When I first started this game, it captured my attention, stole me from another game I purchased in a pack. I am a fanatic for the bullet-heaven genre, I play them all as I am able, steam, ps5, switch, anything I can reach. Crafty Survivors surprised me with some fresh ideas....Initially. Clocking a bit over 25 hours at the point of this review, it's safe to say that yes, you will get your value's worth of game play. However, this is a genre of game centered around the time sink, repeating runs to get a bit further, to grow stronger, to become an unstoppable demon on the field, only to find another level of being you must grind more to overcome. It's a study, a development both personal and casual, understanding mechanics, exploiting builds, all that dopamine crashing stuff. Crafty Survivors fails at this point. The levels are repetitive and pointless, leaving little to the imagination in terms of build and strategy. Some levels have multiple paths, which if main, you must finish the zone at least twice; others, there is an 'explorer' mode, meaning you can just run it again as a character that can unlock the next path with no opposition, a blank map to tediously rush through on the borders just to use a singular skill for an exit. There are quite a few characters to choose from, except they take so long to unlock, they may as well not exist at all, save for those 'explorer' mode unlockable paths. With Crafty Survivors, you gain a character named Sewvia fairly early on; there is no point in any capacity to use anyone but her. Dodge is so incredibly important in this game, and everyone I have seen thus far has ONE dodge....Sewvia starts with three, which also damages and ties in to other necessary skills that stun and decimate, and can get up to six dodges that have a good chance of not depleting, increasing her power with each. You do get the building options in your town to increase power, mats, all that good stuff....but it costs so much gold, so many new mats, that it's only ever efficient to progress as fast as possible. What's more, gold is the only true currency to ever care about; there are zone spawn that drop unique mats, but once you collect one, you can purchase it with a merchant that appears so frequently even at base level, why should you grind at all? You can use a bank that accrues interest per run, and you can get merchants that sell mats you have encountered as mentioned, some requiring different matter of payment. So obviously, prioritize the banking, and the game becomes incredibly trivial....Except for the fact that difficulty spikes to absurd and unexpected levels, upgrade cost becoming grossly unbalanced. You even receive buildings that automatically accrue pricey mats, so why do little else then dump your gold into them? There comes a moment where you unlock statues that can increase, decrease, or eliminate enemy spawn time; with Sewvia, the only option is to max enemy spawn just so you can complete the boring levels quicker for power; NO OTHER CHARACTER CAN SURVIVE THIS AS I HAVE SEEN REASONABLY THUS FAR. There is not a single reason to not use this spawn statue other than wanting to win as someone other than Sewvia, though this drags out the game play to unbearable levels of monotony. When you encounter bosses, known mostly as Corrupted Heroes, the unbalance begins to reel at your mind. No matter your health, no matter your strength, these bosses are so insanely balanced towards dodging, that your choice in Sewvia truly becomes apparent. I do enjoy this game, I will continue to grind until I've locked it all down...But it's a chore, a thing I do while the game is muted and my music is blaring. I did see some comments about rush, lack of proper funding, and that is truly disheartening. There is so much here to love, so much to look to for the genre's progression, and I wish only the best to the devs to build on this grand base of a game. However, there are existing titles that do it better, give you more for your time and life. Last comes builds. I do love that each character has their own pool, but....Honestly there is truly only one 'right' way to play each character. You do unlock the standard 'banish' 'reserve' and 'reroll', but there is barely a point to this, especially for how long it takes to unlock, and how you have no idea when these upgrades become available (buildings don't tell you what they unlock before upgrades, one at a time with increasing cost, only ever seeing what's next after you pay for the first). The pool of skills is so shallow, that you get what you want too easily. Further, there is no point at all in banishing 'skills' since you have five slots, and once they are filled, nothing else will show, save for an even smaller pool of passives, which you only need three points in. Passives are so limited as well as congruent per character, that banish two or three, and you have a clear choice every level. I write this as a negative review purely for the love of the genre, and those seeking more like me. It's worth it, honestly, play it if you can, have the stomach, the need as I do. I'm likely to sink another 25 hours myself....But I'm diehard, stubborn; there is too little here to recommend when there are more fleshed out options. I truly hope the devs become notable enough, supported, that their visions can be met. Because, in the end, why I am stuck playing this shell of a game, is it 'has' that spice, that idea, that scratch to the itch, that 'nothing a sequel can't fix' feeling that burns at your thoughts, that you wish for, wait for, yearn for.
