tl;dr—STRONGLY RECOMMEND—A fantastic new spin on a fun formula that absolutely stands out in this recently crowded genre.
Disclaimer up front:
I like NuChallenger! Backed Treachery in Beatdown City, and have been a fan ever since! I even try to chat whenever I’m lucky enough to bump into them at an event. But I didn’t get a free copy of this game and the rest of this review will be from the perspective of a Survivors-like enthusiast who’s put quite a bit of time into this game already.
The first thing you notice when the game boots up is that Beatdown City Survivors is truly something special. You’re greeted with a killer track, slick pixel art, and the kind of satisfying sound design that can have you gleefully punching, kicking, and blasting your way through thousands of mutated monstrosities.
And in this case, what you see is what you get—the whole time. Great music, huge cast of characters, plenty of things to achieve, unlock, and upgrade!! It’s clear that the developer was a fan of Survivors-type games AND also understood WHY THEY WERE FUN IN THE FIRST PLACE.
The game plays about like you would expect! You choose a character, move them around an environment where nonstop hordes of enemies attack, collect orbs that eventually boost their level, choose either weapons or passive upgrades, and survive as long as you can. All while listening to fantastic underground hip-hop beats to survive to! Artists include Open Mike Eagle, SKECH185, Shrapknel, and more!
Now for the twists! In addition to the common weapons you collect while leveling, each survivor has their own unique attack style and special move. For many these specials are just useful passive buffs, but for others, they’re actually powerful attacks! Weapons “evolve” on their own when you reach their final level and when you have two maxed weapons, you can combine them for fun, devastating attacks. You may have seen some of these elements in other Survivors games, but here they’re combined nicely.
You’ve also got some environments to deal with! Sludge, poison, blood, water, ice, electricity, and FIRE! These can be a lot to handle, and they definitely provide a mix of fun and tension. Oh and stuff explodes! Yay!
There are no randomized treasure chests to find (that I’ve seen—yet!) but you can unlock the ability to have a few random weapons appear on the battlefield. More importantly, Farooq will hook you up, assuming you have the cash! Mobile shops can be found all over the stages, and these can provide upgrades and crucial healing. They’re also a reliable place to combine/evolve weapons (rather than having to track down a random box).
One last twist is the on-stage survivors that will actually team up with you after you’ve rescued them! You may not immediately unlock them as playable characters, but they will follow you around and help you survive! When you’re visiting Farooq, you can also choose to heal them or “extract them” safely (which may be a condition to unlocking them later). Once extracted, they will leave you (tragically) but they’ll also prompt Farooq to peel out and smash some foes with his glorious roach coach.
Complete a stage by defeating its final boss (or die), and you can return to your base for upgrades or just to hang out and look at your achievements.
If there’s one small gripe/suggestion I’ve got, it’s that I’m not inundated with dopamine after finishing a stage and seeing all my incredible unlocks and accomplishments. That said, it really is just a quick trip to the couch to see what you’ve done. Be sure to collect all your cash rewards so you can afford those beautiful, permanent upgrades.
And don’t forget to head to the bedroom and see what characters you might have unlocked. Again, minor gripe! I wish there was more razzle and or dazzle when a character was unlocked. It took me a while to realize I was sitting on some fantastic, fun powerhouses!
If you’re a fan of the genre, just get it. Now. Seriously. What are you waiting for?! You could be splodin’ monsters and listening to a kickass soundtrack RIGHT NOW!
If you’re not sure or you’ve never played a game like this before, try the demo! Whatever you do, don’t just look at screenshots and go “nah.” I’m completely serious, here. I was NEVER a fan of twin-stick shooters or “endless horde type games” and then one day Vampire Survivors came around. A coworker recommended it, I went outside my comfort zone to try it, and it paid off big time. Just looking at pictures though, I can see why games like this might be ignored. It’s hard to really tell what makes them good until you FEEL IT.
One final note for genre fans:
This game really FEELS more engaging than some others—and I mean that in a good way. I always felt like Vampire Survivors rewarded a solid build and standing still (assuming you’ve finished collecting whatever you needed from the map). But Beatdown City Survivors definitely keeps you moving and reacting to hazards. In this way, I’d almost compare it to Megabonk (positively). Especially once you’ve unlocked the ability to upgrade the shop, hitting up as many Farooq-mobiles as you can will keep you surviving and thriving. And if you start to feel too comfortable, you may find yourself facing down an army of electrified gorilla zombies.
Best of luck, survivor!
PROS
* Familiar, but with more than enough variety to justify the price of admission
* Extremely fun and engaging
* Great music
* Delightful cast of characters, abilities, and fun weapon combinations
* Absolutely accomplishes that “just one more run” effect
CONS
* Would like achievements and unlocks to be more “in your face” after a run
* Could use more weapons
Oh, and my true final ultimate last note:
You may notice a shadowy figure in the character select/unlock screen. The description mentions they’ll be available in a future update. Hell yes. Updates incoming!!!
\ ^_^ /
