Skul Hero Slayer, as a roguelike metroidvania, is an 8.5/10, and I intend to demonstrate this in the review. Spoiler free. The game receives no more updates, hence I believe this review will hold.
Gameplay and Balance
Gameplay loop is great. Skuls each have their own moveset, skills and synergies that make most skuls viable on every difficulty for any playstyle. The progression is not heavily tied to permanent upgrades (who themselves are not grindy at all to get), rather being a result of skill and luck (its a roguelike after all). That is not to say luck is required, as the base game is quite easy with enemies initially being deficient in variety, amount and vigor. The post game content, however, is the place where you can soak tens of hours into, with many different enemies, and much more build variety. That is to say, the base game can be considered the 'intro' to the game, as it is with many of these roguelikes.
Balance on the other hand, is somewhat lacking. Everyone is viable, that is true, but there is a clear discrepancy between the best and worst builds in this game. The best builds (HP recovery, skill cooldown and certain legendary items) are so difficult to lose with that the game can become monotonous if one sticks to the 'tried and true' strategy. This game being 'diverse' depends entirely on your own choices. Furthermore, what defines a build as 'bad' or 'good' essentially comes down to the bosses. The normal enemies are far too easy compared to the hilarious boss damage and hp pools late in the game, meaning most of what is 'good' is what beats bosses quickly. This can restrict build variety, as the only way to consistently beat bosses without being cracked at dodging is to just... kill them in 10 seconds at higher difficulties. Furthermore, the end of the game is particularly difficult in terms of its bosses, meaning many MANY runs will simply die at the end of a run, if you dont prepare properly. Still skill based, but very focused on bosses over all else.
Achievements
Me personally, I like achievement hunting when the game properly rewards what you do. This game is great at that, with 1 flaw. Each major accomplishment (no-hitting a boss, first boss kill etc) is properly rewarded and not luck-based to acquire. The big issue I personally have is that there is no achievement for performing the hardest run in the game and the only proof of completion you have is a picture you can take of the end screen. Not too big a deal, but still something I guess.
Grindiness/Permanent Resources
This is here because, once upon a time, this game was grindy. Like, very grindy, to get all perma upgrades. This is not true for anything anymore in this game. You want something? 1 run and you have the resources you need, and spare. The only grindy objective is the one literally designed to be a resource dump, which has no gameplay effect, and will naturally be completed should one go for 100%.
Music and Art
Simply amazing soundtrack that is not grating nor too fast paced for the gameplay. Art work is well done for its stylistic choice, being 2D pixel art. Character designs 'evolve' in unique ways, while consistently not overcrowding the screen with too many effects, such that you can see what you do, even when having a projectile heavy build.
Story
Minimalistic is the way to describe it. Not deep in the slightest, and quite straightforward. The bad guy is bad, the good guy is good and there is very little lore, outside of item flavour text. Not a bad thing, but something to be noted
Overall
This game is worth every cent you put in. If you like roguelikes, this is a must-play and one of the greats. Also not computer intensive (I played on laptop) and controller friendly.
