The Deadly Tower of Monsters is an interesting proposition. It’s a throwback adventure style game whose aesthetic is based off of classic shlock monster movies from the 1940s and 50s. It’s somehow able to mix nostalgia for the classics in a different medium with nostalgia for classic gameplay into a new title that straddles the line of both experiences. Without sounding like a cliche, it’s certainly a unique title that sets itself apart from just about everything else coming out right now. It’s a solid foundation in which the deadly tower sits, but its weak combat almost can’t support it.
The Deadly Tower of Monsters is set up to be a DVD remastering of a fictional film bearing the same name. The game’s narration is actually a commentary track by the movie’s director Dan Smith, an overly confident Hollywood type who likely did more talking than actual directing of the ‘film.’ Players control the actors of the film as they attempt to climb the tower and defeat an evil Emperor. The real star of the show, however, is the tower itself and the monsters who inhabit it.
Just about every classic monster you could think of is there and is presented in the way in which you would find them in those classic films. Extras in ape costumes? Check. Stop motion dinosaurs? Check. Giant monsters clearly being manipulated by a handful of stage hands? Check. None of them even look like they would be from the same movie. The tower itself is littered with the sort of future tech that was envisioned in the 1940s. Of course on closer inspection these items are often just common household items repurposed, like an old electric shaver that has been made into a laser pistol. Deadly Tower’s aesthetic goes a long way in tying the entire game together and helps prevent the game from just being a mediocre beat-em-up adventure.
Fighting the monsters is pretty simple. Players have a ranged and melee attack, both featuring a number of different weapons that are unlocked through the course of gameplay. These weapons are all based on classic sci fi fare like ray-guns and laser whips. Most of them feel overly similar in use, and after upgrading one or two of both types there is never really a need to switch to others. Occasionally monsters will begin scaling the tower, forcing players to shoot at them from over the edge of the tower. Combat in general is rather simplistic and easy, it’s only ever really a challenge when it comes to boss encounters. Even these tend to feel rather bland and same-y. Enemies just don’t offer different ways to combat them and often fights just turn into running around and mashing both attack buttons until everything is dead.
Moving through the environments is where the most enjoyment in gameplay can be found. Like all great adventure games, the tower features plenty of hidden paths and collectibles while also doing a great job of visually differentiating each area enough so players know where they are. This is a good thing since powers unlocked higher in the tower can be used in lower areas to access new paths. At any point players can leap off the side of the tower, freefalling to either the ground or another level. By hiding things on the tower but outside of the camera angles presented to players while climbing the tower, the developers have encouraged players to go back to previous areas even if they feel the rewards for that exploration are minuscule.
Its sense of identity is what makes The Deadly Tower of Monsters a good game. Sure it’s combat is lackluster and repetitive, but that’s not why people will be drawn to it anyway. Its running time is just over the length of a double feature, which is fitting and seemingly the perfect length for it. If you’re looking for something that’s different from what you have been playing recently or just need a day away from some huge open world game you’re cranking through, I can’t think of anything better than The Deadly Tower of Monsters.
The Deadly Tower of Monsters was reviewed on the Playstation 4 using a retail code provided by the game’s publisher Atlus.
1 Comment