If you came here expecting a pixelated, dungeon crawler that matches modern gameplay mechanics with 80's retro design and an ambient cyber-punk electro soundtrack then you came to the right place. The game looks and sounds amazing...if you're into the call-back aesthetics of pixel art. Highly detailed and well designed art but pixel art none the less. The use of color and variety in all aspects of the design from enemies to scenery to far off background vistas makes everything in this game gel together really well. Blended with the soundtrack composed by Fez music designer Rich Vreeland aka Disasterpeace, HLD delivers a solid experience for those who enjoy a blend of an alien apocalyptic wasteland, crawling with an array of enemies. Gameplay wise this game is going to seem tough to begin with, relying on a dodge mechanic to get you out of tight scrapes, and a variety of melee and ranged attacks to knock back the hordes. The designers like to mix a variety of environment based obstacles alongside rooms of leaping, crawling and blasting creatures, all coming for you whilst the floor drops away or the walls slide in to flatten you. The initial flaw (and what's stopping me giving 5 stars) is that the game has issues detecting my gamepad, (other users have reported similar issues and the devs have announced they are looking into this), so I'm using the fairly awkward keyboard and mouse controls which, due to the 'hard to see' onscreen cursor used to decide weapon and dodge direction, eventually becomes uncomfortable. This game is right up my street, and I'd recommend to anyone who is enjoying the retro revival scene that calls back to our childhoods but uses modern ideas to continue to expand upon the old school aesthetics that got people into gaming.
