Heroes of Hammerwatch

Genre: Top-Down Action-RPG / Roguelike / 2-Stick Shooter

Players: 1-4 Co-Op (Local Wireless, Online)

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Review:

Heroes of Hammerwatch is a Top-Down Action-RPG with some 2-Stick Shooter elements and, while the first game in the series aims for a simple, Arcade-style game like Gauntlet, this sequel brings the gameplay into Roguelike territory. This game was released on multiple platforms in 2020, including Nintendo Switch.

Compared to the original Hammerwatch, it’s immediately noticeable that this game’s presentation is aiming to up the ante – while this game still makes use of pixel art visuals like the original, this time around the game makes use of lighting and environmental effects that, while nothing impressive, definitely make this game more appealing. This is paired with another solid chiptune soundtrack.

As for the gameplay, this game still has fairly simple combat in the moment-to-moment, but the game takes on a much greater depth through its Roguelike mechanics, as the game’s difficulty is higher than the first game, resulting in more frequent deaths, but in-between runs players can take the earnings they sent home on prior runs to upgrade the central hub of a town, which can in turn be used to upgrade the player’s stats.

Overall, this is a marked improvement over the original game, adding much-needed depth, but at the same time it brings this game more in common with the likes of Children of Morta, and I have to be honest – Morta wipes the floor with this game in terms of its storytelling, its visuals, and its creative gameplay mechanics. The first game at least filled a fairly unique niche of being simple enough to be a good pick up and play experience, and even though I like this game better, it’s this similarity that makes the sequel harder for me to recommend unless you’ve exhausted your time with Children of Morta and want something else.

However, even if you prefer this game over that one, there’s still one dropped feature here that will undoubtedly sting, and that’s the loss of local co-op multiplayer. This game still has local wireless and online multiplayer for those who want to quest with friends, but it’s a shame that one of the best features of the first Hammerwatch (and Children of Morta, for that matter) didn’t make the cut here.

It’s unfortunate that Heroes of Hammerwatch feels so much like it’s in the shadow of another game, because it really is overall a better game than its predecessor. The Roguelike elements really do add a lot to this game, although the missing local co-op feels like it takes nearly as much away from the game. Still, if you’re a fan of this sort of game, you should find Heroes of Hammerwatch to be well worth playing, even if it isn’t quite as good as some of the best games in the genre.

tl;dr – Heroes of Hammerwatch is a Top-Down Action-RPG with Two-Stick Shooter mechanics that ditches the lighter Arcadey feel of the first game in favor of a Roguelike, and the change adds some welcome depth. It’s a shame that this game dropped the local co-op, and the changes to the gameplay put this game in direct competition with other games that I’d argue are superior. However, if you’re looking for a solid Roguelike Action-RPG, this one is still well worth your time.

Grade: B

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