After emerging from the mobile gaming scene, Hero Siege came to Steam in December last year, to some relative praise. Several updates later, and we have a game that’s both lower in price and richer in content. Weighing in at just under PCP’s five pound price threshold: is there enough gameplay and fun to be had from a game that costs £4.79?
I think I should start by saying that this game is bloody hard – and I mean bloody hard. Incorporating the elements of perma-death and persistent levelling into a 2d arena hack-and-slash game; Hero Siege is an unforgiving bastard. The slightest touch from either the vast selection of enemies or plethora of deadly traps can reduce your character to a bloody mess rather quickly. You choose your poor victim from a selection of seven classes, each one relatively unique in their abilities and rather fun to play. There are ranged, melee and summoner attack types, each with their own styles of play and strategies to discover as you battle across four acts of randomly generated levels. There appears to be no level cap, however a high level will be needed with any character if you hope to reach even reach Act 2 on your own. While online multiplayer is in Early Access, it’s included in the DLC and that takes us over the fiver limit (if you can use a five pound note it’s not pocket change, is it?).
The music of the game can’t be described as phenomenal but it does do the job, however as the game requires many playthroughs to progress much further than Act 1, be prepared to acquaint yourself with the soundtrack early on. I did enjoy the art and visual style of the game quite a lot however. The option to enable scanlines brings a retro quality to the table, a la Retro City Rampage. The variety of abilities and the levelling system is also a strong point of the game, suited to the bit-by-bit improvement mechanic present and you definitely feel incrementally stronger each level. The proc-gen of the levels that the player will do battle in while fun and on point most of the time, sometimes cause somewhat clumsy map clipping and inconsistent areas.
In the time since its release, Hero Siege has definitely seen adequate improvements – from better optimisation, to a larger screen resolution and three more classes. The price drop alone should warrant a visit if you missed it the first time, but the added content really does make the game worth the money. While those used to more bells and whistles in their games will probably find Hero Siege a little lacking in depth, those searching for a cheap, cheerful and challenging game need look no further.
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