Dust & Neon Reviews
Dust & Neon features meticulous gameplay that demands attention to each decision made, and adds a unique twist on the twin-stick shooter genre.
Dust & Neon has all of the tools and gunslinging gameplay needed to offer up a good time, but it's hindered by a lack of story or characters to be invested in, bad AI on occasions and a structure that just ends up dragging things out for too long.
Dust & Neon is an enjoyable twin-stick shooter with a cool cover mechanic set in a colourful world. But it's held back by a strong sense of deja vu and a lack of fresh ideas.
In the end, though Dust & Neon nails the fundamentals of a twin-stick, looter shooter it feels far too limited, familiar and simply isn't ambitious enough to stand out from its genre peers. Though still reliably satisfying to play at times, Dust & Neon just doesn't offer anything new.
Much like the rest of the game, Dust & Neon’s bosses pretend that they’re interesting, but are absent of charm or character. Then there are the final bosses who require an arbitrary number of level-ups to reach, forcing players to chew through repetitive missions and farm XP, a task which only brings the game’s flaws more readily to the surface. In its finest moments, Dust & Neon presents serviceable roguelite gameplay with responsive controls, but there are better options available with way less meaningless grind required.
In theory, Dust and Neon was made for a gamer like me. And I do like the art, the premise, and the style of action. Some aspects don’t quite feel fleshed out, like the mission designs, the narrative, and the range of weapons. Then there’s the reload mechanic, which I found more annoying than innovative. Dust and Neon isn’t a bad game, and fans of twin-stick shooters, Westerns, roguelikes, and looter-shooters should all find a little fun hunting outlaw robots. Unfortunately, its pleasures are just a bit too shallow and brief.
Dust & Neon is a fun isometric twin-stick shooter, enveloped by the trappings of a roguelite that won't be for everyone. Even so, it never felt unfair, thanks largely to its tight and fun gunplay mechanics that fans of twin-stick shooters will easily latch onto.
Dust and Neon is a fun and engaging twin-stick shooter that set in a futuristic world featuring gunslinging robots. Its addictive action is sure to keep you busy.
Dust & Neon from developer Rogue Games is an interesting, and oddly relaxing twin-stick shooter. Its RPG backbone and simplistic mechanics will keep you coming back for more, even when the unremarkable enemy variety, sans the bosses, might dull down the experience. There is still a lot to do and explore in the game, which makes it at the very least a good action title.
In the end Dust & Neon feels like a bunch of great ideas and mechanics that don't quite push the roguelike genre in any innovating direction. That's not to say it isn't fun though as its fast-paced run and gun gameplay always entertains. I just wish there was more variety in the weapons and missions, and a richer story wouldn't hurt either. The potential for an even more impressive sequel feels very likely if the interest is there and I, for one, am interested enough to see one.
Dust & Neon is a solid action game with a steady difficulty curve and enough tinkering for character building to make an addictive experience. It does not reach the heights of Hades and that is due to the lack of gameplay variety and compelling characters. Despite its obvious shortcomings, Dust & Neon is a worthwhile twin-stick action game that builds upon itself the deeper you go in, but not enough to break up the monotony.
Even with that repetitiveness, the core mechanics feel so good that I really enjoyed jumping in for a few missions every now and then on a regular basis. Dust & Neon manages to combine several common game tropes in a new and interesting way, with a surprisingly fun reloading mechanic that makes it stand out in a crowded field.
Dust & Neon’s fast-paced combat, satisfying reloads, and streamlined gameplay loop are good enough to get one hooked right away, but the lack of variety in its zones, guns, and secondary systems leaves little incentive for anyone to keep playing past the game’s bare-bones story.
If you want a new roguelike to play that’s more on the gentle and forgiving side, Dust & Neon certainly isn’t a bad effort. The gunplay is satisfying, making you feel like a badass gunslinger, but there’s too much to fault regarding its repetition and sense of sterility that what glimmers of goodness there are get submerged in banality. Whether it’s the feather-thin story and context, the dull mission objectives, or the general lack of character, Dust & Neon fails to make the most out of its Western setting and its pleasing gunplay. Dust & Neon is worth unloading bullets into robot cores for an hour or two, but it won’t sustain you for too long afterwards. Consider this one scrapped.
Dust & Neon is a game that, if it came out at full price, might still not be easily recommended. In this case, with the price so low that it is offered, and as soon as we play a few games on it, it is a game that is easy to redeem and that we can enjoy if we approach it with the right expectations. Direct action, replayability, variety that can be improved even for the type of game it is, and zero complications when it comes to having fun.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Featuring a consistent challenge and tense encounters, this roguelike shooter distinguishes itself in a crowded field
Dust & Neon has a few key mechanics that shine but I believe asking £24.99 is a bit steep. Most shops are pointless and I never bought anything as I found most of my weapons during missions.
Dust & Neon may be a diamond in the rough for those looking for a unique sci-fi western cover-shooter. However, the roguelite systems do a disservice to the twin-stick shooting gameplay, making it far from the most wanted.
Like Final Fantasy VIII's gunblade or Gears or War's active reload, Dust & Neon knows that a solid, satisfying mechanical input can make or break otherwise rote gunplay. It's a small distinction, sure, but it lifts David Marquardt's twin-stick, sci-fi Western out of the metaphorical dust.
Dust & Neon is definitely going for something, and it does include a very satisfying overall gameplay loop, but the technical issues can be grating in the long term as they are persistent, and once you become accustomed to the way things are done in the game, there’s no real deviation.