Difficulty:

Hard

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Old-school"

Spelunky aims to combine two genres: Platformers (like Super Mario Bros.) and Rogue-likes (like nethack). Every game of Spelunky is different. The game procedurally generates the levels and does an amazing job doing so. The controls are pretty straightforward for a platformer. You can jump on (most) enemies to kill them, you can throw a rope up or down, and you have some bombs. The bombs not only kill enemies, but also break walls apart. In addition to that there are a bunch of items (guns, pickaxes, a jetpack, etc) that you can pick up or find hidden in the walls and floors. This is where it becomes a rogue-like. You never know what you are going to get, so this keeps the game changing too. Like most rogue-likes, you play over and over again, slowly learning the skills you need to make it further.

I gave this game a high score because this mish-mash of gameplay concepts comes together perfectly. It has that classic feeling of a game that is almost impossible at first, but after hours of playing you'll be surprised by how good you get at it.

Best of all, it is totally free.

The only drawback may be that it is a little awkward to play with a keyboard. I highly recommend using some kind of gamepad.