Right now is the best time to be a fan of roguelite shooters. I’m not going to list all of them here, but there are loads doing the rounds at the moment. The discourse I’ve been seeing lately is around Abyssus and Deadzone Rogue and which one is the best, but for me they’re not only very different, both they’re both good enough join an ever-growing list of highly replayable first-person shooters that I’m happy to recommend.
What is Deadzone Rogue?
While a lot of roguish shooters offer up a bit of whimsy, Deadzone Rogue is a much more serious-faced affair. It’s a sci-fi roguelike that nods to the horror classics in both tone and across three distinct zones that are filled with different enemy designs. In fact, as I was stalking the corridors of the ISS-X, the ship you find yourself stuck aboard here, I was reminded of my time exploring the USG Ishimura in Dead Space.
Except Deadzone Rogue is an action-focused roguelite and not a stringently composed survival-horror adventure. You still explore a ship, you still shoot at enemies, but the gunplay and enemy designs reminded me more of Killing Floor than of Dead Space, and the whole thing is shot through with roguelite progression in a similar vein to Gunfire Reborn and Roboquest.
Futuristic setting aside, I think the one thing that really sets Deadzone Rogue apart from the other games I’ve mentioned is the way it presents its story. Developer Prophecy Games has built a really interesting narrative into your overall progression, and I like it when a game’s designers take the time to make sense of the loop instead of relying on our ability to cope with a healthy dose of ludonarrative disonnance.
Interconnected systems
Although I have been enjoying the story (I’ve not quite finished it, I’m still trying to get through the third and final zone), I’m going to highlight the interlocking gameplay systems as my favourite thing about Deadzone Rogue. I think that the developers have done a fine job in terms of linking everything together, with different systems supporting each other as part of your character building for each run.
There are loads of weapon types and basic armour pieces, and each one can be upgraded and enhanced with elemental powers. These powers can also be linked to each other, so as you boost one part of your build, you can also integrate the powers of other equipment.
Other abilities are tied to certain game-states, and this is where I think it works best. You can really push a build in a certain direction from a technical point of view, especially around the distance you usually like to engage your enemies. There aren’t too many different elemental powers, and perhaps this is one area where we could have seen just a smidge more diversity. I’m probably nitpicking, though.
Leveling up your character over the course of a mission is still a lot of fun as you do have some creative freedom. For example, during one run I loaded up on support drones and had a whole gang of Johnny 5s floating around behind me, while in another I went all-in on fire damage and just tried to burn everything down. Throw in some unique mission elements that spice things up further, and you’ve got a campaign that delivers an experience both cohesive and flexible.
Deadzone Rogue on console
The final version of the game landed a couple of months ago on PC, and it has since been followed with a double drop on console platforms (PS5 and Xbox). For what it’s worth, I’ve been playing entirely on PC, but it’s well suited to a controller.
Deadzone also offers co-op for up to three players, although I’m going to have to come back and give you more detailed thoughts on that front. I didn’t want to wait for my co-op buddy before writing this up, but I’m really glad that the feature is there and that it works cross-play between PC and console. Stay tuned.
Elsewhere, I think the game’s robust difficulty settings also help make it a more accessible option to anyone looking for a sci-fi shooter but who might not be a roguelite fan first and foremost. The Adventure difficulty setting is easy to get to grips with, and even someone with a wonky aim will have fun as they work through the story content.
While there is a stern challenge here if you want it, and there are lots of interesting systems working together under the hood, Deadzone Rogue still feels like an approachable shooter for noobs as well as a good option for more seasoned rogues looking for something new to aim at. I’ve really enjoyed myself, more than I thought I would, and having seen the gameplay evolve across Deadzone’s three areas, with new enemies, bosses, and mechanics layered in over time, I’m looking forward to diving back in, hopefully with a wingman by my side.
