Cyberpunk 2077’s sleek, neon-drenched style and music, mixed with Doom Eternal’s fluid movement, wild kill combos, and fast-paced style. To me, that sounds like the perfect FPS game, like someone peered into my imagination and built their shooter around all of my favorite things. And now it’s real. Deadlink is a new roguelike that’s just hit Steam, and after just four days of release, it’s already gathered ‘very positive’ user reviews. Quick, violent, and visually stunning, Deadlink is also available at 25% off. This could be 2023’s biggest sleeper hit.
Deadlink has two central gimmicks. First, you’re an elite operative who is remotely controlling what is called a ‘shell,’ basically a robotic avatar designed to fight crime and clean up the streets of a dystopian, cyberpunk city. When you die, you transfer to another shell.
The Soldier is kind of all-purpose generic. The Hunter is a faster, deadlier, but physically weaker ninja type. And the Engineer is your heavy weapons shell. Each time you die, you acquire new combat data and experience that you can use to enhance your shell for the next time round.
The second big gimmick comes from the weapons, which can be customized and randomized to your heart’s content. Every time you die and jump into a new shell, you also get new guns, equipped with different attachments and buffs.
In your previous shell, you might have been using a powerful, short-range damage dealer. Next time round, you could swap to a zippy submachine gun, or a slow-firing grenade launcher. You’ve got grenades, you’ve got melee – if you remember the latter stages of Doom Eternal, when you’ve finally mastered the movement and the arsenal, Deadlink feels like that all the way through.
With more than 1,200 reviews since its launch on Thursday, July 27, Deadlink is already rated as ‘very positive.’ To celebrate the release, it’s also available at a 25% discount. You can pick it up right here.
Alternatively, check out some of the other best roguelikes. You might also want to browse the best cyberpunk games on PC.