PlayStation 5 Critic Reviews

Nova Strike isn’t a bad game by any means, but it doesn’t do enough to make it stick in your mind like the best of the genre. The roguelike elements are nice, but there simply needs to be more variety and unpredictability to make the focus on them truly worthwhile. And so what you’re left with is a shoot ’em up that too quickly looks and feels generic, with little reason to keep playing once you’ve bested what it has to offer.

Nova Strike is a vertically-scrolling shooter that combines '90s presentation and gameplay with some modern upgrading mechanics and while it might not wow anyone, there's definitely some enjoyment to be had from it.

The roguelike nature of Nova Strike is the best thing going for it because unfortunately, its core gameplay isn't all that entertaining.

For shooter enthusiasts, there is some fun to be had with Nova Strike thanks to the weapon upgrade system but mostly we’ve seen it before and done better. The roguelite style makes it fresh, but it’s still unlikely to keep gamers amused for more than a day or two. Due to this simplicity, it’s not really a game for those who like to visit bullet hell.