Reignbreaker Review – A Familiar Fight

Reignbreaker Review

The Hades-style roguelite has surged in popularity over the past five years, blending fast-paced action with an evolving narrative that unfolds across multiple runs. Supergiant’s hit not only popularized the isometric perspective but also set a high bar for storytelling in the genre. Its influence is undeniable, inspiring countless successors, including Reignbreaker. But does this latest entry carve out its own identity, or is it just another imitator?

Once a loyal soldier of the Queen, you turn against her after repeated failures to fulfill her promises. As her oppressive rule tightens its grip on the world, you must fight back to free society from the reign of the Queen of Keys. Like its inspirations, Reignbreaker reveals its story gradually across multiple runs, telling the histories of the protagonist, the Queen, and the characters you encounter. However, while it follows Hades’ approach to storytelling, it struggles to build the same level of intrigue. Despite some strong voice acting, the limited world-building and straightforward premise make the narrative largely forgettable.

Sticking to the Path

The game follows in the footsteps of its predecessors to deliver a conventional roguelite experience. With each run, you’ll receive upgrades to bolster your attacks and create a build that can unleash huge damage. In addition to this, you’ll also gain currency, which you can spend on permanent upgrades that will build over time to make subsequent runs more manageable. Although familiar, it’s an addictive formula that continues to reward you, giving the incentive to start another trek.

Gameplay is key for a roguelike and this is where Reignbreaker shines. There’s a lovely frenetic pace to the combat, which allows you to vary your approach and take out the array of enemies in style. You can leap in to unleash melee combos, fight from afar with range attacks and perform area of effect manoeuvres. Each method of attack can also be upgraded during runs to vary your arsenal further. Some open up new striking possibilities, while others heighten their effect with elemental powers. Although the combat does branch out, everything feels a little too close to the playbook, making battles feel very familiar.

Each area has a range of vaults that reward you upon completion. These include simple tasks such as defeating all that spawn, do so within a time limit and then without taking damage. While the tasks are typical, the responsive controls and addictive gameplay loop make for engaging segments. You’ll find yourself taking on the various vaults and experimenting with builds so that you can defeat the large bosses that culminate runs.

Battle the Beast

Bosses are large and uniquely designed, ensuring each encounter feels distinct. Their attack patterns demand quick reflexes and strategic responses to gain the upper hand. While these battles are exciting, they follow a predictable formula and rarely surprise the player. Despite the clear effort put into crafting these encounters, the lack of environmental variety diminishes their impact. This issue extends to the overall experience, as levels remain largely unchanged, making subsequent runs feel too similar and causing the game to become repetitive rather quickly.

The presentation is strong throughout. I particularly liked the medieval punk aesthetic and stylised design. The gritty visuals help to give the game character and carve its own niche. Characters are well-designed with quirks that help give them personality. Combining this with the strong soundtrack helps to amplify the magnitude of the fights. However, it’s a shame that Studio Fizbin didn’t push this idea further by experimenting with a variety of locales to establish a larger world. It would have been interesting to see more areas that give further insight into the effects of the queen’s reign. This would help to bring the narrative to the forefront and incentivise you to overthrow the antagonist. However, as it is, there isn’t a pressing need to progress, which could disaffect players.

Reignbreaker is a solid action roguelite that will feel familiar to fans of Hades. Its fast-paced combat is enjoyable, and the variety of power-ups encourages experimentation with different builds. While the art direction is creative, other aspects of the game adhere closely to genre conventions, rarely breaking away from its inspirations. Though undeniably well-crafted, it may struggle to distinguish itself in an increasingly crowded genre.

***A Steam code provided by the publisher for review***