Developer: Lemonade Flashbang
Publisher: Astrolabe Games
Platform: Switch, PC
Tested on: PC
Doomsday Paradise – Review
Okay, you got us. When we reviewed Gori, we did say we were going to play less chaotic games next. Somehow, we ended up with a game that is still chaotic, albeit not in the same way. Doomsday Paradise is a dating sim that is… well, different. And we’re not just saying that because it allows you to date a gay vampire wizard. Join us on this mad-cap rollercoaster ride as we take an in-depth look at Doomsday Paradise.
Story
Welcome to Sunset Town. Enjoy it while it lasts. This city, inhabited by all sorts of monsters and demons, happens to be the epicenter of an impending apocalypse: The Dark Knight (no, not Batman) is coming to destroy the world in a few days. So what do you do while waiting for imminent destruction? Well, you try to make the best of it by finding your true love. Or at least, getting some action. And even IF the Dark Knight’s plans are thwarted, then another enemy will try and destroy the world every five or six days. In fact, these world-ending events are so common that a Doomsday Party is being held fairly regularly. As one of Sunset Town’s inhabitants, you see that party as the perfect opportunity to finally close the deal with your crush. And so, over the course of the next few days, you try to build up a relationship with them, hoping to pop the question on Doomsday night – right before fighting the big bad.
Graphics
The character designs are probably worth the price of entry alone. Where else are you going to find a bodybuilder with a fish head and crab claws or a dragon wearing high heels and a dress? Both the available cast of protagonists and the objects of their desire are diverse and off-beat. Don’t go in expecting R-rated content, however. The game is handled in the most tasteful way possible. Well, as tasteful as you can get with a fish-man wearing a thong, that is. Doomsday Paradise’s hand-drawn art is gorgeous and emphasizes the overall quirky nature of the game. The combat animations are on the simple side, and most scenes feature just static portraits, but we still enjoyed the overall presentation. An added benefit to the simple presentation is of course that Doomsday Paradise’s performance is buttery smooth.
Sound
One aspect of Doomsday Paradise that might end up being divisive is the game’s audio. The high-energy soundtrack is fine, albeit not what you’d expect in a dating sim. There is voice acting but it is limited to short snippets and reaction sounds to indicate emotion. Unfortunately, those snippets were our biggest issue with the game, as they tend to become annoying and repetitive very quickly. Of course, we’d have preferred it had the game been fully voiced instead, but given the sheer amount of scenes, we understand the decision not to do so. As much as it pains us to say, however, this is one case where we’d been happier had voice work been eliminated altogether.
Gameplay
Given that both Doomsday Paradise’s premise and audiovisual presentation are quirky and different, it only makes sense for its gameplay to stay away from the beaten path too. At its core, Doomsday Paradise is a dating sim, but you’ll find roguelike deck-building mechanics and RPG elements here as well. After selecting your own character and your chosen suitor, you’ll have a set number of days during which you’ll level up specific attributes to up your desirability depending on what your potential lover likes. Each in-game day consists of a morning and an afternoon. In the morning, you’ll make choices that drive the story forward, and in the afternoon, you directly make a choice that affects your chosen character’s stats. After these choices, you’re taken to the game’s map to choose a location and watch things play out depending on the choices you made. The game tries to nudge you in specific directions by having bonus rewards at certain locations, although choosing the recommended location doesn’t always yield the best rewards.
Sometimes, you’ll end up fighting a minor enemy at one of these locations, which is where Doomsday Paradise’s roguelike deck-building mechanics come in. You take on enemies in short, turn-based battles using items and allies you’ve obtained in story segments. At the end of a playthrough, you’ll end up facing the boss, using the same deck of cards and allies you’ve assembled during your run. Or, you know, you can simply send out one of your allies and go back to flirting instead. If you choose the latter option, you’ll find that you take direct control of that ally and you’ll get a better reward at the end, but the fight will be much, much harder. On the other hand, if you successfully conquer your betrothed’s heart before the fight to save the world, they’ll join you, making said fight a lot easier. It will probably take you a few runs to really familiarize yourself with Doomsday Paradise’s combat mechanics, although if you’ve ever played a roguelike deck-builder, things shouldn’t be too confusing to figure out. It’s a very simple game in terms of mechanics, and doesn’t bring anything new to the table. It’s clear that the game relies on its charm and zaniness to draw in players rather than delivering engaging gameplay.
Playing a single game of Doomsday Paradise only takes around 15 minutes or so, but with over 400 scenes and over 100 different endings, there is plenty of replayability here. You can adjust the parameters of the game too, making it so that there are more days in a single run. This in turn lets you become both stronger in combat as well as sharpen your flirting skills. Every time you complete a run, you’ll unlock stuff that influences later playthroughs as well, such as new enemy types or more in-game currency. While this does motivate you to keep playing, Doomsday Paradise’s biggest weakness is perhaps that there isn’t enough depth to the gameplay to really motivate you to keep playing and 100% the game. There’s an over-reliance on the game’s atmosphere and writing, and while this would have been fine had this been just a dating sim, the combat mechanics feel somewhat tacked on and take the pacing out of the game. At an RRP of €14.99, you could do a whole lot worse than Doomsday Paradise, but unless you fall completely in love with this world and its inhabitants, chances are you’ll find that the gameplay overstays its welcome.
Conclusion
We enjoyed our time in Sunset Town, but it’s hard not to see that certain aspects of Doomsday Paradise fall flat. The gameplay lacks depth, and while that shouldn’t necessarily be an issue for a dating sim, we do feel that the game comes up short when it comes to its roguelike deck-building mechanics. Things get repetitive after a while too -there’s only so much that zany writing and great visuals can cover. Don’t let that deter you from giving Doomsday Paradise a go, but keep your expectations in check and you might end up having a great time in Sunset Town as well. You might even get lucky!
No Comments