Inscryption is an incredibly unique game that starts out with a very compelling formula and then repeatedly flips on its head - sometimes for better, sometimes for worse, but always in a way that is memorable and truly unlike any other roguelike I've played. The insane difficulty spike of the "endgame" soured me on the game overall, but the main story will stick with me for a long time.
I don't think there's much I can say about the ups and downs of the main story that hasn't been thoroughly gone over by reviewers before me, but I did want to share my thoughts on the endgame:
[spoiler] When I first opened "Kaycee's Mod," I was overjoyed to see a huge new set of paths to explore, and secrets to uncover, but after just a couple of runs, I found that:
1.) The difficulty ramps up to an absolutely insane degree, to where pretty much the only viable strategies are hyper-optimized meta builds that rely on absurdly specific RNG and result in every run feeling the same. That includes knowing exactly when you're completely screwed because of a single unlucky map roll, of which there will be many, since part of said meta is to keep your deck small, and more than half of the map paths add cards to your deck. I was looking around online for some tips to progress further, and over half of the suggestions I saw mentioned "just go back to the main menu to reset the map if you don't like the roll you got." Sure, it works, but I think it's a very poor reflection on the design of the game mode when game manipulation like this considered a crucial tactic.
2.) There really AREN'T a whole lot of secrets to discover. Kaycee's journal entries provide some intrigue, but there's very little to see within the cabin, and this creates an experience that feels inherently inferior to the main story because A.) There's very little incentive to explore and immerse yourself in the cabin like before, and B.) there's no passive upgrades to be found, which is, in my opinion, a pretty mandatory element of a good roguelike - not just because it makes runs "easier," but because it cuts down on the tedium of having to slowly grind through the earliest phases of a run when you already fully understand the mechanics.
I ended up shelving the game after 20 or so failed run, because it just felt like I was wasting my time banging my head against the wall trying to make meta builds happen and battling against RNG. Sure, every roguelike has strategies which are provably the most effective, but when the difficulty is so extreme that experimentation with different builds is no longer viable to win, then it feels less like a proper roguelike and more like a casino game. [/spoiler]
All of that aside - the main story experience is still one-of-a-kind and something I would consider an essential roguelike experience. I just wish I could have more of it without having to subject myself to the absurdly overtuned endgame.
