You will die in this game. You will die many, many times. Hack, Slash, Loot is a dungeon crawler in the purest sense of the word. You will hack, you will slash, you will loot, and you will also die. For those unfamiliar with the genre of either roguelikes or dungeon crawlers; the levels are randomly generated, the combat is turn-based, items are everywhere, and death is permanent.

Though this game is streamlined to the bone, simplistic does not always mean simple. Though the game seems harmless, with its cute pixelly graphics and brilliant chiptune soundtrack, it is, like the in-game Mimics, just a front. The premise is a familiar one. Starting on the first floor of a dungeon, your aim is to make it through said tower without dying. Along the way you will encounter monsters, which you kill and loot. This loot is what will help you (possibly) survive.

Upon launching the game for the first time, you will be greeted by a teeny tiny window. Enlarge it; it’s impossible to see otherwise. Not resizing isn’t really an option. The menu screen is a fairly accurate to the rest of the game; hard to navigate and initially confusing, but genuinely charming. Beside the character and quest selectors is the new game button. Though the UI’s friendliness is questionable, upon mouseover an explanation will appear, making everything okay again.

Controls-wise, the game works by left clicking. As I said before, streamlined. Left click to move, left click to attack, left click to equip. Clicking on a tile will either move you there or let you attack any monster standing on it. If that’s not your cup of tea, then there is the option to use the keyboard. The simple controls stand out amongst other overly complicated rougelikes, where capital Q is ranged weapon and lowercase q is for drinking potions. None of that here. Left click.

This game is hard. Think Meat Boy-meets-a-diamond-drill-bit hard. Upon spawn, the game is not afraid to put you right beside a mob, and you may not even make it out. Currently, the only achievement this game has granted me is the one for dying within 20 turns. The game does throw you in the deep end. Survival requires a decent knowledge of enemies and game mechanics, but it leaves you to find them for yourself. You will die many, many times just working out how the game works. This game doesn’t hold your hand, and, doubtless, some people will find this frustrating, but I found the steep curve fun. You respawn immediately upon death, so you don’t even have time to be angry at your last failure.

Depending on class, you will either be dealing magic, melee, or ranged damage. Each class can use another class’ weapons in theory (A mace-wielding archer, for example), but this is probably ill-advised. Every character has five stats; Melee, Ranged, Magic, Defence, and Health. There are also nine equip slots for gear, as well as the ability to use single-use items. At the start, you’ll have access to only a few types of heroes, but as time goes on, you can unlock more, up to 32. This, combined with the randomly-generated dungeons, give the game massive amounts of replay value. (Though I’m not sure if it’s replay value if you’re unlikely to finish the game.)

The refreshing thing about HSL is that it makes you rely on a mixture of ability and skill. There is definitely an aspect of chance about the game, but you can apply a certain amount of strategy to it as well, funnelling enemies through choke points so that they’re easier to take on. Gameplay, while simple, does deliver a big challenge for anyone brave enough to take it on. It’s also quick. This is not a Skyrim or a Mass Effect, or even a Minecraft. This is a game that you can pick up and play for ten minutes, or, for masochists like myself, can sit and tackle for a good hour, still making little progress.

This game seems to be completely polarising. It’s certainly not for everyone. Many people will be frustrated by it. Many people will hate the random aspects and claim it takes no skill. They’ll bash the unclear menus and the lack of health regen. This is a very hard, occasionally unfriendly game. It was also essentially made by one man. Though the difficulty can be overwhelming, it’s hard to hold that against it. It’s hard in the way Super Meat Boy was hard, and some people will hate it. I’m one of the others. I like the roaming, I like the simplicity, and I love the tiny thrill of finding better gear. This is a true hidden treasure, and it’s only £1.99 on Steam right now. Fill your boots.

8/10

A genuinely entertaining gateway drug into the world of roguelikes.

+ Absolutely charming

+ Getting into a loot-loop is genuinely rewarding

+ Easy to play without investing hundreds of hours into it

– Occasionally frustrating

– No special abilities beyond your weapon

– Dodgy UI

(For the interested, here are my stats after about an hour with the game:)