Dex

Whenever I start playing a game, I do so with expectations. That expectation is simple: I want the game to entertain me. To provide me with an enjoyable experience, something I'll carry with me from that game. The obvious question from here on out: does Dex deliver in this regard? Let's see. Present a well-written cyberpunk story, shady, tense, morally confounded? Yes, please. We don't get enough of this sort of premise these days, anyhow. The only real problem I see here are the endings. Which are rather lackluster. Dress it up in beautiful, heartwarming pixel art? Yes, please. That alone creates a wonderful atmosphere, especially for those of us old enough. Though in all frankness, the animation could have been better, smoother. Coat it in excellent voice acting, music and sound effects? Yes, please. Expands the atmosphere the visuals already create, even if some of the characters could use a volume adjustment. Insert a core of 2D beat 'em up / rpg hybrid? Yes, ple... well, depends. While the idea is intriguing, it often comes off as too much crammed in but not enough of anything. The RPG elements should have been either heavier or not used at all. As it is, there's no real difference between “builds”. A fixed, gradually unlocked skill set may have worked better. And for a beat 'em up, combat is way too clunky. It feels like a chore in the early parts of them game, then becomes way too easy about halfway through. These shortcomings are not game-breaking by any means but they will be noticed. The addition of augmented reality and hacking is a nice touch for flavor, though. So, having said all this, did Dex deliver the experience I was looking for? Yes, it did. There are rough edges - some rougher than others - mostly in the gameplay, there's no denying that. But if you play games for and engaging story and/or immersive atmosphere, chances are you'll find Dex to your liking. 3.75 / 5

This is one of those rare gems that, upon finishing I immediately wanted to fire it up and go through it all over again. At its heart, the game is a side scrolling RPG beat 'em up with just enough wrinkles to elevate it to something special. The first is the general atmosphere and visuals. I admit, I'm not a "pixel person" - but Dex executes it exceptionally well. The final product is smooth, crisp and gives the game a fantastic aesthetic different from most RPGs. The voice acting lends a ton to the game as well. Okay sure, it's cheesy and a bit overdone at times. But it gives every character a unique personality you'll remember. It was good enough that I actively avoided a quest because the voice actor perfectly captured someone I was happy to toss to her own devices (screw you Lydia, find your own ride ;) ). The core gameplay mechanics are solid as well. I played a predominantly melee character and this style of combat provided a satisfyingly tactical experience. Fighting each of the handful of enemies felt different, and the combat had a pace perfectly suited to respond to each fight with a bevy of rolls, blocks, combos and gunplay. I'm not a beat 'em up player, but this game encouraged me to approach combat in a tactical manner and use the tools at my disposal. Speaking of tools the game offers quite a few upgrade paths. There's a fantastic hacking minigame that transforms Dex into an old school Shoot 'Em Up complete with upgradeable software attacks. The game has several skills which unlock everything from different combos, to the standard HP increases and even some light thieving and charisma options. Combined with augmentations and gear, these provide you with the tools and skills you'll level over your playthrough. In the end it all serves to allow you to craft the Dex you want to play and provides enough fun encounters in varied locales that you'll be wanting more. The length is decent, quests are plenty and the story engaging. A+

I really like the concept of the game, as many other reviewers pointed out it is simple, yet fun to play. Why do I only rate 2 stars dispite its merits? Well, game breaking bugs do persist. What ruined it for me was that after everry death, every reload, every restart of the game it is back to default key settings. And that makes all those events such a pain i just stopped playing the game. The default key setting may work under the QWERTY keyboard layout, but suck under Neo, so just working with the default is not an option. Despite what the developers say, those Bugs are not fixed, and as long as they persist, I can't recommend to buy Dex.

HIGLY RECOMMENDED AND A MUST-BUY IF YOU LIKE CYBERPUNK AND CAN BEAR 2D PLATFORMING. Most of the content is side quests that are very well voice-acted and designed. The fast-travel map system works great. The real 2D city districts puts even River City Ransom in shame for how detailed it is. The movement controls are super stiff, so don't expect a fist-ballet. Tons of different ways to beat the main quest, though the side quests pretty much require maxed out lock-picking and charisma skills and a couple of utility implants. Graphics: comic book stuff, it works except a couple parts are too light or too dark to be seen properly. Sound: the music is fitting ambient, nothing special. One of those games where you learn to hate the battle music. Gameplay: let us be fair, the fighting system is awful. As soon as you perform a move, your character locks up and cannot be controlled for a fraction of a second. That incentives two ridiculous-but-practical fighting approaches: infinitely jump-kick-and-roll-away and equip-the-regen-implant-and-trade-hits-like-an-idiot. Sure, there are unlockable moves and combos, though they suck. E.g. sweep does no damage (useless), high-kick pushes enemies out of your hitting range, etc.. Jumping, rolling and grabbing ledges works quite well, demonstrating how much the game was made for platforming and not fist-fighting. The guns are pretty okay, though there is not a single target in the game that you really need them for, no bosses whatsoever. The toughest enemies i.e. Armagear soldiers are more vulnerable to fists anyway. Story: the main story is meh and is a total rip-off of Blade Runner. The side quests are completely different (read: much better) and are a lot about Cyberpunk: the blood-thirsty outlaws and the megacorps as blood-thirsty outlaws with a presentable face. Lorraine has most development: you most likely beat her in the first fight of the game and later she reappears with tons of implants for a rematch. 15 h of content.

Dex was a game I bought because of how awesomely impressive its demo was. In this fantastic Metroidvania-like RPG, you get a game so rich with cyberpunk atmosphere and immersive storytelling that it immediately sucks you in and make you feel almost as though you're playing a Ghost in the Shell RPG with a touch of Blade Runner's darker cyberpunk tones thrown into the mix. In this game, you play as Dex, a young woman who is being hunted for reasons she doesn't understand. Along the way, she encounters some allies that help her adapt to her new life as a warrior on the run. Initially skeptical of any sort of augmentations, she relents in order to survive. As she does this, she discovers that there's more to her story than she could have imagined. Its plot isn't anything revolutionary but this game does a solid job of creating a strong female lead that doesn't feel forced for the sake of any sort of an agenda, which is refreshing. The gameplay on offer here is fantastic, with a minor caveat: the hacking minigame. It's not bad but compared to the rest of the game, it feels rather mediocre. Other than that, though, the side-scrolling gameplay has a combination of old school action games and Metroid-style shooting and exploration that makes this game feel relatively freeform/open world despite being somewhat of a small space in actuality. Add to that the fact that this game's RPG mechanics allow for plenty of replayability and it creates a game that is just entirely fun for people who enjoy RPGs & Metroidvanias. On top of that, this game has a fantastic soundtrack. Everything fits the dark cyberpunk mood to PERFECTION. Excellent atmosphere, great use of synths and just an overall pessimistic tone that captures the essence of the world that this game does such a great job of portraying. Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend this game, even at full price. It's a lot of fun and was a very pleasant surprise, Play the demo if you're unsure or just buy it, it's 100% worth it!