Necropolis is the first game of its sort. It's a blend between action-RPG and rogue-like. Imagine a mixture of Dark Souls and Spelunky. The closest comparison is the Chalice Dungeons section from Bloodborne. With an art direction reminiscent of MDK. I've been excited about this interesting title for a long while, so I was keen to see how it turned out.
The whole gameworld is shaped like a pyramid and you start at the top. The top layer is small and simple, and as you proceed down through the layers it becomes a large, sprawling labyrinth. The environments and enemies change too and there are swamps, cliffs, bridges, buildings, caves: lots of variety (not just endless rooms connected by hallways like many random-generated games). While you make your way through this maze and try to get to the bottom, you're narrated to by a mysterious pyramid-shaped god creature, who makes little obscure jokes along the way.

(Note: This game also has co-op with yourself and up to 3 friends. I didn't try this out, so perhaps this is a big draw for the game? Perhaps the game is intended to be played with friends, not single player. So, this review if for single-player only; if you're thinking about playing it with friends then ignore my review completely).

PROS:
-The sound and art design are brilliant and unique, and it really sets a mysterious atmosphere, often darkly comedic. The ambient soundtrack is superb; it fits the mood perfectly and it changes as you proceed through the layers.
-The random generation is superb. There's a lot of variety in the levels and environments. It feels hand-crafted. Probably the most impressive 3D random-gen world I've ever seen.
- It's fun and unique. They have really captured this strange, otherworldly atmosphere, unlike any game I've played. The colour palette, visuals, sound and random sprawling levels are truly atmospheric and immersive.
- It's addictive. I loved my time in this alien world and I couldn't put it down, and I'm keen to go in again and see what else the game has to offer.

CONS:
-The melee combat is obviously inspired by Dark Souls, but it lacks the variety and challenge. For a game that advertises re-play value, unfortunately the enemies are samey and predictable, the combat feels floaty and is somewhat repetitive. Most of the enemies attack in the same way, at the same speed, and you never have to change up your tactics.
-For a rogue-like, the game is far too easy. I completed it on my first attempt (in about 4 hours) and I was never in danger of dying. The dungeons are filled with useful items (like bombs, potions, etc) but I mostly ignored them because they weren't required.
- Artificial difficulty: many of the enemies have way too much HP. It makes the experience tiring, some enemies take 10 or 20 hits to kill, or over 100 hits for the final boss. This was the most disappointing feature of the game. Instead of pumping the enemies up with HP it would have been better to add more variety, more attack patterns, more types of enemies, etc.

Overall, I actually really enjoyed playing through Necropolis, and despite some flaws, it's definitely an entertaining little game with a great atmosphere, and for the most part I had a fun (but brief) time exploring this strange and beautiful layered maze. I've loaded up the game again and traversed the dungeons and although the enemies and combat remain the same, there is a lot of variety in the environments. It's exciting to explore, and it changes each time you play. I don't know if the game is too easy or perhaps I'm just good at it. I wish that the combat offered some more variety, but I must add that the combat is fun and you can use different styles to face your foes.. but it doesn't feel refined.

And even though I've been highly critical of this game, I feel the urge to open it up and try again. It's exciting and addictive and even the combat is quite fun, but it's more like arcade button-mashing rather than careful or strategic. I wonder: what did I miss during my explorations; what are the secrets hiding inside this strange place? Ultimately, the game wasn't all that I hoped it would be: I was expecting a brutally-difficult rogue-like souls-like with infinite replay value, but it seemed more like a little 4-hour indie fighting game. Perhaps my expectations were too high, but it's still really good. Not sure if it's worth the premium price, but it's definitely worth playing when it goes on sale, even if just for the unique experience it offers.