Downwell

Downwell is a $5 game that anyone can pick up and play and have a fun time with. It’s not a game you play hours on end, but definitely something that can be enjoyed for small chunks in between games, and for that cheap price, it fits right in with the entire rougelike nature of the game. It’s a small, fun, and easy addiction that many will really enjoy all for a cheap price.

Downwell is one of those great small jewels where everything runs like clockwork.

Downwell is a genuine tribute to 8-bit era, really challenging but also fun to play.

It’s addictive, it’s charming in its retro design, and it absolutely has the “just one more go” thing about it that can turn a short play session into a marathon.

The difficulty of Downwell will turn away just as many players as it attracts. While persistent effort will ultimately unlock alternative starting stats that benefit less-skilled players, the game starts players from zero after each death—it’s a formula that will either exhaust or inspire the player depending on how they feel about this kind of experience. As for me, Downwell joins the ranks of Spelunky as a go-to, action-oriented roguelike, but I expect many who try it will quickly shelve it for less difficult adventures.

Downwell is highly recommended, whether you have a few minutes or several hours to devote to getting down this well.

Downwell personifies the ‘gameplay is king’ mantra and it backs up its approach with a perfect suite of controls that are predictable and consistent.

Downwell truly feels like a classic NES game both in aesthetics and in difficulty, which paired with incredibly addictive gameplay makes the under $5 Downwell at least worth giving a try.

Downwell manages to blend simplicity with hidden, challenging depths to create a unique take on the platform and shoot ‘em up genres that is hard to resist from the moment you first jump into that well. It may not have the lifespan of similar titles, and it occasionally feels a little cheap in later stages, but that doesn’t stop it from being a highly enjoyable descent.

It’s fantastic value for multiple hours of arcade action.

A frenzied pace, a deep gameplay and a high level of difficulty: these are the ingredients of Downwell, a solid and brilliant videogame, which is still unable to get completely rid of its mobile origins, though.

The premise is perhaps better suited to vertical screens, and it can be a bit obtuse – but for the price of a Big Mac, this is one deadly descent that deserves your tuppence.