Nightmare Reaper’s procedurally generated stages are as raw and aggressive as the thrash metal motifs that propel it. A coined term for predator shooter games, this roguelite enjoys retro visuals, breakneck speed, and the spectacle of devastation that follows.
In novel moves, levels are automatically generated. So every time you die or start over, things change. The aesthetic changes from chapter to chapter, moving from water holes and pointed tombs to hospital wards and cities. And if you can find them, there’s also a space station where you can buy pets to help you uncover secrets. The layout is mostly unique with each new playthrough, but there’s always a need to hit switches, find keys, and find questionable walls to kick through. At best, procedural elements produce levels that feel purposeful. This is impressive considering the layering. It wasn’t perfect, though, with sections being recycled at times, dead ends appearing, and at one point an early jump becoming impassable, forcing me to go down a stage.
Nightmare Reaper is packed with bursting content. Upgrades, buffs, rebuffs and all that jazz. There are secrets and power-ups everywhere, different types of enemies, more than 80 weapons to pick up, and everything has modifier possibilities, allowing you to freeze the undead or set the entire arena on fire. You can turn it into hell. He can choose one weapon to carry over to the next stage, and the looting progression element allows him to gain gold and find hidden rooms with scattered treasure. When you get a new in-game game cartridge, the sub-screen of your Game Boy Advance SP will reveal a new tree of skills that you can access at any time to purchase tons of upgrades. Acquiring new skills will allow you to play his rudimentary 2D stages that mimic Gradius and Super Mario Bros. 3.
The shootouts are knee-deep in bone and blood, combining dry humor with ultraviolence to paint the screen in all sorts of pixelated crimson.You won’t get the same feedback as something like Brutal Doom, but it spits out a dense, epic horde for you to carve into pieces. The music is excellent, with DOOM Eternal’s Andrew Harschult summoning a series of predictable yet impeccably applied metal tracks complete with thunderous drums and riffs of death. The controls are also well thought out and easy.
However, there are some caveats. In addition to the occasional lack of procedural elements, the main campaign is probably too bloated at around 90 levels and can wear you down under the weight of all the boons. Also, its pixelated rendering can be confusing, especially when searching for switches and keys. And many of the secret rooms and items are useless or not worth looking for. The story aspect of putting yourself in the shoes of a female patient in a hospital psych ward and entering and exiting the nightmare world is pretty interesting, but you have to go back to the room between each stage for minor aesthetic changes and new changes. . The pages of the doctor’s diary soon wear thin.
But the Nightmare Reaper accomplishes most of what it aims to do, pushing the boundaries in terms of weapons, incredible abilities, and more trinkets than a fully loaded freighter. It’s at its best when, at the whim of your creative weapon and ability choices, it devolves into a devastating catastrophe. Despite its imperfections, its violent, adrenaline-pumping euphoria will be very appealing to fans of his classic FPS.
