20XX

If you decide to pick up 20XX—you’re going to have a bad time. You’re going to die, you’re going to be frustrated, maybe even throw your controller in a fit of rage. If you’re anything like me, you will find small instances of inspiration and confidence to pick up your pad once again and jump back into the fray.

Despite how hard this game is, that isn’t a mark against it – very much the opposite in fact. Megaman games have always been incredibly challenging and anything that tries to give the same feel as those needs to be just as difficult. 20XX does an incredible job of balancing this given its roguelike nature. It’s a worthy successor to any of the old games, it is the game that Megaman fans have been waiting for, and quite simply it does what it does spectacularly.

Very fluid and practically "endless" gameplay.

Part of the reason why 20XX exists is Capcom’s negligence of the Mega Man series. Batterystaple Games has successfully taken the Mega Man X formula one step further by adding in roguelike mechanics, essentially giving the game infinite replay value.

20XX does far more than to simply be a blatant Mega Man clone. It is a combination of what ifs and why nots that makes this particular title a great little game in its own right. With plenty of modes, tons of upgrades, an in-depth record of your statistics and, most importantly, fun gameplay, 20XX certainly deserves a place next to Capcom’s mascot in the library of your Nintendo Switch.

20XX is a great tribute to the Mega Man X franchise that just works. The procedurally generated levels allow for constantly fresh challenges, and its swift gameplay encourages you to climb the online leaderboards.

Playing 20XX has an addictive rhythm to everything. You dive into the level, find loot like upgrades and currency bolts, kill bosses to take their weapons, and keep pushing until you die. After dying we’d often suffer from that 'just one more run' itch that’s so common in roguelikes and the formula fits an action platformer like 20XX perfectly. The procedural engine does a good job of mixing things up, but after a while you can start to see a little repetition, but that’s easily overshadowed by the sheer variety and amount of upgrades and customisation.

20XX is going to make things very difficult for us. A remarkable roguelike with an aroma of Mega Man that seems a copy but that is a tribute to a whole way of making and understanding those kinds of video games.

There’s a lot of fun be had here, a great challenge for those looking for a new retro-style platformer like this to take on, but 20XX never truly finds that “retro” charm. Instead, it’s a new idea pretending to be a retro experience, and the more astute players out there will be able to sniff it right out.

20XX is a capable roguelike version of Mega Man X. If you're a fan of 2D action games then it's definitely worth checking out as long as you don't expect it to be a revolutionary take on either genre.

Despite its inconsistent level make-ups and underwhelming boss designs, 20XX is still an engrossing side-scroller that perfects the feeling of navigating dangerous, pitfall and enemy-filled stages.

20XX offers a quick dose of Mega Man inspired gameplay that doesn’t disappoint in the slightest. The controls were clearly refined to be authentic and tight. What the game does lack, however, is content to come back to after mastering the quick 20XX runs.