Deep Sixed

87%
Game Brain Score Based on 60 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Deep Sixed Game Cover
Starting at $12.99Buy now
Get on Steam Get on itch.io Store

In "Deep Sixed," players take on the role of a pilot working off a sentence for a corporation by mapping a distant nebula. The game features a permit-based progression system and a permadeath mechanic, with a spaceship that stays with the player from start to finish. The game's universe is procedurally generated, offering a diverse ecosystem of intergalactic fauna and numerous mysteries to discover.

  • Windows
  • Linux
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

87%
Audience ScoreBased on 60 reviews
story10 positive mentions
stability6 negative mentions
  • Deep Sixed offers a unique and engaging gameplay experience that combines elements of roguelikes with a humorous and entertaining story.
  • The game effectively captures the chaos of managing a malfunctioning spaceship, providing a satisfying challenge as players learn to troubleshoot and fix various systems.
  • The art style is charming, and the voice acting adds depth to the narrative, making the experience immersive and enjoyable.
  • The permadeath mechanic can be frustrating, as players must restart from the beginning after dying, often having to replay the same dialogue and missions multiple times.
  • Some gameplay mechanics and controls are clunky, leading to confusion and frustration, especially when trying to manage multiple tasks under pressure.
  • The game can become repetitive after a while, as players may find themselves facing similar challenges and missions without significant variation.
  • story87 mentions

    The game's story is described as entertaining and filled with humor, providing a backdrop for the gameplay that involves maintaining a malfunctioning spaceship while completing missions. However, the repetitive nature of the missions, combined with permadeath mechanics and the inability to skip previously seen dialogues, detracts from the overall experience, making the narrative feel tedious over time. While some players appreciate the world-building and quest for knowledge, many express frustration with the story's execution and the game's technical issues, leading to a mixed reception.

    • “The world building - the narrative story - is why I really like this game.”
    • “That quest for knowledge about this interesting place is what motivates me to keep fixing all the problems.”
    • “A story that is filled with great voice acting and humor that I enjoyed very much.”
    • “I'm sorry, but stuff breaking all the time, the clunky controls, going through all the same missions again and again if you die, and no save option—how can this chore be fun for anyone?”
    • “The game's story is incredibly hard to complete without cheating, and less than 10% of owners obtained the achievement of making it halfway through.”
    • “This is a permadeath game with some minor scripted story elements, and after your first reset (and there will be many resets), any scripted story elements you've already seen become very irritating to skip.”
  • gameplay25 mentions

    The gameplay is characterized by unique mechanics and an immersive experience, focusing on ship maintenance and problem-solving through a manual. However, players note a lack of depth after a few hours, leading to tedium, and frustrations with the user interface. While the game offers a solid challenge and enjoyable mechanics for those who appreciate complex systems, it may not provide enough engaging content for everyone.

    • “Deep Sixed scratches a strange itch for unique mechanics and panicked flicking through a manual to solve problems.”
    • “Rarely have I seen a game with such unique mechanics that is also so immensely immersive.”
    • “The ship is impressively complex with lots of systems and different failure types -- electrical, mechanical, software -- and you spend a lot of time in the manual.”
    • “The second problem is that there really isn't that much gameplay there to begin with.”
    • “After maybe 2 hours, there are no longer any gameplay challenges left, and the tedium starts setting in.”
    • “The user interface and gameplay issues are just too frustrating for the price.”
  • graphics13 mentions

    The game's graphics are characterized by a charming, cartoonish art style that complements its atmosphere, despite not reaching AAA quality. While some players find the visuals simple and serviceable, others appreciate the unique indie charm and immersive quality they bring to the experience. Overall, the graphics effectively convey the game's themes of chaos and absurdity, enhancing player engagement.

    • “The game has graphics that fit the atmosphere.”
    • “It has quality graphics that have the indie charm.”
    • “The graphics, just slightly on the comic-book side, add to the corporate, bureaucratic, and technological absurdity.”
    • “While the game is far from 4K crazy graphics that AAA developers are slowly working their ways towards.”
    • “If this game had AAA quality graphics, it would honestly feel different.”
    • “Simple graphics, simple game.”
  • humor13 mentions

    The game is widely praised for its humor, blending absurdity with challenging gameplay that often leads to hilarious moments. Players appreciate the witty writing, engaging voice acting, and the comedic take on dire situations, which keeps the experience light-hearted despite the game's complexities. Overall, the humor is a standout feature, enhancing the enjoyment and atmosphere throughout the gameplay.

    • “This game is hilarious, and it's fun trying to learn how to do all of the things you need to do in the game, and see all the layers of absurd complexity in even the most simple tasks.”
    • “The game has a good sense of humor about the hopelessness of the situation, and I enjoy the relationship that develops between the player character and the AI companion.”
    • “The emails you receive in-game are sometimes so funny and full of sarcasm :)”
  • stability7 mentions

    The game's stability is generally solid, with high production values and minimal bugs reported; however, players experience frequent breakdowns that require troubleshooting, which can detract from gameplay. While the troubleshooting aspect adds a layer of challenge, it can lead to frustration when failures occur due to random die rolls rather than player skill. Overall, those who enjoy managing technical issues amidst action may find the experience rewarding, despite occasional glitches like a stuck retrieval probe.

    • “Though Deep Sixed is a fairly solidly built product with high production values for its chosen medium, and is pretty much bug-free, I have encountered at least one real bug where the retrieval probe gets stuck.”
    • “When you're not trying to fend off hostile aliens, you're trying to fix all the breakdowns that occur every few minutes, and a comprehensive troubleshooting manual and a limited supply of spare parts are all that stands between you and certain death.”
    • “You don't fail because you don't manage to follow a complicated troubleshooting procedure, or keep up with cascading failures, or deal with multiple simultaneous issues - you fail because you simply fail a die roll when the game decides to crash the wrong system at the wrong time.”
    • “It also reminded me of troubleshooting a computer server, while being shot with laser blasts.”
  • atmosphere6 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is characterized by a strong sense of tension and minimalistic yet effective graphics that enhance the experience. Players appreciate the blend of humor and suspense, as the uncertainty of potential malfunctions keeps them engaged and on edge, creating a compelling and immersive environment. Overall, the atmosphere successfully combines elements of panic and anticipation, making for an enjoyable experience.

    • “The game has graphics that fit the atmosphere.”
    • “There's a good sense of tension, and as others have pointed out, the game does well at creating atmosphere with just a few minimal ingredients.”
    • “As a beginner, not knowing everything gives the game a certain atmosphere of always being on the verge of wondering when the next malfunction or fight will be, and if you'll be able to handle it.”
    • “The atmosphere would be altered.”
  • replayability5 mentions

    The game offers a solid replayability factor, initially driven by its rogue-like elements and the challenge of mastering various malfunctions. However, as players become more skilled, the replay value may diminish, though the upcoming addition of an endless mode is expected to enhance replayability by allowing players to challenge themselves and improve their high scores. Overall, the combination of gameplay mechanics and future updates contributes to a fun and engaging experience.

    • “The developers are also going to be adding an endless mode here in the very near future, that will give the game a little more replayability too.”
    • “Great game, simple premise of single-handedly running a constantly-breaking spaceship made into a very fun and replayable experience.”
    • “It has a rogue-like vibe going in that you will die many times, the main difference is that I can see is being able to master the different malfunctions eventually, which will make the game's replayability less of a thing once you have been through it a few times because you will know how to do everything.”
    • “The endless mode also provides more replayability to the game as you can challenge yourself to survive as long as you can as difficulty increases, and attempt to beat your own high scores.”
    • “Now that I've finished the game, I can talk about story and replayability.”
  • music3 mentions

    The music in the game is highly praised for its captivating quality, creating a trance-like experience for players. Additionally, the overall audio, including voice acting, is noted to be excellent, enhancing the immersive gameplay.

    • “I was just in a trance by the fantastic music.”
    • “On top of the music, the audio throughout the game is great and the voice acting is fantastic!”
    • “The music feels repetitive and lacks variety, making it hard to stay engaged.”
    • “I found the soundtrack to be uninspired and forgettable, which detracted from the overall experience.”
    • “The audio quality is subpar, and the sound effects often clash with the music, creating a jarring experience.”
  • grinding2 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to have promising concepts, but it often devolves into a tedious and frustrating experience, heavily influenced by random number generation. Additionally, some tasks are intentionally designed to be monotonous, further detracting from the overall enjoyment.

    • “It's got some good ideas, but it quickly becomes tedious and frustrating, and victory is at the mercy of the random number generator.”
    • “Some of the tasks are deliberately tedious to begin with.”
  • emotional1 mentions

    Players report a deeply emotional experience, highlighting a strong connection between their own stakes and those of the main character, which enhances the overall satisfaction of completing the game without dying. The journey is described as both harrowing and rewarding, underscoring the game's ability to evoke intense feelings.

    • “I managed to beat the game on my first run (this is a bit of a misnomer, that just means I haven’t died a single time), and while the experience was harrowing, it was also an explosion of emotional satisfaction - my stakes and the main character’s stakes were equally high.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Buy Deep Sixed

Videos

Similar Games