Asgard’s Fall Review – A Game I Couldn’t Put Down, Even If I Should

Fresh off the back of another rogue-like, Folk Hero on the Switch 2, Asgard’s Fall is a completely different experience. I haven’t shaved or brushed my teeth, and besides the wife’s habitual disgust, the dog is now avoiding me. When/if I move.

Yes, Soulpotion’s game is addictive. I don’t tiptoe around the fact that I love rogue-likes, with the more recent Survivor-likes taking up a fair amount of my available time. I get that they are mind-numbing, but, like a good clearing game, they’re enjoyable.

Each of these titles needs some sort of hook, and Asgard’s Fall is no different. However, the emphasis on gameplay here is more the endgame than immediate progression.

I get how this contradicts my previous sentiment that rogue-likes need some clear progression, though I will attempt to justify that in a paragraph or two. Originally, I didn’t actually like the game so much and for that reason, will lay down the beef.

You Can’t See Me

I have been playing so many PC games on my AYN Thor that I’m actually adding a tag now for quick reference. As you might expect, on such a small screen, readability is very poor. This is notably due to dark text on a dark background.

Completely playable on a small screen is relevant. Yes, it can be challenging to see ants swinging swords, but it fulfilled my addiction to playing anywhere and everywhere. However, I played this through my TV, before there are any further questions about visibility.

So, that initial issue is mine, not exclusive to Asgard’s Fall. It’s still worth mentioning as the character models are tiny, regardless. Yes, enemies are decipherable, but that’s not the challenge of the game; it’s that endgame progression.

Getting there was obviously a grind, but a fun one. Asgard’s Fall is a twin-stick shooter with one stick for movement, the other for attacking, plus a dash button. Attacks can be automated, as can the large amount of Norse-related skills.

Swing Your Sword? Check. The Node System..?

Combat is the easy bit, as all you need to do as a player is keep moving and dashing when appropriate. Orbs will level up your character, after which you can pick one of three new skills, or abilities, for an initially complicated node system.

One of the best things about Asgard’s Fall is how there isn’t much of a slowdown when levelling up, as you can shoot up to 50 levels in a 20-minute playthrough. That doesn’t mean the game is easy, but you can experiment with so many elemental-based attacks from the Gods, and tinker with the nodes.

The powers are a bit like Jotunnslayer with Thor’s lightning and Freya’s tickling, plus base abilities for physical attacks. Where the game differs is the node system, where runes are connected for modifiers.

This offers a lot of strategic options, as it’s important to have some foresight and plan where to place these. Some runes will boost the number of dashes, increase attack speed, and other nodes will connect and give a 100% boost.

We Have An Endgame

I overlooked the node system for a couple of hours, knowing full well it would eventually help. Which it did. With an abundance of levels to ‘conquer’, adopting a network of skills that complement one another and your playstyle, it gives a teeny bit more chance of surviving a boss encounter.

Asgard’s Fall is fairly hard early on, mostly because the bosses hit really hard. Those runs aren’t in vain, however, as between runs, base stats can be raised for your class (there are four to unlock), weapons constructed, and you can create loadouts, war paint, that are constructed in a way similiar to Tokatonton.

War paint is made up of materials with different rarities and abilities. Fitting a concoction into the Settris-like blueprint makes runs unique – as do the numerous cosmetic weapons for your warrior.

This makes longevity great. Even more surprising was how invested I was in the starting class and not even bothering with the other classes. The difficulty can be further raised through blood sacrifices, adjusting the parameters of a run in the view of unlocking better gear for your war paint. Win!