Dark Scrolls

Dark Scrolls is an indie 2D platformer featuring auto-scrolling, roguelite, and bullet hell mechanics. The levels are procedurally generated and reminiscent of *Super Ghouls’n Ghosts*, even though the game itself isn't particularly difficult. Despite offering creative and varied gameplay options, the stat system can be extremely overpowered, overshadowing many of the other available choices. The game is worth playing for roguelite fans and deserves the attention of anyone interested in it.

While Dark Scrolls boasts an excellent retro aesthetic and rock-solid platforming fundamentals, it ultimately fails to transcend mediocrity due to a lack of distinct innovation. However, for fans of Ghosts 'n Goblins looking for a reasonably challenging experience, it remains a highly competent homage well worth a casual playthrough.

Dark Scrolls balances high-intensity platforming with a somewhat rewarding progression system. The boss battles are a highlight, utilizing tried-and-true pattern-recognition mechanics that often reward patience and muscle memory. Coupled with a map full of mysteries, branching paths, and new heroes to rescue, there is an amount of replay value here. The single-player mode is so-so, but if you are looking for a frantic, retro-fueled challenge to tackle with a friend on the couch, Dark Scrolls is an absolute must-play.

Dark Scrolls is a game which I reckon will be a perfect salve for some people, being a neat call-back to the days of 8-bit gaming and old school shmups, but I just found it to be a bit too samey. It's fun, sure, but it works best in shorter half hour bursts for me. I expect a bit more from my roguelites, but if you approach this as an arcade game instead, you'll be in a better frame of mind.

Dark Scrolls looks and plays like an old-school 8-bit game, but it doesn’t have the refinement and diversity of the top games from that era. Even in co-op or multiplayer, the game lacks polish. You can only revive a fallen character after completing a level, even if you fill up your HP bar. However, a fallen player can still pick up lives, which hobbles the other players that are still alive. While Dark Scrolls has the look and feel of a classic side-scrolling platformer, it just doesn’t have fleshed-out technical underpinnings and gameplay variety to make it stand out in a crowd unless you have a real strong nostalgia for that era.

Dark Scrolls is a title I should have loved and instead loathed. It is not offensively bad or poorly made, so you may find some fun here that I did not.

A simple, competent shmup can be a beautiful thing, a collection of different heroes to unlock an easy hook. It isn't that Dark Scrolls lacks outright complexity, with multiple paths through the short game, nuance between characters, and some secret mini-quests to round out its content. But it barely acknowledges success or failure, never challenges you after the first few hours, and can't devise a reward or goal to spur you on after you've seen what little it has to offer. If Dark Scrolls were an arcade cabinet back in the day, a few quarters would be enough to send you off to the next one.

Return to life and exact revenge on your former dungeon partner in this new arcade roguelite from Devolver Digital and Doinksoft! Choose between a barbarian, a wizard, and a thief to face dozens of enemies in an 8-bit style...