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Hyper Light Breaker is an exciting new roguelike that has just embark former Access . A fresh summation to the Hyper Light franchise , this plot offer thrilling combat , an piquant existence , and some fun estimation . However , balancing and performance issues mar the Early Access launching , and some systems might require important rework before the game is ready for its full release .
Hyper Light Breaker belongs to what I call the “ roguelike origin ” genre . Similar titles let in peril of Rain or the title I latterly retrospect , Warden ’s Will . In this musical genre , players load into a procedurally generated single-valued function with randomized loot spawns protected by enemy mobs . Like its match , Hyper Light Breaker tasks thespian with completing three key objectives on each mathematical function before escaping and moving on to the next point .
In Hyper Light Breaker , this setup takes the form of entering the Overgrowth , a realm decree by the tyrannical Abyss King and his firm treetop enforcers . To confront the Abyss King , actor must first defeat three Crowns in challenging boss fight . Upon death , role player give to a hub metropolis where resource pucker during runs can be traded for weapons and lasting upgrade to help in succeeding attempts .
Hyper Light Breaker stand out from traditional roguelikes in how it do by death . When you die during a run in the Overgrowth , you do n’t at once fall back all your collected weapon and fringe benefit or reset the single-valued function . Instead , the map only readjust once you ’ve run out of life-time . Each death transmit you back to the hub , pass on you another shot at the same mapping . Similarly , powerups and geared wheel have their own durability , lose one bursting charge per expiry until they ’re completely depleted and removed from your loadout .
The combat in Hyper Light Breaker is pretty fun , if held back by some specific purpose issues we ’ll come to on starting in the next paragraph . weapon system are divided into melee and run , with range weapons pretend more like a special ability almost , with special charges you collect through melee killing . The melee weapons peculiarly suffer out for their miscellanea and fun feel , feel really unique to employ and satisfying to smack your enemies with . Weapons are also separated from type , allowing for build variety , so you’re able to bring your favored fibre without sacrificing the weapon you care to play with the most .
Finally , I have to congratulate Hyper Light Breaker for its cool setting and interesting character , which stand out from other game . You have to imagine that the biz has some character and lore that appeal to audiences , considering that Hyper Light Breaker is the prequel to another plot in the franchise , and that say franchise now also includes a tabletop plot . That , unluckily , is the last compliment I have for the game because , in its current Early Access province , Hyper Light Breaker is riddled with effect that hold the statute title back .
The most fulgent of these issue has to be how viciously difficult the game can be . Nobody have a bun in the oven to be able to make a passel of progress on a roguelike game on their first , second , third , or even tenth run , with lasting rise serving as a way to ease the trouble curve over time after many tries . Hyper Light Breaker , unluckily , is not only shockingly hard to play at early level but also gravely gatekeeping your power to march on using those permanent upgrades .
Hyper Light Breaker ’s fight system of rules sport dodging and parries . In most combat situations , however , you ’ll only really make utilisation of the stratagem , as the biz tends to swarm you with enemies mighty out of the gate . It becomes a serious problem , where players , who go in four or five striking from opposition , can feel themselves punt into a turning point before they can make meaningful progress in a level . The sheer amount of enemies would be less of a problem if not for the abundance of debuffs , knockbacks , and stuns they use . You ’ll rapidly learn not to be surprised watching yourself get zero in at full wellness thanks to a series of enemy attempt that basically stunlock you in place until you drop dead .
What ’s worse , however , is that the game makes it near out of the question for an former player to make any progress during their ladder . This is due in part to a lack of tutorials explaining the grandness or location of certain currencies , but also that said currencies , as well as weapon and pickups , most of which wo n’t make too meaningful of an impact on their own , are all heavily guarded by ring and , often , minibosses that are merely too difficult for you to vote down .
What ’s sorry is that any upgrade made through the hub world can not be done with the default currency you collect from kill , meaning most of your runs will finish with you bringing home nothing of use . For this type of game to ferment , you have to rejoin from each running game with something that can theoretically make you even a little routine stronger . This but is not the example with Hyper Light Breaker , and while the primary ( and often only ) currentness you collect can be used in connective with other currencies to buy weapons and upgrades , it ’s never enough and can leave to death being utterly pointless , or worse , since , after four deaths , you have to pay to reactivate the portal vein using that currency . The fee is brawny , too . I found myself wondering what would happen if I just ran out of this currency , but I did n’t make a point of endeavor to find out .
In its current state , Hyper Light Breaker ’s combat is just too difficult , and progression is severely gatekept by a game design that makes the permanent buffs distinctive of the roguelike musical genre inaccessible . Paired with some frame fall and optimisation issue , it ’s secure for me to say that while Hyper Light Breaker is promising , it has some work to do before it ’s quick to plunge .
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