City of Brass Review

If there is one genre that I feel is difficult to make a bad game out of it, it is the Rogue-lite. Rogue-lites are meant to be hard out of the gate, eventually allowing your character to get better, evolve with the mechanics given and allow players to eventually get better before dying and starting all over again. It is a tried, tested, and true formula that just works no matter what the case, making a frustrating death an enjoyable gameplay feature.

However, as much as it is difficult to make a bad game out of the genre, its hard to stay memorable. With each title in the genre looking for something to help it stand out and to keep bringing players back. For City of Brass, a new rogue-lite from Uppercut Games who team members consists of BioShock veterans, it attempts to find that uniqueness by setting itself as an Arabian Nights-inspired first-person hack’n’slash.

City of Brass has players take the role of a cunning thief out to pull the greatest heist of his time to obtain the fabled treasure hidden in the heart of a ruined city. The city itself is filled with countless treasures, traps and undead creatures out for blood, and will stop at nothing to protect the city’s treasure.

Like most Rogue-lite’s, this is pretty much where the story stops and the fun begins. The main mission is to get to the middle of the city and lift the curse, a task that is easier said than done, but also to fulfill your greed by collecting priceless treasures and walk out with as much money as possible.

Players are given at first a short sword and bullwhip for weapons and some rags for protection. The game is heavily focused on close combat with the sword being your primary source of combat, while the whip has a variety of uses, mainly it can push, pull and stun enemies allowing you to prepare for a follow-up slice or stab.

Other functions of the whip includes setting off traps to allow you some slight invulnerability to pass them, fling yourself from hooks to reach higher ground, and collecting treasure from afar, making it the most versatile item to have in your inventory.

City of Brass forces you to play smart, with a limited amount of health it is so easy to die and have to start all over again, however those who use their environments well can use enemies to set off traps, fling vases filled with gun-powder or blow up a group of enemies gathered around a burning vase. There is enough in the world that can help and hinder your progress to keep each circle exciting as you continue to the center of the city.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a rogue-lite without upgrades. City of Brass is difficult however the more experience you gain from collecting treasures, the more you level up and gain new perks to take with you into the city upon death. Once inside the city, you’ll have to improvise and use some of that loot to pay helpful genies to provide other helpful perks.

These perks include armour that freezes opponents when you get hit, longer whips, new swords with varying length and strength, the ability to turn off traps and health upgrades/restores. Sadly anything you buy in the city does not carry with you upon death, forcing you to start with the basics each time.

City of Brass is unforgiving when it comes to difficulty, but at the same time it attempts to be fair with it. If you die in City of Brass it is likely that you stumbled into a trap for being to careless or were hit by a charging skeleton that you couldn’t get out-of-the-way fast enough, either way its pretty much your own fault.

There is plenty to enjoy with City of Brass, with tight controls, plenty of traps, unforgiving difficulty, and plenty of secrets to discover. However its hard to say if the game is one that will keep you coming back for more treasure hunting after some time has passed, while the game has a lot of the core elements of great rogue-lite, its longevity depends on how much you enjoy using the bullwhip and how tolerant you are to dying.