Flinthook

Breathless action combines with perfect pixel art in a game of real character and delight.

A satisfying, moreish take on the roguelike formula, and one that's most likely to appeal to genre naysayers.

Building up your stats and skillset between runs is a great reason to keep playing, though the lack of content may leave anyone not interested in high scores wanting

Flinthook is a fine video game that sunk its hooks into me with easy to pick up and play gameplay, a catchy soundtrack, and cute characters. It's easily a recommendable rogue-lite for any fans of the genre or platformers in general. Just don't expect the game to anchor you to your seat unless you're the kind of person that needs to uncover every piece of treasure possible. Even if you aren't, Flinthook is a dandy game, in space.

While some may dismiss Flinthook initially, the game will sink its hooks into you if you give it a chance. The controls are sharp, the progression is satisfying, and the vibrant and unique art style will keep you smiling along the way.

Make no mistake about it - Flinthook is a really well crafted, charming and fun experience. To a certain extent, however, it feels impeded by the constraints of its genre. It is one of tightest action platformers and addictive rogue likes around, but due to the randomly generated levels, you will encounter the odd frustrating spike in difficulty or structurally very similar areas in close proximity. These complaints are reduced to niggles though due to its charm, personality and action packed gameplay. This trek across the galaxy is sometimes a tough and repetitive one, but it's also incredibly enjoyable.

Flinthook is beautiful, balanced retro platformer with an unnecessary roguelike structure.

Savage Level and Microids offer us a pirate adventure with very good ideas... although others need to be polished a little more. We are facing a strategy title where our ability to manage on the board is at odds with the luck we have with the dice.

"Flintlock takes inspiration from so many titles that it gets lost in its ideas and never lands one of its own. Often uninspired, frequently creaky in its execution, and usually unsurprising in its mediocrity."

While Flinthook was a swashbuckling good time, the poor level design and odd level system keep this title from being great. Despite the problems, this is a tight platformer with a lot of personality and fun mechanics.