Developer: Molton Studio
Publisher: Raiser Games
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
DIG – Deep In Galaxies – Review
There has been no shortage of good rogue-lite games over the last few years. Titles like Bravery and Greed, Arcadegeddon, or Corpse Keeper have kept us entertained for many hours. Of course, a steady stream of quality games means that new titles will have to meet certain standards to make a good impression. Finding a game that exceeds player expectations can be difficult. On paper, a game like DIG – Deep in Galaxies should be able to meet these, and even be able to stand out from the crowd, as it features some interesting ideas. In this rogue-lite, you will take on the Overlord and his henchmen while digging for riches and fighting for freedom.
Story
The story takes place in a galaxy where a tyrannic Overlord holds a tight grip over the many planets. His reign only benefits him and his followers, and the patience of the common people has run out. Our Overlord and his two admirals suddenly see a rise in armed uprisings coming from all sectors. As they want to quickly crush the rebellion, they send a ship toward an unnamed planet, but unbeknownst to them this is the mistake that will cost them their lives. Your character is enjoying a sunny day when one of the soldiers lands close to your house. Being fed up with the Overlord, you decide to kill the soldier, steal his ship and join the revolution. The campaign takes place in three sectors where you must create as much turmoil as possible to draw out the key figures. First, you will need to take out the Fleet Admiral to get to the Grand Admiral and ultimately find the whereabouts of the Overlord. The narrative has a nice pacing to it, as you get a story update after defeating each boss. You’ll see the Overlord panicking more and more as you get closer to your end goal, which is to take his crown and leadership over the entire galaxy.
Graphics
Visually the game is a 2D pixelated masterpiece from start to finish. The graphics and the animations are highly retro-inspired and the sheer destruction that takes place on the screen makes every encounter a sight to behold. You can smash and blow your way through the landscape while leaving enemies behind in a puddle of their own blood, and this even impacts what the scenery looks like, from a peaceful beginning to a ravaged battlefield in the end. To keep each segment of the game fresh, there is a wide plethora of different planets with different biomes. The cherry on top is that each level is procedurally generated so no two playthroughs are the same.
Sound
The sound, just like the graphics, provides a nostalgic blast from the past. The sound effects are simple but effective and are befitting of the on-screen action, from the various gunshots to explosions and melee attacks. The music that plays during the various stages sounds good and differs from how high the difficulty is, so easier stages are accompanied by calmer tunes while boss fight tracks are quite hectic and adrenaline-inducing.
Gameplay
DIG – Deep In Galaxies is a rogue-lite action platformer where your ultimate goal is to defeat the evil Overlord that holds the planets in a firm grip of tyranny. The first time you start up the game you get to play through a short and informative tutorial. This teaches you the basics of movement and combat, but it forgets one important aspect: mining for gold. As the title implies, digging is a core element of the gameplay. Not only can you dig to get to your destination quicker, but you’ll also collect rare ores in the ground that serve as cash for later trades with merchants.
There are different characters to choose from, and each one comes with its own equipment, stats, and special skill. A meter tied to your special skill fills up as you defeat enemies, and once it’s full you’ll be able to use it. Skills are character dependent and involve things like throwing a bomb, dealing additional damage, or stealing enemy health. During your travels, you can find different weapons and clothing items hidden in chests or dropped by enemies. Most clothes give you a special bonus like damage reduction or faster speed, with the exemption of your starting shoes. Fortunately, you are not limited to finding items solely during missions, as you can outright buy them at space stations. If you are very lucky, then you can even encounter traveling merchants that have rarer gear. Some of the items these carry are tied to previous playthroughs, which is a nice touch. Ultimately the best way to score good gear early on is by completing missions and getting random mission rewards.
The overall structure of the game is pretty simple and straightforward. You start in the first sector and have to defeat the Fleet Admiral. To find his whereabouts, you must stir up some commotion in the current sector as you complete missions for the rebellion. You can always freely travel to planets that have no active missions for some mining if you are short on cash. After stirring up enough turmoil, then a commander ship will appear on the map. Find them and defeat the commander to find the whereabouts of the admiral. These admirals serve as boss battles and are always randomized. If you are lucky, then you have some easy fights but some bosses can end your run quite soon as they are impossibly hard. Dying is not always bad, as after each run you unlock more items, weapons, and even characters.
After defeating the first boss, you set travel toward the next sector. You can choose between three different galaxies and which one you pick changes what kind of levels you encounter later on. This means that you”ll influence whether you’ll mostly encounter volcanic levels, rock levels, ice levels, robot levels, etc. As you progress through these, you need to start causing more turmoil while facing stronger and deadlier enemies. The missions stay the same in length but as you gradually grow stronger so do your enemies. If you want to break up the game’s overall flow, you can always divert your attention towards the challenge mode. This mode caters to those who want a short diversion from the main campaign and those who want to challenge their skills. The aim here is to score high on the leaderboards and show off your skills and knowledge gained from fighting the Overlord.
Conclusion
DIG- Deep In Galaxies is a hidden gem in the Steam store. This rogue-lite title is both fun and enjoyable to play over and over again as you aim for your goal: to defeat the evil Overlord. The gameplay is light and the ability to freely move between planets to play at your own pace offers a great change of pace compared to other rogue-lites on the market. You’ll feel like you’re making great progress after only a few runs and the challenge mode is a nice extra if you want to try something slightly different. Visually the game has some nice pixelated graphics with attention to detail and the sound effects and music are outright nostalgic. DIG – Deep In Galaxies is a game that we can highly advise you to try out and play for yourself.
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