The Binding of Isaac meets Dark Souls in this addictive dungeon crawler

33637050

SHOULD I PLAY DEVIL SLAYER RAKSASI?

Totally play this. Devil Slayer Raksasi takes the top-down roguelite approach of The Binding of Isaac and layers on a dark fantasy vibe that would be at home in a FromSoft game. This tough but addictive combination left me wanting to keep playing even after I’d wrapped up the demo. Thankfully it has multiple characters to try!

PLAY IT FOR YOURSELF

From December 23, 2023, through January 7, 2024, TapTap is running our Pocket Playfest Winter Edition. That means you don't need to take our review as the final word; you can try playing this game yourself! If you live in the United States or Canada, you can test out any of the ten games featured in the Pocket Playfest using our cloud gaming technology. And even if you're not in the US or Canada, you can still vote on your favorite games and get entered in a giveaway for some incredible prizes. Get all the details here.

TIME PLAYED

I spent around an hour with Devil Slayer Raksasi. That was more than enough time to complete the demo area twice with two different characters, as well as briefly testing other characters and taking on the bonus challenge boss—who summarily kicked my ass every time.

WHAT’S AWESOME ABOUT DEVIL SLAYER RAKSASI?

• The joy of discovery. Like with The Binding of Isaac or any great roguelike, the best part of Devil Slayer Raksasi is never knowing what each new run will bring you. On one run I found an artifact that would occasionally strike enemies with lightning as I entered the room. On another, I gathered enough gold to purchase a ring that gave my attacks an electrical charge, allowing me to briefly paralyze my foes. I can’t wait to find out what different items and combos are waiting to be put together in the full version of the game.

• A varied cast. Devil Slayer Raksasi features a big crew of playable characters who I could swap out between runs, and each one has a unique weapon and magic ability that changes how they play. For example, Byleth’s swift swordplay plus her Berserk spell pushed me to rush in and take on opponents quickly, whereas Ajiela’s long-range spear and Blood Leech skill reward keeping back and stealing my health from my enemies. These differences really changed my approach to each run, and I can imagine they also encourage digging for different items deeper into the game.

• The teleport spell. Alongside their unique ability, each character in Devil Slayer Raksasi has access to the teleport spell. This allows them to warp to any previously visited location on the map. As a longtime obsessive player of The Binding of Isaac, this quality-of-life mechanic practically made me cry with joy. No more backtracking across the whole map to get back to that store and spend my gold before a boss fight; here I could make the journey with just a couple button presses!

WHAT NEEDS IMPROVEMENT IN DEVIL SLAYER RAKSASI?

• Sometimes clumsy controls. Devil Slayer Raksasi mostly felt good, but dodges and attacks are a little slow, which occasionally led to times where I took damage but didn’t feel like I was really to blame. This was especially frustrating during boss battles. The boss enemies are massive, take off huge chunks of health with a single hit, and also had the ability to stun my character, which usually led to them getting in at least one more attack before I could move again. It didn’t stop me from completing the main boss of the demo, but I can see it getting more frustrating later into runs.

PLATFORM TESTED

PC.

HOW DOES IT FEEL TO PLAY ON THE CLOUD?

This is a rough one. In some moments I was impressed by how smoothly Devil Slayer Raksasi ran on the cloud, but there were some technical issues that kept this from being an ideal play experience. The biggest one is that the lock-on button seemingly hasn’t been translated into the on-screen controls, which makes combat much more difficult. And even with that button missing, the user interface is quite messy, including some buttons that are stacked on top of other game elements, like the health bar. All in all, the cloud version of this game is fine for taking a super-quick look to determine if you’re interested, but I’d suggest swapping over to the PC version as soon as possible after that.