flashbacks; you see he is in the dark just as much as the player is as to what put him in Death’s sights. So, while some of these flashbacks are playable which is a wonderful change of pace, the majority of them will offer a cutscene that will fill in Sourn’s backstory, why he was out there in the first place.
Combat in Death’s Gambit is a pretty standard affair when it comes to the 2D Metroidvanias; Sourn will be able to dodge, parry and block enemy attacks. These abilities including his own attacks are governed by a stamina system that is probably the most forgiving this reviewer has ever seen. Even when whiffing attacks, and dodge rolling too much I never actually felt like I was going to run out of stamina. Unlike my experience in other games with a stamina bar where attacking twice in a row will deplete your bar completely. The class system that Death’s Gambit uses is also a high point, there are quite a few to choose from ranging from a Wizard to Death’s Acolyte. Each of them offer a different and unique ability to the players Sourn, Death’s Acolyte for instance can rebuild statues of the grim reaper which is where players can save the game. Thankfully DG:A will allow you to test out some basic moves of a class before the player locks in their choice which is a nice bonus.
Honestly, I really liked Death’s Gambit: Afterlife more than my initial thought. The amount of content that the developers have added to this new edition is really staggering. 10 new levels, 30 weapons, 5 new bosses and this isn’t even everything; better yet this is a free update for current owners which is always appreciated. As I said I’m not a fan of the “souls-bourne” games but this game really is so much more. Yes, there is stamina, and you will drop items when you die that you will have to pick back up, various abilities are based on the weapons you equip when can be frustrating. But despite all of that, this team has crafted the largest Metroidvania map ever and it is not just an empty shell. There are secret areas to explore, walls that can be broken by attacks, bosses hidden off the beaten path and so much more. And its these moments that make Death’s Gambit: Afterlife shine brightest for me, but if you are a fan of rouge-lites then you will find much to love here as well. It doesn’t really add much new to the genre but it checks all the boxes that rogue-lites require and there is nothing wrong with that.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
