Nuclear Throne: A review

Nuclear throne has always caught my eye because of its maker, vlambeer, who I learned about from playing wasteland kings, which was the predecessor to nuclear throne. When nuclear throne went free on the epic games store for a week, I immediately downloaded the game and knew 30 seconds into playing it that this was one to keep on my computer. Flash forward a few weeks later, and I am still attached to this phenomenal top-down roguelike shooter.

Gameplay

If you have come to my website and don't know what a roguelike is, your in luck, because I will spare you those 5 seconds of searching something google. A roguelike is a subgenre of games characterized by procedurally generated levels and permadeath, meaning that everytime you die, you lose all your progress. Nuclear throne stretches this a little bit, as there are unlockable characters, but all of these are basically just more interesting achievement badges as they have different powers, but none of them are more overpowered than the others. All the AI is really responsive and quite clever, which I really like, but they also navigate the procedurally generated landscapes fairly well. All the guns and melee weapons in the game play really well, which is quite a relief, because I have seen so many bland shooter games recently(I am talking about you, ruiner). My favorite aspect of the game is that every level you complete, you get to choose a mutation that works in your advantage(such as +4 max health, or the ability to not be hurt by explosions when you have less than 4 health).

Procedural Generation

The worlds of nuclear throne are procedurally generated very well, as they often feel like they are hand made. The layouts make it easy to plan out your attacks as you hide inside some of the alcoves, adding a surprising amount of tactical depth to the game, but they also make sure that if you are too conservative with your movements, you can easily get cornered by some enemies. There was never a level that felt inconsistent(although at times, I wanted their to be less nuclear scorpions). Nuclear throne offers many stages that the procedural generation is based off of, including deserts, junkyards, sewers, and fancy mansions(which are not on the main path).

Secrets

What really got me into the game is not its great gameplay loop, but all the secrets it has to offer. To this day, I still have not found anywhere close to everything that is hidden in the game. One of my favorite aspects of the game is the fact that most cars, if hit too many times with a melee weapon, will explode on impact, but if you hit the car with the golden trim with a screwdriver, you get sent to YV's mansion, a super fun level that has some of the hardest enemies in the entire game. All of the secrets are like an alternate motivation for playing that will probably yield me another 20 hours or so, which I do expect to spend.

Execution

If you have ever played a game by vlambeer before, you know that the one thing they do best is game feel. The bullets are as big as your face, the explosions look like atomic bomb eruptions, and the sounds are super realistic. Everything about this game makes the game a more fun experience, including the weird sounds of all the enemies. I have tried and failed to do stuff like this myself, but if I do make another attempt, this is definitely the game I would study. The AI is phenomenal, the gunplay feels great, and all the systems work very cohesive with each other.

For fans of

This game may not be for every type of person, but their is definitely a large audience for this one. The people who will enjoy this game the most will be people who enjoy:

#1. Top down shooter games. Fans of games like mr shifty and hotline miami will definitely have tons of fun out of Nuclear Throne as it has phenomenal shooting mechanics that closely resemble games like hotline miami.

#2. Spelunky. Like spelunky, nuclear throne is procedurally generated and has a lot of gameplay variety through its procedural generation.

#3. XCOM. Sure, maybe this is a little bit of a stretch, but Nuclear Throne can offer a lot of tactical depth at times, which fans of games like XCOM that are more into precise planning may enjoy, as strategic gameplay is more rewarding then guns blazing.

#4. Those rooms in zelda that you had to kill all the enemies in to get out. Like those rooms, nuclear throne has you clearing each level of all its enemies before a portal opens and you can travel to the next level.

Verdict

Nuclear Throne is an excellent roguelike top down shooter than definitely will get a lot of time out of me, and probably the majority of people who play it.

(You can get Nuclear Throne for 12 dollars at https://vlambeer.itch.io/nuclear-throne)