Diehard Dungeon

About

Diehard Dungeon is a single player role playing game with a violence theme. It was developed by Tricktale and was released on March 5, 2014. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Combining its own unique take on the real-time roguelike genre, with a nostalgic 16-bit look and feel, Diehard Dungeon is a game that feels both familiar and quite different at the same time.Followed by a trusty, treasure collecting companion chest, you must make your way through the dungeons many randomly-generated rooms and levels. Armed with a sword and a ‘hand cannon’, all manner of nasty dung…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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70%

Audience ScoreBased on 339 reviews

gameplay16 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

Fun and addictive roguelike with challenging gameplay and a unique companion chest mechanic.
Retro 16-bit pixel art style reminiscent of classic Zelda games, with atmospheric music and sound effects.
Dynamic difficulty scaling that adjusts to player skill and a variety of randomly generated dungeons and enemies.

Clunky controls and limited weapon variety; ranged and melee attacks often frustrating to use effectively.
Visual clutter and graphics issues that make it hard to distinguish traps and keys, leading to cheap or unfair deaths.
Lack of meaningful progression between runs, repetitive gameplay, and RNG-dependent item upgrades reduce replayability.

gameplay
73 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
67%
11%
Gameplay in this game is a mix of Zelda-like dungeon crawling and roguelike mechanics, offering a challenging but often repetitive experience with basic combat that some find slow or clunky. While some appreciate its depth, procedural variety, and roguelite elements, others criticize frustrating controls, lack of impactful upgrades, and visual clutter that hinders enjoyment. Overall, gameplay appeals to fans seeking a tough, Zelda-inspired roguelike but may feel tedious or poorly executed to those expecting more dynamic mechanics.
- “You learn through gameplay and build up your style.”
- “The gameplay is like Link to the Past meets Binding of Isaac of sorts, but it's pretty hard.”
- “There are interesting gameplay twists everywhere, lending the game a lot of depth and replayability.”
- “Gameplay is by far the worst offender. Clunky is not enough to describe how bad it is. You have barely no range on your melee attack, which deals a pathetic 3 damage, while most enemies have 10+ HP.”
- “Visually messy bullet-hell with poor design and frustrating, chaotic combat mechanics.”
- “Here the developers have been perfectly consistent with their concept and artistic talent - gameplay is completely terrible.”
graphics
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
55%
11%
The graphics of the game are generally described as retro, pixelated, and styled after 16-bit era visuals, which some players find charming and fitting for the game’s nostalgic, fast-paced dungeon-crawling aesthetic. However, a significant portion of reviews criticize the art as dull, uninspired, or poorly executed, lacking diversity in environments and enemy design. Overall, while the pixel art suits fans of classic styles, many feel the visuals fall short in quality and impact compared to other games in the genre.
- “If you enjoy SNES-style action RPG graphics, then you'll love this.”
- “The art style is unique and cute.”
- “The game has an adorable 16-bit graphics that brings back memories.”
- “The developers say they're going for "16 bit nostalgia" but the artwork looks nothing like 16 bit era games; it just looks lazy and badly done.”
- “Diehard dungeon is simple, clunky and repetitive with one of the ugliest pixelart graphics I've seen for a long time (and trust me, I've seen a lot).”
- “The final negatives about Diehard Dungeon are the bland graphics, uninspired dungeon design and the completely 'meh' soundtrack.”
music
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
46%
11%
The music in the game is generally described as decent to good, with some tracks standing out, particularly in late-game and boss areas, contributing well to the dungeon atmosphere. However, it can feel repetitive or forgettable for some players and is not considered spectacular overall. Despite mixed opinions, the soundtrack is often highlighted as one of the game's more redeeming features.
- “Only redeemable part of this game is its soundtrack, which is good, some tracks are just okay, and some are really good, especially the tracks in the more late-game areas.”
- “The music is atmospheric and pairs well with the dungeon atmosphere.”
- “The music, while not something I would listen to outside of playing (a la Hotline Miami), is still a bit better than serviceable.”
- “Diehard dungeon is a decent game that stays difficult with gameplay reminiscent of Zelda, though the art style isn't amazing and the music is forgettable.”
- “The final negatives about Diehard Dungeon are the bland graphics, uninspired dungeon design, and the completely 'meh' soundtrack.”
- “Music isn't the best side of this game.”
replayability
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
55%
17%
Replayability opinions are mixed but generally positive, with many praising the game's challenging gameplay, procedurally generated dungeons, and added features like minigames and a champion mode that enhance replay value. Some find it fairly simple, which can limit long-term appeal, but the overall depth and active development contribute to a satisfying and affordable experience with good replay potential.
- “The replay value is definitely great, and when you take into account the fact that the game is in active development, features a champion level (a new game + after beating the last boss), and includes minigames, all for merely $5, you get a game that is an excellent introduction to randomly generated dungeon crawlers and stands on its own, definitely deserving your attention.”
- “Tons of fun and a lot of replay value with tough and challenging gameplay.”
- “There are interesting gameplay twists everywhere, lending the game a lot of depth and replayability.”
- “The game is blatantly simple, which unfortunately kills any replayability it might have had.”
- “Using the same stuff over and over again really hinders the replay value.”
- “The replay value is clearly a little weak here.”
story
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
54%
23%
The story aspect received mixed to negative feedback, with many users noting a lack of meaningful narrative or plot, especially in the roguelike format. While some appreciated the occasional surprises and thematic hints, most found the game lacked depth, progression, and engaging storytelling, making it more suitable for players focused on action rather than narrative.
- “Moral of the story: you never know what life has in store for you, and if I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
- “It has a nice way of telling the story and there are always surprises.”
- “The only reason I don't give this a higher score is because it doesn't have much of a story.”
- “Roguelike: we don't have the talent or capability to create meaningful content and storyline so we're just gonna randomise a bunch of boring assets ad nauseum.”
- “Kind of like a top down Zelda with a vague objective and no story.”
- “No story, no charm, just plops you in and there you go, now kill stuff.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding in the game is widely described as tedious and time-consuming, with progress often hindered by RNG and repetitive tasks that require significant effort and patience. Achievements demand extensive grinding, which many find frustrating rather than rewarding, making the overall experience feel clunky and unrewarding.
- “You may be asking why I have 40 hours on this game if I didn't like it and had all this to say about it, but that's because I tried to go for all the achievements. I had basically all of them at 20 hours; all the rest was me grinding for a heavily RNG-based achievement. Don't be like me, don't waste your time on this game, it's not worth it.”
- “Unfortunately, some of the achievements require a lot of grinding and good luck to get certain combinations of things in a level to even allow you to progress on these grinding achievements.”
- “It's tedious to move forward, the rewards are lackluster, and dying and restarting places you back to the beginning where your weapons still suck even against the first (shielded, of course) enemy, so unlike most roguelikes that let you get past the beginning pretty fast with some experience, here it's a tedious fight against one of the more tedious enemies.”
atmosphere
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
17%
33%
The atmosphere is generally praised for its immersive, foreboding quality, effectively enhanced by fitting music and visuals that evoke a strong dungeon vibe. While some find the challenging gameplay frustrating, the mysterious enemy behavior and retro-inspired design contribute positively without relying on gore, making the experience compelling and distinct.
- “It really builds up the atmosphere.”
- “The music is atmospheric and pairs well with the dungeon atmosphere.”
- “Hammerwatch tackles “retro” in a far superior graphical manner, and Darkest Dungeon utilizes black, brown, and grey to create a foreboding atmosphere.”
- “It's one of the genres that make you annoyed after a while because you lose every time and the atmosphere just helps you ragequit more.”
- “Hammerwatch tackles 'retro' in a far superior graphical manner, and Darkest Dungeon utilizes black, brown, and grey to create a foreboding atmosphere.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's optimization is unexpectedly poor for its simple, low-graphics style, resulting in performance and control issues. However, its adaptive difficulty system provides a well-balanced challenge that grows with the player.
- “I did not expect such a small and low-graphical style game to have so many performance issues and control problems.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its humor, with users finding it genuinely funny and entertaining.