Shogun Showdown Reviews

Extremely elegant turn-based roguelike. Simple in its execution but with a surprising amount of depth and content. Every turn makes you feel like a martial arts genius.

One of the best roguelikes around, no doubt. Once you get the hang of it, the combat just flows and is so satisfying to watch the combos play out. Can't enjoy it enough. Worth every penny. On sale this game is an absolute steal.

Shogun Showdown is a tactical turn-based roguelike that immediately impresses with its clarity of design and depth of strategy. At its core, the game operates on a simple grid where every movement and attack must be carefully considered. You’re always aware of what enemies will do next, and this transparency transforms every encounter into a tense game of planning and positioning. With each action locked into a queue, you must not only react to enemy threats but anticipate the flow of the entire battle two or three moves ahead. This makes even the smallest skirmish feel like a mini chess match where efficiency and foresight are constantly rewarded. Combat is both methodical and surprisingly fast-paced for a turn-based game. You can queue up to three actions at a time—ranging from melee strikes to ranged attacks or movement abilities—and the interplay between those abilities can result in clever and satisfying combos. Upgrading your skills and combining effects, like knockback, poison, or cooldown reductions, creates a strong sense of progression and personalization. There’s a tangible reward to experimentation, as discovering a synergy between tiles can completely alter your approach to a run. Every tile upgrade feels meaningful, whether it’s shortening a cooldown or adding a secondary effect that reshapes your strategy. Runs are designed to be short but packed with meaningful decisions. Between battles, you encounter shops, shrines, and opportunities to rest or upgrade your kit. The resources you gather from defeating enemies and bosses can be spent to improve your current build or unlock new tools for future runs. Even in failure, there’s progression; each defeat grants tokens that unlock new characters, combat tiles, and global enhancements, giving you new ways to approach future runs. The sense of forward momentum is steady and engaging without ever feeling grindy or overwhelming. What really sets the game apart is how much replayability it offers through subtle variation and unlocks. Each character starts with a different loadout and unique strengths, encouraging fresh strategies. The escalating “Day” system adds difficulty modifiers that keep the game feeling challenging even after you’ve mastered the basics. Enemy types, environmental hazards, and random event encounters add just enough unpredictability to keep every run feeling different, while the tight combat loop remains intact. Though some players may feel the content plateau after dozens of hours, the core mechanics are strong enough to maintain interest far longer than expected. Visually, Shogun Showdown opts for a clean, pixelated art style that emphasizes clarity and function. Characters and environments are minimalist but readable, making it easy to track enemies and attacks. The animations are sparse, but they’re punchy enough to give the combat some flair. The music complements the samurai aesthetic well, though the soundtrack can feel repetitive after extended play. Still, the overall presentation is cohesive and polished, with performance remaining smooth and responsive throughout. Ultimately, Shogun Showdown is a thoughtful, compact, and highly rewarding roguelike that succeeds by focusing on a tight, engaging core loop. Its strength lies not in flashy visuals or deep narrative but in its refined mechanics, smart progression system, and the satisfying feeling of mastering its rules. It’s a game that respects your time, challenges your mind, and keeps you coming back with the promise of just one more perfect run. For fans of strategic combat and turn-based roguelikes, it’s an easy recommendation. Rating: 9/10

This is a simple and fun game you can enjoy in short bursts—perfect for playing 15 minutes and then moving on. There’s no need for heavy commitment, and you naturally get better the more you play.

Simple concept with a lot of depth. Very fun. Highly recommend.

Such an addictive and challenging Rogue-like. They're are several heroes to play from that change the way you play your runs and many options to customize said runs. The sprite work and art style are fun with animations that are satisfying. I keep coming back to this game anytime I've been craving a Rogue-like. I need more content. More characters, Tiles, Skills, Levels, Everything! This game is so good! 9/10. You should most certainly give this a shot if you enjoy Rogue-likes.

Really solid roguelike sorta game. The art is nice, the sound is absolutely metal without losing aesthetic, and there's high replayability!

Alright, so I put over 110 hours into this game and finally beat day 7 with a single character. The runs are always fun and different. The weapons and skills ALL work. But when you get to the later days, it simply becomes a game of RNG. If you don't get the right options there's spots where there's no way to win. It's just that simple. Because of the RNG of the runs, I don't intend to pursue day 7 with anymore characters. All in all I highly recommend this game, but it's not perfect. 8.3/10

I've owned this game for 2 days. My wife keeps telling me to do something else. She just doesn't understand... I must defeat the Shogun.

This game makes you feel like a genius. Pulling off a combo where you swap places with an enemy so they hit their own teammate, then follow up by backstabbing another one... you just think, "Damn, I'm so clever." But the truth is, that's exactly how the game is designed. The devs are literally encouraging you to play this way. Still, it feels like you've just broken the system—in the best possible way.