PC Critic Reviews

Astral Ascent is a Roguelike that should be mentioned alongside genre greats like Hades and Spelunky, and simply demands to be played.

Astral Ascent is the roguelite I’ve been wishing to play for a hot minute. Its combat is highly variable, incredibly replayable, and quite gorgeous. It’s a fantastic example of a roguelite that is easy to pick up, fun to return to, and rewarding despite losing early and often.

Overall, Astral Ascent hits the mark in basically every single category that matters. Truly dynamic combat that requires you to strategically plan your attacks and dodges is very well-implemented. As a result, the importance of movement in this game is further elevated by just how smooth the game feels to play. This is all without mentioning the incredible boss fights, engaging upgrade systems, amazing ambience and atmosphere, and magical art-style and soundtrack. You can tell that the developers were not only passionate, but also dedicated in delivering a polished finished product - which they successfully achieved.

Astral Ascent ticks all the right boxes for a must-play action roguelike experience. The character progression, boss design, and addictive replayability combine to deliver a highly polished and rewarding package. While the story elements and characterizations may not fully live up to their potential, the voice acting partially compensates for this. Ultimately, the gameplay in Astral Ascent stands out as some of the best in the market, offering brilliant responsiveness and speed that all action lovers should prioritize.

Action roguelike enthusiasts should give this title a chance, as it offers a highly enjoyable and addictive formula with deep and customizable combat, meticulous attention to audiovisual and narrative aspects. However, the initial hours of gameplay might be confusing, and the absence of Spanish language support despite a rich narrative could be a drawback.

I enjoyed Astral Ascent when it was in Early Access and I still enjoy it after it’s official release. Multiple characters, spells, and abilities along with procedurally generated areas and some fun and interesting boss fights against the Zodiacs give Astral Ascent plenty of replayability. If these kinds of games are up your alley, you’ll get plenty of gameplay out of Astral Ascent.

Astral Ascent offers the usual roguelite gameplay where you have to die a ton of times to get a decent build and progress a little bit, and the system of spells and power-ups at the beginning is a bit foggy. After the first couple of hours without any particular excitement though, the game explodes and shows us its full potential, especially when you manage to unlock the four heroes. At that point, it becomes one of the best video games in this genre, despite the fact that not much attention has been given to the platformer component. If you love characters to grow with thousands of combinations, you are in the right place.

Astral Ascent is stunningly beautiful: The smoothly animated characters dance their lightning-fast combat ballet in front of filigree landscapes that shine in bright, fresh colors. Particularly motivating are the many ways that you can equip and upgrade those characters.

Astral Ascent is a tough and cruel rogue-like that'll test your patience and skills. Additionally, it is filled with lore, interesting characters, and fascinating level design. However, it is so tough that it'll defeat many gamers.

If you are tired as heck of roguelike games, this is not the game that’s going to change your mind. But if you like solid platforming action and are willing to learn the game’s systems, crack the bones and sink into the marrow? You’ve got a heck of a game on your hands, and many exciting runs ahead of you. And that’s even before you unlock your third characters.