Ascendant

This game has been a lot of fun! It is definitely quite challenging since there is only a parry option and and it has pretty unforgiving timing. I think if there was a sort of dash or roll ability it would make some of the boss fights a little less spammy overall since a lot of the bosses are quite tanky. Overall I really enjoy this game and this you should check it out too as it has a lot of potential and is complete as a game. Don't think it will be a walk in the park when trying to beat this game.

Very cool visuals and tough but satisfying combat

has good bones

Ascendant, developed and published by Imagisphere, is a fast-paced top-down roguelike that builds its identity around chaotic combat, layered progression systems, and the constant pursuit of powerful item synergies. It follows a familiar loop within the genre—enter, fight, collect, grow stronger, and repeat—but attempts to elevate that formula through its emphasis on build diversity and moment-to-moment intensity. The result is an experience that can feel exhilarating when its systems align, though it occasionally struggles with consistency and long-term variety. The game places players in a dark fantasy setting shaped by corruption and conflict, though its narrative remains largely in the background. Rather than delivering a structured story, it offers fragments of lore and environmental hints that suggest a larger world without fully exploring it. This approach keeps the focus squarely on gameplay, allowing players to move quickly from one encounter to the next without interruption. While this works well for maintaining momentum, it also means that the experience lacks a strong emotional or narrative anchor, making progression feel more mechanical than meaningful. Combat is the centerpiece of Ascendant, combining twin-stick shooting with ability-based attacks in a top-down perspective. Players must constantly move, dodge incoming projectiles, and position themselves carefully while unleashing their own attacks. The pacing is relentless, often pushing players into high-pressure situations where quick reflexes and situational awareness are essential. Encounters are structured around rooms filled with enemies that vary in behavior and attack patterns, gradually increasing in difficulty as players progress through each run. When the flow of combat clicks, it creates a satisfying rhythm of movement and destruction that keeps players engaged. A major strength of the game lies in its build system. Throughout each run, players acquire items, upgrades, and abilities that can interact in complex ways, allowing for a wide range of playstyles. Some combinations emphasize raw damage output, turning the player into a destructive force, while others focus on survivability, control, or utility. The sheer number of possible interactions encourages experimentation, making each run feel distinct depending on the choices made and the items encountered. This system provides much of the game’s replay value, as players are constantly motivated to discover new synergies and refine their strategies. However, this same system also introduces a reliance on randomness that can affect the overall experience. The effectiveness of a run often depends on the quality and compatibility of the items acquired, which can lead to significant variation in difficulty. Some runs may feel overwhelmingly powerful, while others struggle due to a lack of synergy, creating an uneven sense of progression. While this unpredictability is a common aspect of roguelikes, it can sometimes feel more pronounced here, occasionally undermining the player’s sense of control. Enemy and boss design offer a mix of strengths and limitations. While there is a decent variety of enemies across different areas, their behaviors can become familiar over time, reducing the sense of novelty in longer sessions. Boss encounters, while visually engaging, do not always evolve beyond basic patterns, which can make them feel less dynamic than expected. This contributes to a sense of repetition, particularly for players who invest significant time into mastering the game’s systems. Visually, Ascendant adopts a stylized pixel-art approach that complements its fast-paced gameplay. The environments are dark and atmospheric, with effects and animations that add impact to combat. However, the intensity of battles can sometimes make it difficult to track everything on screen, especially when multiple effects overlap. While the visual design is cohesive and appealing, clarity can occasionally be sacrificed in favor of spectacle. Sound design supports the action with energetic effects and ambient tones that reinforce the intensity of each encounter. While not particularly standout, it does its job effectively, maintaining immersion without drawing attention away from the gameplay. The overall presentation aligns well with the game’s focus on action, even if it does not push beyond genre expectations. Pacing follows the familiar roguelike structure, with each run offering a fresh attempt at progression. This creates a loop of experimentation and improvement that can be highly engaging, particularly for players who enjoy refining their skills and strategies over time. At the same time, the repetition inherent in this structure becomes more noticeable due to the limited variation in enemies and environments, making the experience feel best suited for shorter sessions rather than extended play. Ultimately, Ascendant is a game driven by its systems and the potential they offer. It delivers moments of genuine excitement through its combat and build diversity, rewarding players who are willing to experiment and adapt. However, its reliance on randomness, occasional repetition, and lack of deeper narrative or mechanical evolution prevent it from reaching the full potential suggested by its design. In the end, it stands as a solid and engaging roguelike that will appeal most to players who enjoy fast-paced action and build experimentation. While it may not fully match the depth or polish of the genre’s top-tier titles, it provides enough variety and intensity to make each run feel worthwhile, especially for those drawn to its core loop. Rating: 7/10

was looking for a new game to try on my day off. I was pleasantly surprised. was exactly what I wanted in a relaxing game that was not apex or valorant, I really liked the art style.will update this when i get to play more of the game. PS i like the part where you can fight the merchant guy , I am still mad he stole my items then killed me after

Very fun game! The art style is awesome

This game is very fun! Quite intuitive with movement and combat. The enemies are cheeky without being overwhelming. Overall it's quite a fun time. And of course, you have M'Lady. *doffs cap*

[h3]SNAPSHOT[/h3] A short game with more artistic flair than depth [h3]OVERALL - 4.5 / 10[/h3] [h3]PROS[/h3] + art style is very beautiful + intresting (albeit basic) spell upgrading [h3]CONS[/h3] - movement feels extremely floaty - combat has no real depth - game is still plagued by bugs [h3]FULL REVIEW[/h3] On its surface this looks like a really fun game, but playing it was a much different story. Everything about it feels cramped somehow - from the camera being zoomed in too much and the rooms being tiny (even when they're "big") to the UI which takes up far too much space and limited inventory space making you get rid of half the items you might want to hold onto. My initial reaction from the game's controls was that movement was way too floaty and the "parry" system was in dire need of a few more design iterations. All you really need to do in the game is circle around the room constantly firing spells until things die and the occasional parry for bosses to avoid dying instantly. On top of that, while you'll end up acquiring plenty of spell upgrades that might seem useful in the game, you're seemingly way better off holding onto the original one and strictly upgrading with enchantments to keep their usage costs down instead which makes the entire crafting / combining system almost completely detrimental to the player experience. Hit points in this game seem like more of a "suggestion" as enemies still seem to do way too much damage per hit no matter how good your armor is. While the game isn't difficult by any means, every boss seems to be able to kill you in ~2 hits so any death ends up feeling extremely unfair / gimmicky and really just feels like a forced reset back to start. Eventually you'll learn to mindlessly rotate between attacking, parrying predictable attacks, and healing back up until they die and you're one step closer to the end. The final straw for me was the large amount of bugs that seems to crop up in any given playthrough. Most of them are UI-related and recoverable, but I finally just said "nah" when getting to the last level of the final biome and the game loaded without any terrain leaving me unable to actually play it. I tried restarting but the game now just shows a permanent loading screen while clearly still letting me move about and playing sounds that the game is working behind the screen. Overall this game could be a lot of fun with some tweaks and bug fixes, but there haven't been any updates in ~6 months so I assume it's not going to get the love it needs to be worth picking up anytime soon.

STAY AND READ ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW: THIS IS A "DONT DO THIS TO YOURSELF" TYPE REVIEW, IF YOU DONT HEED MY WARNING, YOULL BE OUT OF THE REFUND WINDOW BY THE TIME YOU FIND OUT THIS GAME IS CR*P Now, if you want an explanation of what the game is, go to the bottom, for now, all you have to know is this is a roguelike dungeon crawler. I'll start by the reasons you shouldnt buy it: 1- no pre run preparation, no upscaling loop of any kind, just you, your skills, and the same character from start to... end? 2- no progress other than through loot 3- boring unimaginative bosses 4- monotonous maps 5- the price 6- Other than ONE boss, nothing is ever cool, epic or mildly interesting, characters dont get developed, you get some story at the begining and by the looks of it, just an ending after that. 7- My now customary Achievements read says everyone drops the game. Only 25% of players defeated the second boos, less than 15% defeated the 3rd, its THAT boring. 8- After the 3 boss, you get ANOTHER immediate boss with no story development and an unearned difficulty spike 8-and after ALL that tediousness and an unearned difficulty spike i find that...... the autosave checkpoints (there is no manualo save of any kind) are set by biomes, meaning that after losing that last fight, i would have to redo both monotonous maps of the current biome, defeat the biomes boss and THEN get a rematch against what killed me (its second form). Now, if that wasnt enough to keep you from doing this to yourself, heres what the game IS: -As stated at the top, the game is a roguelike dawngeon crawler, in which you get equipment such as robes, hats, stones etc. However, the kind, ammount, rate and effects of your damage are determined by the caps of you wand. You get ONE wand (of which you can change the handle so as to get more mana and mana regenerations, remember there are no character levels here), and 3 caps which you need to constantly change mid fight as needed (one time shoot bolts, the other one a continuous beam, and the third heals you). How do you improve your damage? by getting better caps or upgrading the ones you have by one of tow methods method 1: you put permanent bonus spells into it. This is free of charge, you only need to get the scrolls for the spells method 2: you fuse 2 caps of the same kind (fusing their damage, effects AND mana costs, which can make fusing VERY inconvenient). This method has a chance to fail, the more money you spend on any particular fusing, the higher chance to keep the fused cap (never mores than 95%), if it gets stolen by the NPC in charge of the fusing, you can go on about your day or you can fight him to get it back (not for first timers) All in all, the only interesting thing about this game is to find out if you can beat ONE particular boss, and thats it. FOOTNOTE: This is clearly yet ANOTHER game made for the worthless streaming culture, the game as it is, is nothing but it gets hours worth of complaining and back seat gaming and has the difficulty spikes that get m*r*ns to donate to egomaniacs

Cute little roguelike with a neat artstyle. Could definitely do with some more polishing and some new content, but its fine for such a cheap game