

Different builds can give wildly different results so you are always learning something new, and if you want to change your playstyle on the next run it’s really easy to do so.” “You have to adapt to what the game gives you, making decisions and changing your strategy on the fly. “The real draw of roguelikes is the element of really having to learn the game,” Houghton says. With Practice Makes Perfect, the team looks to add even more longevity to the game.

With it being a roguelike, it’s an experience you can sink a lot of time into, and the fact that no two runs are the same keeps you coming back. A refined world map and a streamlined way to know how much damage you’re dealing also help make the game more appealing.ĭead Cells has undergone dozens of iterations since its launch in 2018. These abilities make you way more powerful than you’d be otherwise, without making you feel invincible. Or, the Assassin Aspect allows your first attack while invisible to instantly eliminate an enemy. Motion TwinĪ new training room allows you to practice fighting enemies, and the new “Aspects” feature grants you an array of five formidable powers to choose from, like Firestarter, which boosts flame damage by a whopping 100 percent. The new training mode allows you to practice specific encounters. You no longer need to hope for the best on a boss battle. But now, thanks to the Practice Makes Perfect update, players have a slew of options to make it easier. “To date, we’ve added certain options such as disabling bright flashes and screen shake, as well as an option to hold the attack button to perform combos rather than button mashing,” Houghton says.ĭead Cells has always been known as a difficult roguelike action platformer, requiring immense skill from the player to progress through its stages. It’s almost never as simple as scaling enemy health or making the player’s attacks more powerful. Inverse spoke with Houghton to better understand the studio’s motivation for implementing the new Practice Makes Perfect update, and why the team thinks accessibility is so important.Īdding accessibility options is a nuanced process that differs from game to game. “We wanted to let those players easily reach the later stages of the game to see what they’re missing, or to just have a great time rampaging through the island without worrying too much about dying early.” “We always knew there was a significant chunk of players who enjoy Dead Cells, but just don’t have the time, skill or energy to conquer the game,” Houghton tells Inverse. Dead Cells was originally a grueling experience, but now more players can enjoy it.
