A depressing little pile of cells

I’m not the most important lover of roguelikes. I possibly keep away from them rather less than I used to however itemizing that little affect within the bullet factors nonetheless isn’t a method to promote a recreation to me. Nonetheless, I do love Castlevania. Throwing that full title (Metroidvania doesn’t depend) into your press launch is a greater method to get me salivating. So, sure, the Return to Castlevania DLC was sufficient to get me to totally decide up Useless Cells.

What’s amusing is that I final performed Useless Cells across the time I used to be reviewing GetsuFumaDen: Timeless Moon, which was a revival of a forsaken Konami franchise that largely took affect from Useless Cells. So each instances I’ve performed Useless Cells have been as a consequence of a Konami franchise. Don’t take a look at me like that. I discovered it humorous.

Useless Cells is a roguelike that took a number of affect from Castlevania, so having it get formally sanctioned Castlevania DLC is a superb match. Because it seems, it’s not solely a terrific addition due to the addition of themed ranges, however as a result of the unlocks you get from tackling them improve the Castlevania flavors of the bottom recreation.

Useless Cells: Return to Castlevania(PC, Change, Xbox One, PS4, iOS, Android)
Developer: Movement Twin
Writer: Movement Twin
Launched: March 6, 2023
MSRP: $9.99

You possibly can start the Return to Castlevania DLC slightly simply. So long as you might have the flasks hanging exterior the opening room, you will discover Alucard within the Prisoner’s Quarters. When you’re beginning contemporary, this simply means you’ll want a couple of (failed) runs earlier than he seems. Afterward, you begin off within the Citadel Outskirts. There are solely two full biomes accessible together with two boss rooms. Nonetheless, it’s important to undergo Dracula’s Citadel not less than twice, as soon as by way of getting into via the Prisoner’s Quarters to defeat dying and once more via the Clocktower.

It’s a bit extra sophisticated than it must be, however not so cryptic that it’s inconceivable to determine. The foundations had been initially unclear to me, so I wasted a run or two making an attempt to get to Drac. For that matter, in case you fail at Drac, it’s an extended stroll getting again to him, which I suppose is simply the character of a roguelike. When you’ve performed Useless Cells, you most likely know the type of time dedication you’re in for. Runs can exceed a half hour, and whereas that’s not large for a full recreation, when a miscalculation can ship you again, that may be punishing.

It’s development by levels. Certain, you fail, however spending cells make subsequent runs simpler. You additionally construct up your abilities and techniques. You determine what your weapon preferences are, and that strikes success inside your attain.

Cat Scratch

The 2 included biomes are fairly lean meat. It undoubtedly suits the worth, and I believe the most important situation with it’s that the correct quantity of Castlevania for me is infinite Castlevania.

Regardless of there being solely two boss rooms, there are literally three bosses. There’s Dracula, in fact, however there’s additionally Demise and Medusa. The final battle with Dracula is appropriately brutal, with a harsh problem spike even for the well-prepared.

The place I believe the best worth lies in Return to Castlevania is within the unlockables you should use in the principle recreation. I used to be considerably involved that the DLC would exist as its personal facet recreation, however fortunately, it’s absolutely built-in. You possibly can unlock traditional Castlevania armaments just like the holy water and Maria’s cat Byakko. These are then accessible for taking part in the vanilla content material. It’s possibly not a lot, however it helps the entire recreation really feel a bit extra such as you’re enjoying Castlevania.

Moreover, there are unlockable skins for the Prisoner. One of many first I unlocked was Maria, which is fairly thrilling. There’s additionally Richter, Simon, and Trevor, in addition to a couple of sudden facet characters. It makes it very simple to finish the phantasm.

Love letter

The remixed music can be fairly nice. The quilt of Vampire Killer might be the very best adaptation, and I’m considerably disenchanted on the method to Divine Bloodlines. Nonetheless, usually, I actually need this soundtrack.

If you wish to play Return to Castlevania, you’re going to must be able to play Useless Cells. There’s no manner round it. Fortunately, Useless Cells is an absolute gravy boat, and also you ought to play it.

What makes Return to Castlevania higher is that it basically means that you can flip Useless Cells right into a Castlevania roguelike, and a damned good one. The DLC serves as a incredible love letter to one of many sequence that helped encourage Useless Cells, and that love completely comes throughout. I actually want that extra video games would let me simply flip them right into a Castlevania spin-off. What’s the matter, Mario? Assume you’re higher than Castlevania? Properly, you’re not, so placed on this leather-based cuirass and carry this whip. Wait, that sounded bizarre.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}