Review / ScourgeBringer: reflexes required for dynamic and hyper fluid fights
ScourgeBringer is a 2D game developed by Flying Oak Games, two French people who live in Metz. It’s a bit unintentional that I’m doing the roguelike at the moment, but I don’t mind.
New atmosphere, new movements, ScourgeBringer offers an original playing experience that you may not have to put into all hands because talent and perseverance will be your best assets.
Lore
A ruined civilization, an enigmatic monolith, all it takes is for the heroine you play to embark on an adventure to save humanity. Kyhra therefore enters an unknown world, in search of the truth and especially of the next enemy to be killed.
The principle of the monolith is a good excuse to transform the universe in which we operate without having to justify ourselves. The levels that we cross are generated randomly, the enemies also appear randomly.
This idea also makes it possible to have “worlds” which change completely when you have beaten the bosses.
Game
ScourgeBringer is as we have already noticed, a roguelike style 2D action game. This means that we evolve through levels where we have to kill all the enemies that are in our way to be able to advance.
Once you’ve cleared a room, a second wave of opponents will appear. To spice up the adventure a little, these appearances are random. You cannot plan ahead your strategy to clear the room of enemies.
Kyhra, our main character, is armed with a sword and a pistol. She can either give a classic sword blow, or dash on enemies, see “smasher” to stun several opponents.
This rather simple set of moves is actually very effective because we can chain our attacks without stopping. ScourgeBringer indeed offers us a very fluid game with the possibility of jumping and even performing double jumps.
We can hang on to walls, climb, dasher, … and our attacks allow us to stay in the air. A little in the same style as Devil May Cry where we can spend a few minutes in the air to hit our opponent.
This gameplay allows us to play without worrying about the ground, and we spend the majority of our time flying from enemy to enemy, dodging enemy attacks. And that’s good, the majority of our enemies move in the air.
Our heroine has a life bar that you can sometimes refill if you gain adequate items at the end of your fights, but most of the time you will have to make do with what you have at the beginning.
Like all “roguelike” vouchers, you earn points during your adventure, which are used as currency with the merchants who are in your path. It’s up to you to buy the equipment and improvements that are going to help you go to the end of the adventure.
All of those purchases are then lost if you die. What are your runs for? Earn experience points when defeating bosses and mini-bosses. This experience remains attached to your character and you can exchange it for upgrades that will remain unlocked forever.
The game is very, very nervous, with very smooth gameplay. You won’t find an explanation of the different weapon upgrades, and it takes several runs to really understand how the game works.
The story is nice but the way it is presented is far too light to make us really want to discover more. The music adds a dimension of energy and speed to the game, which is already fast.
Visually, the graphic choice fits perfectly with the story and the gameplay. The different worlds are original and each time exotic. The in-game interface is not annoying at all and we are focused on the fights.
Lifetime
It will take you 4 to 5 hours to complete ScourgeBringer if that’s your playstyle. If you don’t improve while playing, the game won’t get any easier …
Verdict
Les points positifs
- The fluidity of the fights
- The worlds
Les points négatifs
- If you don't improve, the game is still difficult
- Difficult to understand everything without explanation
En résumé
ScourgeBringer is a demanding roguelike that will put your skills to the test. The improvement of our heroine is really done during the game, and you will have to be attentive during the fights to be successful. A game with smooth gameplay, where you can only blame yourself if you lose. A great success from Flying Oak Games.