room13 [Early Access Review]
Game: room13
Genre: Side-scrolling horde-mode
Developer: The Paper Robot
Publisher: Clickteam
Copy supplied by developer
room13 is side-scrolling horde-mode game developed by The Paper Robot and published by Clickteam and is currently available on Steam Early Access.
GRAPHICS
The black-and-white art style is rich of detail in the different rooms that you explore, and the walls quickly turn red when you blast your way through zombies.
GAMEPLAY
Your objective is to avoid dying while exploring the different rooms of the mansion. In order to proceed, you have to collect the blood and guts that the zombies eject, to then grab a vial of blood: after getting three vials of blood, the doors of the room open up and some crates appear. The crates either contain weapon improvements, weapon receivers, a secondary weapon, health or nothing.
The keyboard controls are rather awkward, so I recommend using a controller (if you own it, of course). The shooting feels really good, and the controls are responsive enough. Like with many horde games, it does tend to get repetitive after some time, and there currently isn't much variety in enemies and weapons, but the different rooms have various environmental hazards and the zombies are satisfying to kill.
CHALLENGE
The game tends to be more frustrating than challenging: you will finish your clip too fast, and you are armless against the horde of zombies that's trying to eat you. It is also really easy to don't notice the vial of blood spawning, and if you don't take it, it will explode and damage you.
SOUND
The noises of the zombies and the gunshots are really good and effective, and the music gives you enough adrenaline and hurry to fight the zombies.
REPLAYABILITY
The game does get really addictive, and you will want to unlock all the different masks to get perks and gameplay variety. Plus, more features will be added in future updates.
Overall, the game is well developed, but it does tend to get incredibly frustrating rather than enjoyable. Those who are looking for a good challenge will be more than satisfied, while other players won't pick it up that often.
Story: n/a
Graphics: 7.5
Gameplay: 8
Challenge: 8
Sound: 8
Replayability: 8.5
ENJOYMENT: 7.5
FRUSTRATION: 8.5
