Everyone wants to be the hero. This is the basis for an enumerable amount of stories, yet that idea is still prevalent, and it lets us enjoy a power fantasy so we can step out of our lives to be the most important person in the world. Medieval tales of knights and dragons were always a good display of this ideal, and we liked it so much that we are still telling these same tales centuries later. The developers of Devious Dungeon must also think so because you play as a knight errant trying to slay an evil dragon. While this is nowhere near new as ideas go, its damn enjoyable.

On your way to the beast, you will of course have to fight your way through the catacombs under the castle and slay some familiar monsters on your path to glory.  From lich’s to beholders to goblins, you will hack and slash your way through the random generated levels slowly gaining experience and money. While each level design is random even after death, there are checkpoints of a sort as you move through each world, that being the start of the next adventure.  You can make the journey easier though, with the money from the kills you can upgrade all of your items, armor, weapons like in many other RPGs with an extensive list of upgrades. Every weapon and armor upgrade is distinct and lets you look just a little bit more badass but also just adds to the aesthetic by never letting it get boring and gives you a real sense of growth.

With retro 8 bit graphics, it’s a nice nod to the games of yore, while still making the movement and controller scheme modern so it’s convenient to play. More than anything, it is clear that the people who made this want you to have a good time, maybe too much so. I found this game to be actually very easy, so even though there are many levels, it’s more of a chore then they intended. That said, they change the enemy types enough and because of its random nature, your gameplay will always be new. But dying has basically no downside other than that you might have been put back a few stages due to you not beating the boss of that world, which really isn’t a punishment.

So, what we have here is an interesting mix of action platformer, which will have a nostalgic feel for 90’s kids, and an RPG leveling type system with tons of money and loot with seemingly endless upgrades. It’s appealing to a lot of different players, and that’s pretty special since they don’t see eye to eye too often. The only real problem here is that it’s a bit too basic to rated better. It doesn’t really do anything wrong, but when compared to something like Rogue Legacy, that has a great soundtrack and added features all over the place, it’s hard to call them equal too. But if you want that to scratch that “just one more level” itch or get that one more weapon upgrade, then this is definitely in your wheelhouse.