Developer Wei Shi has a new game in the works, and despite its odd name it’s really looking promising so far. It’s called Die by Died and it’s an action platformer with RPG elements that’s scheduled to release on February 22nd. Starting with your trusty default handgun, you’ll dispatch all manor of creepy enemies as you explore levels, collect items and coins, and eventually unlock even fiercer types of weapons. Check out this gameplay trailer of Die by Died to get an idea of what it’s like.
If you’re thinking Die by Died looks familiar, well, the main character does appear very similar to Dante from Devil May Cry. But if you’re thinking it looks familar beyond that, it’s because this is a remake of sorts of Wei Shi’s previous iOS game called Evil Trek which released a little over a year ago. The game is no longer aviailable, but you can still read about it in our forums. People seemed to dig the aesthetic in Evil Trek but a very confusing control system hampered the experience. I actually still have the game installed on my phone and, yeah, the controls totally ruin it. Well, I’ve also got an advanced copy of Die by Died on my phone too and am happy to say that controls are absolutely no problem this time around.
Die by Died uses standard left/right arrows for movement, with a swipe down to drop down through floors and a swipe to the side to switch weapons. Then there’s a button for jumping and double-jumping, a button for firing your weapon, and a third button for shooting special freeze bullets which will temporarily incapacitate enemies. It all works fantastically well, and while I appreciate Wei Shi trying to do something unique with Evil Trek, this more standard control setup is definitely the right choice. Check out a more recent video that shows a lengthier playthrough of a single level, as well as many of the cool weapons and enemies you’ll encounter in the game.
I honestly wasn’t expecting much when I fired up Die by Died, but man, this game is seriously fun. There are plenty of action platformers on the App Store but most of them feel pretty mediocre. Here, the speed and smoothness coupled with rock solid controls are really impressive, and despite it aping from Devil May Cry and Castlevania in terms of aesthetics this is definitely one of the best in this genre that I’ve played on a touchscreen. In fact, if you put a whip in the main character’s hand, it would convince me that a full Castlevania game would be more than possible on mobile. While no price has been set for Die by Died, it will be a premium game with no ads or IAP, and you can discuss the game further in our forums ahead of its launch on February 22nd.
