Dead as Disco Early Access Review: An Addictive but Imperfect Beat'em Up According to IGN France

Embark on the disco-punk musical journey of Dead as Disco, a beat'em up that has just launched in Early Access, taking us into explosive music videos. Picture yourself pummeling your enemies to a catchy soundtrack on an arena inspired by acid-fueled MTV videos. The gameplay combines Arkham-style combat - fluid combos, well-timed dodges, counterattacks - with a subtle rhythmic mechanic: your hits land instinctively with the beat, making every brawl viscerally addictive. Let's take a closer look at the IGN journalist's opinion.

Visually, for him it's a neon festival. The levels, currently suffering from a certain repetitiveness, are packed with vibrant details: strobe lights, tiny particle grains dancing across the screen, fluid animations that make the action pulse. On Steam Deck it runs like clockwork, proof of solid optimization work. The soundtrack, reserved for indie artists, is the real driving force: these house, disco and other tracks stick to the action so well that they make you forget the shortcomings.

Unfortunately, the early access leaves something to be desired. The progression seems to lack depth - no real skill tree or character upgrades - and the levels end up looking alike, making Dead as Disco a nice showcase more than a truly complete adventure. There's not really a story, just a minimal through-line barely enough to send us into runs. The replayability based on custom playlists is fun, but ultimately doesn't change long-term replayability all that much.

As it stands, Dead as Disco stands out for its immediate hook, and promises great things for the future. The devs have a solid foundation from the start; with a bit more content and polish, this could well become a cult hit, according to IGN. A story to follow!