Iron Crypticle

A fun throwback to a number of different beloved titles, Iron Crypticle is fun in short bursts and can be a blast with friends. Yet, aside from the charm of the 8-bit visuals, there isn't an enormous amount here to keep you dungeon running once the initial novelty wears thin.

Tikipod has done it again with Iron Crypticle, successfully reviving an old-school arcade concept and infusing it with some modern ideas. Iron Crypticle may not do a ton of innovative or new things with that twin-stick concept, but it nonetheless hits all the right notes in recreating that gameplay that made Smash TV such a smash hit. If you've ever been into twin-stick shooters or want another game for local co-op, Iron Crypticle is a great choice; fun gameplay, high replayability, and decent presentation make this one easy to recommend.

While a bit slow to get going, there's a great amount of variety in Iron Crypticle once the action heats up.

While this isn’t really a game that’s practical or easy to beat, the journey in your attempts to try and beat the game is where the fun is, and I still had a lot of fun just playing for the sake of a higher score, even when I didn’t particularly care about progressing.

It's not articulated particularly well and can lead to some confusion at first, but once fully understood it proves to be a lot of fun. The pace of the game tends to be a bit slow, especially on early floors which don't present as much of a challenge as later floors. However, branching paths, local co-op, multiple difficulties, and even online leaderboards help round out the overall package.

There's plenty to enjoy with Iron Crypticle. It will definitely suit fans of retro aesthetics and arcade-esque titles, but shooting using the right stick in only eight directions is a hindering experience which is likely to frustrate players, in an otherwise solid game.

A fun to play, quick to pick up, horror-themed twin-stick shooter. With stylised art that resembles the arcade classic Ghosts 'n Goblins and light RPG elements that are incorporated with a randomised dungeon room and boss battle set up.

Who said you couldn’t have a great time with a budget retro arcade shooter? Iron Crypticle has a smart but classic arcade style of play that will challenge you solo, or you can join up with 3 friends as well...

Iron Crypticle is a fan and fast-paced twin-stick action release on PS4 you can enjoy on your own or in a full four-player multiplayer session. While you technically don't progress much in the game during each run since when you die you have to go back to the start, you do unlock new weapon times to grab as power-ups as well as add new entries to your items encyclopedia to complete your collection, so if you're the type of player who wants to 100% a game, you will definitely end up being addicted to this cycle, and I recommend you get this one on PS4.

Iron Crypticle is arcade shoot ‘em up done right with decent twin stick gameplay that changes up often enough to keep the player engaged for many runs. With the addition of powerful bosses, impressive power ups, diverse enemies, and an interesting main concept, this title is quite a hidden gem.