It's just $3! Such a low cost for such a fun game!

I had this on my phone and played it here and there, but kept accidentally pressing the wrong direction. Phone controls suck. Wasn't sure how much I'd play it on Switch but it was $3 so I thought... why not? And I just opened it up to play once or twice quick and ended up playing for like an hour! And I made it to the third world a few times, which I never did on my phone!

Who else is playing? Besides these people...

Copypasta!

Let's talk some Downwell. This game kicks ass. An addictive, challenging nouveau arcade roguelike. It's basically a reverse platformer. You fall down the well, with only platforms and your gunboots to stop you. Similar to Splatoon, your jump is tied to your attack, as well as your ammo. So you can pace yourself and take your time, or you can just go kamikaze and try to combo as many enemies as possible without the crutch of the gunboots. Which allows you to buy more items. In addition, there are tons of modifiers which you can pick between levels, thereby keeping the game fresh and engaging from run to run. Seriously, this game is exquisitely designed. And priced to SELL at $3! Shit, I'd septuple dip at that price. The vertical nature of the game makes it perfect for Tate Mode on Switch, too.

So, having now played the Switch version, Tate mode IS awesome, AND you can play with the horizontal Joy Con attached to the bottom of the screen, BUT it doesn't appear that you can do that unless the other Joy Con is connected? That other Joy Con adds some unnecessary weight to the whole structure! Also, it feels like there's slowdown on the Switch port?

Other than that, though, awesome. Well worth $3!

ALSO, is Fabien at the top of every freaking NW leaderboard? Let's take him down a spot or two, people!

Are there really only four worlds and a boss in this game?

That SEEMS like something I could finish. But then again it feels like the obvious approach here is the game gets significantly harder very quickly. 3-1 is already destroying me.

Has anyone made it all the way through?!

Not yet. It gets pretty nasty.

I unlocked boulder mode which is awesome, you start with 6 hp and there is one less upgrade to choose from at the end of each stage, but honestly that is a trade-off that is WELL worth it to me.

Got to 4-1!

I had been avoiding getting more health upgrades when at full health for what I thought was an obvious reason but I just realized when you get health at full health it puts it in one of those bars below your health and if you fill up 4 of them, your max health goes up by 1.

Pretty brilliant really. Along with some other design elements it makes it so you really should play your best the ENTIRE time even if you're fine at the moment since it will get you to a better place before the shit hits the fan. AM I FINALLY *GETTING* ROGUELIKES?!

With that said despite understanding the game better in a way that should make me better I almost feel like the more I play the worse I get lol. Not only have I not gotten back to 4-1 since that first time, I've only gotten to 3-1 once since then. This may be in part because I'm trying to kill as many enemies and get as many gems as possible now which is smart when you do it well but if you don't do it well it can lead to you doing worse than when just trying to avoid everything.

Risk and reward, man! Split-second decisions! Consequence! Mastery! That's what Roguelikes are all about!

Join ussssss...

Jesus 4-1 is just a sea of red. Every once in awhile I get deep into it but I feel like it is mostly just luck. You have to bounce off the random objects floating around right?! Not much else you can even touch.

Another game to justify my Flip Grip purchase. You should all buy one. TATE mode is really nice with it. I've only played for like an hour so far but I can see this being one of those games that gets more and more satisfying the better you get.

@Hinph
Are they available to the public now? I'll grab one!

Can the NES Online controller fit onto the left side?

@Anand

Not sure. But just what kind of zany contraption are you trying to construct, sir?

@Hinph
A Nintendo homunculus to rival Sega's Super CD sandwich!

No, using the left NES controller as a D-Pad works pretty well. It's not flush with the system edges, but it feels fairly comfortable. And you can still pair it with the Right Joy Con.

Anyway, I ordered it.

@Anand

I see! Yeah, I still don't understand why Nintendo doesn't want me to give them money for a proper Joycon with a Dpad. How are we two years in now without one?

@Hinph
I think that they think that it would lead to customer confusion. It feels like something that we could've gotten from Club Nintendo, though, so they should make it one of the Switch Online special offers!

I'm just happy to have access to a two button pad again. Playing one/two button games on a diamond layout suuuucks.

@Anand

Yeah, and now 8bitdo is releasing a Sega Saturn style controller at the end of this month which should finally complete my 2D gaming needs if the D-pad ends up being close to the original. It's beautiful. Fingers are crossed.

@Hinph
Ooo, that's news to me. I can't remember what I thought of the Saturn pad, but that looks pretty nice.

If the arcade goodness keeps coming, I might just get an arcade stick, although I learned on the 360 that the 8-way stick gates used in fighting games are TERRIBLE with old-school stuff like Pac-Man.

There's also that 8-Bitdo wireless adapter that allows you to use tons of existing controllers wirelessly. Too many options!

Oh, and also... Downwell!

@Anand

I actually bought a couple of 8bitdo's arcade sticks since they are so cheap and modified them with higher quality Sanwa buttons and Seimitsu sticks. It was fun. Only get them if you are willing to crack them open and do this, however, because the default buttons and sticks are junky.

@Hinph
Cool! But I don't trust myself with that stuff, since I destroyed an Xbox Controller just by trying to clean it. I've been looking at that Cronus stick that works across different platforms. Their adapters seem pretty sweet, too. Same with 8bitdo's wireless Gamecube controller adapter. This new adapter wave is great for getting more mileage out of any existing controllers that you might have laying around. I'm a bit leery of extra lag, though.

I made it to the end boss! Only had two health when I got there and wasn't quite sure what I was doing though, so I died fast. Apparently it is pretty tough. It does look like you can get more health as you fight at least.

Made it to the boss! #NintendoSwitch pic.twitter.com/oQ7FZQAI63

— Someone Whatever (@samusisawesome) March 23, 2019

Where you guys at!? I thought you were all about the ROGUELIKES?!!?!

@Zero
We have to spread our time between several!