Descenders PS4 Review: Roguelite Rogue Bikes
Descenders arrives for PS4, and the roguelite extreme biking game has lost none of its charm, with thrilling speeds and tricky hazards to beat.
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Video games have had a long love affair with extreme sports, allowing some of the most challenging sporting events to appear in digital form. While early examples such as Skate or Die have generally been forgotten, series like Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater are now legendary. It’s far from an extinct genre either, as shown with Descenders.
Initially released in May 2019 for PC and Xbox One, Descenders throws players into downhill mountain biking with an arcade-style flair that’s a far cry from more serious titles like the Tour de France video games. Descenders is developed by RageSquid, who have finally made the move to release the game for the PS4. However, those expecting a straightforward cycling game may be surprised.
This is because Descenders includes some intriguing structural elements that tie it closer to roguelite titles. The player chooses their trails as they move across the map, aiming to reach a boss stage before they run out of daylight akin to the rush felt in FTL: Faster Than Light, albeit with much smaller stakes. These maps cover different climates that come with their own challenges, such as dense forests, cliff tops, and even rolling hay bales.
Each level is procedurally generated, and although this sometimes throws a curveball through awkward navigation, generally it works rather well. Because they are random by design, the player will never know exactly what’s going to come up next on any given playthrough, leading to a constant need to react quickly. It shows how well procedural generation can work and how versatile a development tool it can be, in a very different way to No Man’s Sky. Meanwhile, the brief length of the trails, which take between 30 seconds and a minute to complete in general, ensures that gameplay remains fresh.
That gameplay is extremely engaging. Players will quickly need to get to grips with the game’s physics and intuitive trick control, as well as gain an understanding of when to go for broke and when to be more cautious. It can feel a little clumsy at times, particularly in the woodland stages where the procedural generation can mean landings to jumps are nigh-impossible to complete due to the thick forest, but mainly is tactile and responsive.
Knowledge of how Descenders works is very much key to success, as the harder the player is able to push the more chances they will get to reach the boss stage. Each trail has a different secondary challenge to complete, such as pulling off a specific trick or going above a certain top speed. This gives the player an extra life, but by pushing for it rather than playing it safe the rider could be dooming their run. Some of these also tie into sponsorships, too, which unlock more of the game’s customization options.
There are thankfully a fair few temporary buffs that can make progress a little easier. Much like pure roguelikes such as The Binding of Isaac, the player will occasionally get power-ups such as better control at high speed or wider tracks over the course of their run. It works well as a means to give the rider bonuses if they’re able to stack up long term success.
However it’s much more forgiving than some of the more severe and direct examples of the genre. Descenders is for sure a challenging game, but akin to Crypt of the Necrodancer you can spawn from a later biome if the player has been successful enough in the previous one. It means that the player doesn’t have to go back to the beginning each and every time they run out of lives – as long as they can show a modicum of skill along the way.
Descenders does have its drawbacks, though. Depending on the random level that the player is granted, the balance of load time versus play time might put some players off. Meanwhile the occasional stuttering in more complex levels (particularly in the woodland trails) can be frustrating to get through.
In spite of this Descenders is a lot of fun. It’s rare for a roguelite to be a relaxing, refreshing experience, but Descenders manages through its short levels and reflex-based gameplay. Between its high top speed and breakbeat soundtrack, it manages to find a useful niche for those after a quick pick-up-and-play.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/descenders-game-review/