Recent reviews by Devencire

Easy to learn (even for a Spire-like neophyte like me), hard to master. The various ways of manipulating cards during battles provide numerous opportunities for canny plays and calamitous misplays. If you like deadly arithmetic and dancing within razor-sharp game design, pick this game up.

Slick, polished, a barrel of fun: this is a great roguelite platformer. In particular, the movement using the titular hook is very satisfying - combined with the rapidly recharging slow motion ability it allows precise navigation and daring escapes. The difficulty ascends smoothly, the persistent unlocking of perk choices lets you specialise (or cover for your weaknesses) at the start of each run, and picking up extra random perks and (optionally) curses during a run adds pleasing unpredictability.

Plus, Flinthook is adorable. This is probably the cutest and most inoffensive game I've played all year, and it's lovely for being that.

Note that this game doesn't have infinite depth or hundreds of hours of content. Instead, it gives you the satisfaction of mastering the relatively small pool of enemies and room layouts (while rooms are placed randomly to build a map, and while there are many versions of rooms to offer different levels of challenge, the base room layouts become quickly recognisable). Similarly, while there are only a handful of bosses, they all reward precise and agile play; facing them again is a fun challenge, not a hassle.

I highly recommend using the 'Pro' control scheme if using a controller, as the game functions much better as a dual-stick platformer. (The mouse and keyboard controls are fine too!)

Starts well. Ends better.

"TRY AGAIN. TRY AGAIN, MY PETS. I FIND THIS MOST AMUSING." - The NecroDancer