What a special little game Death’s Door is, I had a blast with this one and will remember if for years to come. The fact that you play as a cute little crow buddy doesn’t hurt either.
Gameplay: Zelda-like puzzles and sword/projectile combat, pulling off the perfect dodge and following up with an attack makes you feel pretty badass. Elements of Soulsborne with certain tough bosses/enemies, unlocking shortcuts and quick travel doorways. Thankfully you don’t have to retrieve your upgrade currency when you die, this game is much more forgiving.
Length: Death’s Door is the perfect length, never outstaying it’s welcome with 3 main areas to conquer and tons of collectibles and upgrades to discover. If you want to 100% the game, you’ll more than get your moneys worth exploring the world to get everything and see the true ending. The thing I love about games like this is that a lot of the extra quests and secrets are actually smart and well thought out, and actually require tricky puzzle solving, a good sense of direction, and true exploration to figure it all out.
Setting: Several main quest and sidequest dungeons and an overworld that connects the main areas. All the areas are unique and have their own quirky characters and unique layouts that you’ll memorize quickly as you explore every nook and cranny. I love games with a hub world you can return to in between the main game, and similar to Metroidvanias, it requires you returning to several areas once you’ve unlocked upgrades to get everything.
Difficulty: It’s challenging, but the perfect level of difficulty in my opinion in that it will require several attempts at certain boss battles and some enemy ambushes but not enough to rage quit. The bosses range from fun challenges to keep you on your toes, to very challenging and precision based epic battles. The best part of the difficulty is that it makes seeking out the various upgrades and weapons worth your time.
Music: The music is elegant and very very pleasing on the ears. My favorites were the Estate Of The Urn Witch and Castle Lockstone tracks but every area has something memorable, and you’re in each area long enough to really get them in your head to fully enjoy.
Minor Complaints: Leveling up the skills you can purchase in the hub world, I found I didn’t notice a huge difference as I was doing so. Once I leveled up a certain skill to it’s highest level, it didn’t seem like a huge huge difference. I’m sure there actually was a difference but it wasn’t hugely noticeable. I guess it’s kind of like, maybe Bloodborne for example, where you level up your characters stats and don’t exactly feel each and every level up. But you know you are actually getting stronger.
I finished Death’s Door 100%, took a little over 13 hours, and then immediately started a new file to start the umbrella only run to go for the platinum trophy, which took a little over 7 hours (just doing the main quest, which didn’t take as long as it was fresh in my mind). If you are looking for the toughest challenge, the umbrella only run is the only thing in this game that could constitute as a “hard mode”, but I suggest playing the game using any weapon you want and saving the umbrella run for afterwards to get an honest and natural first playthrough of the game.
Overall, a highly enjoyable indie title that manages to outshine the plethora of soulless triple A games released nowadays. Spend your money on games like this that deserve it for the hard work and care that goes into these titles.
Gameplay: Zelda-like puzzles and sword/projectile combat, pulling off the perfect dodge and following up with an attack makes you feel pretty badass. Elements of Soulsborne with certain tough bosses/enemies, unlocking shortcuts and quick travel doorways. Thankfully you don’t have to retrieve your upgrade currency when you die, this game is much more forgiving.
Length: Death’s Door is the perfect length, never outstaying it’s welcome with 3 main areas to conquer and tons of collectibles and upgrades to discover. If you want to 100% the game, you’ll more than get your moneys worth exploring the world to get everything and see the true ending. The thing I love about games like this is that a lot of the extra quests and secrets are actually smart and well thought out, and actually require tricky puzzle solving, a good sense of direction, and true exploration to figure it all out.
Setting: Several main quest and sidequest dungeons and an overworld that connects the main areas. All the areas are unique and have their own quirky characters and unique layouts that you’ll memorize quickly as you explore every nook and cranny. I love games with a hub world you can return to in between the main game, and similar to Metroidvanias, it requires you returning to several areas once you’ve unlocked upgrades to get everything.
Difficulty: It’s challenging, but the perfect level of difficulty in my opinion in that it will require several attempts at certain boss battles and some enemy ambushes but not enough to rage quit. The bosses range from fun challenges to keep you on your toes, to very challenging and precision based epic battles. The best part of the difficulty is that it makes seeking out the various upgrades and weapons worth your time.
Music: The music is elegant and very very pleasing on the ears. My favorites were the Estate Of The Urn Witch and Castle Lockstone tracks but every area has something memorable, and you’re in each area long enough to really get them in your head to fully enjoy.
Minor Complaints: Leveling up the skills you can purchase in the hub world, I found I didn’t notice a huge difference as I was doing so. Once I leveled up a certain skill to it’s highest level, it didn’t seem like a huge huge difference. I’m sure there actually was a difference but it wasn’t hugely noticeable. I guess it’s kind of like, maybe Bloodborne for example, where you level up your characters stats and don’t exactly feel each and every level up. But you know you are actually getting stronger.
I finished Death’s Door 100%, took a little over 13 hours, and then immediately started a new file to start the umbrella only run to go for the platinum trophy, which took a little over 7 hours (just doing the main quest, which didn’t take as long as it was fresh in my mind). If you are looking for the toughest challenge, the umbrella only run is the only thing in this game that could constitute as a “hard mode”, but I suggest playing the game using any weapon you want and saving the umbrella run for afterwards to get an honest and natural first playthrough of the game.
Overall, a highly enjoyable indie title that manages to outshine the plethora of soulless triple A games released nowadays. Spend your money on games like this that deserve it for the hard work and care that goes into these titles.