One of the great things about indie games is that they’re generally not made to be enjoyed by the mass audience, but are instead designed to have a more distinctive taste, even if that may make them a more niche offering. There’s no question that the majority of titles with a roguelike bent to them fall into this category, as while a typically higher degree of challenge mixed with the unpredictability of what you may encounter on any given run may appeal to some folks, it will frustrate others. Given that I normally really dig roguelikes, what surprises me with Lucky Tower Ultimate is that in this specific case I found myself more often on the side of the frustrated, rather than the engaged.

Of course, that isn’t to say that it isn’t without its merits. If you’re looking for some humor to go with your gameplay, there’s plenty to enjoy here. While the humor can often venture into being groan-worthy, there’s enough silliness being thrown around that some percentage of the gags are sure to connect. Of course, considering the myriad ways that the game can kill you, you’ll need to understand that some of it will be at your own expense unfortunately. Aside from the entertaining voice work, the very distinctive animated style is also quite a lot of fun, making each of your many methods of demise at least a little more bearable when they can put a smile on your face.

What doesn’t work out quite as well, at least in my mind, is the relatively simplistic gameplay which feels like it takes a back seat to the goofiness. For the most part this is just a pretty simple side-scrolling hack and slash, just gussied up with a fun animated style and a sense of humor. It doesn’t help that the controls feel a little cumbersome when it comes to working with items. Given the fact that you can only hold two things at once, needing to swap something in order to pick up slain enemies to shake them out, hoping to find some gold or something useful, feels awkward given how much you need to do it. The fact that so many innocuous things you interact with can also be hidden death traps can sometimes be fun, but also extremely aggravating and sometimes bordering on cheap as well. If you dig the very cartoonish look, and the game’s undeniable sense of humor, you can choose to overlook the relatively thin core gameplay, but if you’re looking for something more mechanically rewarding, this may not be what you’re looking for.