Genre: RPG
Developer: Double Eleven
Publisher: Xbox Game Studios

This game's Minecraft-inspired low-resolution textures, simple level geometry, and the "point A to point B" appearance of the levels give it a distinct Nokia N-Gage like aesthetic, and that's no insult! There is a large variety in stage themes, from a redstone-adorned cave to an autumnal, pumpkin patch-filled village. Like most Unreal Engine Switch releases, the title does look a little blurry-- but the framerate is steady, and it's fun seeing an isometric spin on Minecraft's iconic cast, such as creepers, zombies, and villagers. The user interface is marvelous, successfully blending pixel art with skeuomorphic elements.

The music in this title is a mix of Minecraft-imitating light piano motifs-- such as in the inter-mission hub zone-- and more ambient songs, a couple of which are almost Matt Uelmen-esque! Action scenes such as boss fights have the obligatory Hollywood-style orchestra songs. Unfortunately, huge swathes of the music is difficult to recall even five minutes after qutting-- something which plagues almost all modern games, to be fair. Each level introduction is voiced over by a French actress, "Claudine Gremy", who does the annoyingly cliche "mystical omniscient lady" role. On a positive note, there are plenty of sound effects lifted from Minecraft itself, lending this title some of that release's charm.

As an obvious "Diablo" clone, Minecraft Dungeons involves grinding dungeon stages, of which there are a dozen or so, for increasingly strong loot. There are no character stats; players instead build their in-game personas by selecting from random enchantments on equipment. While the progression sense isn't as satisfying as, let's say, "Sacred", characters nonetheless do obtain skills such as freezing enemies every second, harvesting souls, and summoning companions. As is standard fare for this type of game, there is four-player coop support, and it's fun to see the players' oftentimes bizarre hodgepodge of abilities combine.

Even when playing the original "Diablo" as a brand new game, this reviewer quickly found the then just-invented genre to be somewhat of a snoozefest. Interestingly then, something about this release is holding his attention: perhaps it's the combination of Minecraft's world, with the way in which equipment and skills are doled to the player? There is something addicting about finding that next set of armor, and the suspense which comes with checking its available enchantments for the first time.