DunHero

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

Players: 1

.

Review:

DunHero, released in 2026 on PC and Nintendo Switch, is a game that combines 2-Stick Shooter, Action-RPG, and Roguelike elements in a game that has you going through 8 medieval fantasy levels, each filled with various hostile enemies and friendly characters, while improving your skills and equipment to try to get as far as possible.

In each of the game’s levels, there will be buildings populated by friendly or neutral characters of different factions (such as villagers and bandits), and outside of this there are monsters and other enemies. Monsters and friendly characters can fight among each other, and different friendly characters can fight each other, giving this game a little bit of a sense that it exists outside of your influence… though only a little – it basically comes down to characters choosing to attack other characters in range that they recognize as hostile. However, this can make for interesting gameplay moments, such as when you turn a faction hostile to you by attacking one of its members, or luring enemies near groups of neutral NPCs to get them to fight with each other so you can loot the battlefield after they wipe each other out.

Additionally, non-hostile characters will often let you interact with them to either spend coin to hire them as mercenaries, or trade with shopkeeps, which round out the game’s Roguelike elements by letting you trade unwanted gear for cash to spend on items better-suited to your current situation and build.

Actual combat plays out like a 2-Stick Shooter, even if your equipped weapon is a melee attack – this just means you’re shooting attacks that don’t reach quite as far. As you progress, you’ll be able to obtain and upgrade various pieces of equipment, and between runs you’ll also be able to unlock “Roguelite” upgrades to provide you a greater chance at success in the future.

The presentation here is decent but nothing special, using simple 2D pixel art visuals backed up by a repetitive and at times irritating synthesized soundtrack. It works, but it’s far from anything I’d consider great.

However, when it comes to my main complaints, it’s mainly down to repetitive gameplay. I don’t think the various equipment you can get from the game’s Roguelike structure is nearly as varied and inventive as I tend to look for in a Roguelike game, and the 2-Stick Shooter gameplay doesn’t feel as deep and varied as I’d like in that genre either. What’s more, the Nintendo Switch release of the game lacks the 4-player co-op of the PC version making this the inferior release.

I do still think DunHero is an enjoyable blend of genres with some good depth to it, but it’s hard not to feel like it could have been much better with a bit more work. Each element of the game feels like it has potential, but doesn’t go far enough to reach that potential. The result is a good game that doesn’t do enough to become a great one.

tl;dr – DunHero is a game with 2-Stick Shooter, Action-RPG, and Roguelike elements where players move through multiple medieval fantasy-themed areas with both friendly and hostile characters, trying to get as far as possible. There are some interesting game mechanics and systems here, but none feel fully-realized, and what’s more the Nintendo Switch version lacks the multiplayer of the PC release. This is still an enjoyable game, but it definitely seems like it’s falling short of its potential.

Grade: B

^{You can support eShopperReviews on Patreon! Please click HERE to become a Sponsor!}

^{This month’s sponsors are Jamie and His Cats, Ben, Ilya Zverev, Andy Miller, Johannes, Jaka, Jared Wark, Gabriel Coronad-Medina, Francis Obst, Kristoffer Wulff, Seth Christenfeld, and Vince Verrinoldi. Thank you for helping to keep the reviews coming!}