Dead Cells

Lore & Background

Dead Cells was developed by Motion Twin, a French independent studio, following their browser game Die2Nite. The developers shifted from cooperative gameplay to a single-player action platformer, inspired by the Engineer class from Team Fortress 2. The game was released on August 7, 2018, for multiple platforms, with later ports for iOS (August 28, 2019), Android (2020), and PlayStation 5 (June 29, 2023). Post-release updates and expansions were handled by Evil Empire.

The player controls the Prisoner, an immortal head that possesses corpses. The island was once a kingdom fallen to a plague called the Malaise, which mutated citizens into monsters. The Prisoner seeks to kill the King, believing his death will change the island. Expansions like Rise of the Giant and The Queen and the Sea add alternative endings, revealing the Prisoner is the King himself, and introducing the Queen and her servants.

Gameplay features 2D side-scrolling combat with swords, bows, shields, and traps. The player can dodge, jump, and ground-slam. Cells collected from enemies fund permanent upgrades, while blueprints unlock new items. Levels are procedurally generated from predesigned sections. Runes grant new travel methods, and Power Scrolls boost damage based on Brutality, Tactics, or Survival stats.

Reader's Guide

Dead Cells is significant as a successful fusion of roguelike and Metroidvania genres, often called a 'roguevania.' Its permadeath system, where players lose all items upon death but can purchase permanent upgrades with Cells, became a hallmark of the genre. The game received positive reviews for its combat, visuals, and permadeath system, and sold over 10 million copies by June 2023. Its procedural generation of levels from predesigned sections ensured replayability, while the Dark Souls-inspired difficulty encouraged learning enemy behaviors. The game's expansions, developed by Evil Empire after release, expanded the narrative with multiple endings, including revelations about the Prisoner's identity as the King. Dead Cells influenced later indie games by demonstrating how roguelike mechanics could be combined with Metroidvania exploration and tight action-platforming. Its legacy includes a dedicated player base and continued support through updates, cementing its place as a landmark indie title of the late 2010s.

Did You Know?

• Dead Cells was developed by French independent developer Motion Twin as a follow-up to their browser game Die2Nite.
• The game's combat was inspired by the Engineer character class from Team Fortress 2.
• A currency called Cells can be collected from defeated enemies to purchase permanent upgrades.
• By June 2023, Dead Cells had sold over 10 million copies.