The music is lo-fi electronica, with subtle distortions, while the protagonists are silent, suited-up killers, crash-landed on beautiful, desolate worlds. Its sprites are much smaller, makings its bleak alien landscapes seem vaster. Risk of Rain, meanwhile, is a haunting, sonorous affair. Explosions shudder the screen, and the player runs on honed instincts, knowing one mistake or moment of idiot bravado could mean the end. Its sound effects are gutteral and splatterous, its bullets bright and beefy. It’s peopled by freaks, who set out to find salvation in a blistered post-apocalyptic world, tumble through swirling inter-dimensional portals and wind up being chased by futuristic police squads. Nuclear Throne is a lurid, neon thing, its title screen giving way to thrashed guitars and wailing harmonica. Risk of Rain is a side-scroller, Nuclear Throne a top-down shooter, but the real difference between the two lies in their respective atmospheres. You’ll never acquire every weapon, power-up and trinket in the game, and even when you’ve gathered those you treasure most - the perfect chorus of armaments - it can all be snatched away from you. These are games for the bruised optimist, not the hoarder or completist. But really, there’s always one more chance – the chance to start over, to do everything right this time. ![]() ![]() Since progress isn’t saved, both games seem at first to offer no second chances. Players pick from a variety of survivor-type characters and gun their way through themed wastelands, acquiring further strengths and abilities as enemies mass against (and ultimately overwhelm) them. ![]() Both were put together by small development teams using commercially available GameMaker software. Nuclear Throne and Risk of Rain are both action roguelikes (or roguelike-likes, if you prefer) with procedural elements and the option to play co-operatively with friends.
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