PC Gamer - UK (2022-04)

Fighting is the core of Mortal Sin: an
action roguelite draped in a stark,
grungy visual style. This is not a game
that wastes time on things like story
or fancy menu design. You begin each
run dumped in a
chapel ruin, before you
tackle one of the
randomised gauntlets.
When you enter one
of the gauntlets, an
oppressive atmosphere
settles immediately as
thudding footsteps
echo threateningly
throughout the level. Pretty soon you
make first contact with an enemy,
hacking wildly at its limbs before
kicking the headless creature into a
deadly trap. Which brings me to the
next vital combat element: the world.
There’s a level of interactivity here
that reminds me of Dark Messiah of
Might & Magic, which is still the
daddy when it comes to first-person
booting. There are no orcs to punt off
cliffs, but there is a smorgasboard of

vicious traps, which are non-

discriminating in who they chop up.

While they might seem terrifying,

they’re actually one of the best tools

in your arsenal, and easily avoided by

the dash-happy player.

So you have your

weapons, some nifty

moves, and dungeons

full of helpful traps –

let’s add some loot and

skills and turn it into a

proper roguelite. Loot

is strewn about, and by

grabbing it you ditch

your old gear – there’s no inventory

management to bog things down.

As in any roguelite worth its salt,

you’re trying to build killer synergies,

for example by pairing the regen

ability with a skill that lessens its

durability loss. Regen heals damage,

while the skill means the item won’t

wear out so quickly. Add an ability

that makes durability potions come

more frequently, and surely you’ll be

set for the rest of the run.

Well, no. Here, synergies are a

careful balance that can be shattered

at the drop of a pauldron. Durability

is the pressing factor, with your gear

degrading each time it’s used. Those

durability potions will top you up, but

even with the finest skills they won’t

last forever. When an item’s

durability is expended, it’s lost.

MORTAL COMBAT

You can’t let your guard down, you

have to watch your durability just as

much as your health, which is

probably why it’s displayed so

prominently onscreen. It’s a clever

approach to synergies, which does

much prevent the steamroller effect

that can happen when you grow too

powerful in these games.

However, in other ways this is an

under-baked roguelite. I’m torn on

whether I prefer persistence, or the

pure blank slate in roguelites – but

Mortal Sin has found an unsatisfying

middle ground. After each run,

acquired gold can be spent at the

crafting station or potion shop, to give

you a leg-up, but only if you don’t exit

the game. Quit out, and you’ll begin

with an empty purse.

The only persistence you can rely

on is your skill at Mortal Sin, which

will improve as you settle into its

rhythm. More so than a lot of action

games, this put me into a focused

state, as I hacked and dashed through

the hazards on each level.

Mortal Sin has such exciting

combat that it’s easy to overlook its

less refined elements, like the iffy

persistence or frequent yo-yoing

between the different dungeons.

Where it matters – in its loot, its

interaction, and above all its

heart-stopping melee – Mortal Sin is

one thrilling roguelite.

81

Mortal Sin is a skeletal

roguelite, but the

surprisingly meaty

combat goes a long way

to making up for that.

VERDICT

M

ortal Sin builds a riveting combat system from only a
handful of elements. The most vital of these is your
melee weapon. There’s a compelling rhythm to combat,
which interrupts tense, cramped, first-person dungeon-
crawling with sudden bursts of frantic mouse-clicking
(or button-hammering). Similar to Dead Space, you need to dismember
enemies to kill them. There are a lot of heads and limbs being flung around.

IT’S A SIN

Going out on a limb with grungy roguelite MORTAL SIN

By Tom Sykes

You have to

watch your

durability just

as much as

your health

NEED TO KNOW

WHAT IS IT?

A melee-focused action

roguelite with a grungy

visual style

EXPECT TO PAY

TBC

DEVELOPER

Nikola Todorovic

PUBLISHER

In-house

REVIEWED ON

Intel Core i7-10750H,

16GB RAM, GeForce

RTX 2060

MULTIPLAYER

No

LINK

mortalsingame.com

MORTAL REMAINS

What’s happening while you’re hacking?

1

DRINK UP

Potions

regenerate as you

harvest red and blue

blobs inside

dungeons.

2

CHOP TO IT

Sever limbs to kill

enemies. It’s pretty

funny when they’re

hopping about on one

leg.

3

BAR HUMBUG

These bars show

the durability of your

weapons and armour.

(^23)
1
Mortal Sin
REVIEW