Super Dungeon Bros Preview

Bros, Bros, Bros!

There's something hilarious about hearing a person with a British accent say "Bro." The devs for the game are British, and I've seen the game twice now, so I've gotten a double dose of what feels like terms that ought to be American machismo-isms (machisms?) of "throw your bro up there", "bros need to stick together", or the game's tagline—"Bros before foes."—delivered in what seems to be a very "un-bro-like" cultural dialect. 

Super Dungeon Bros puts you in control of one of four Norse "Broheims" making their way through a one of three dungeon worlds: Cryptheim, Bogheim, and an as yet unannounced third. A cross between classic dungeon crawler co-op and Castle Crashers-style design, Super Dungeon Bros doesn't so much wade as dive-in to the co-op world. A limited number of lives are shared between the bros, so it's in each player's interest to keep their bros alive and well.

While the bros all control the same, each has a different personality. Axl, in blue, is the strong man who only really cares about fighting; Freddie, in red, is crazy; Lars, in yellow, is mainly concerned with the pursuit of women; and Ozzie, in green, is a prankster. Super Dungeon Bros allows you to react at any point to its procedurally-generated dungeons with a banter button that's a response to the situation and other character's banter as well.

While each of the bros basically controls the same, there are a variety of weapons available, from swords, projectile weapons, wands, etc., each adding customization to the gameplay. As you level up, each weapon has it's own specific special attack, and weapon abilities can be upgraded after completing levels. 

Bros can interact directly, and in order to get some treasures or bypass some traps, it may be necessary to "throw your bro" from one level to another or across a gap. While the catacomb world of Cryptheim was mostly a fun and relatively easy journey into the world of looting and fighting cartoonish enemies across the bro-sphere, the swamp-lands of Bogheim proved to be enough of a challenge that the devs informed me they were scaling back the difficulty in balancing it. 

Super Dungeon Bros is a co-op dungeon crawling title that rewards bro-op gameplay where bros help bros get loot and kill enemies for the sake of their bros. It's set for release this winter on Xbox One, PS4, PC and Mac. Bros.