7.6 /10 1 Votes
82% Metacritic Designer(s) Jake Kazdal Artist(s) Jake Kazdal Initial release date 4 August 2015 Mode Single-player video game | 7/10 Steam Director(s) Jake Kazdal Programmer(s) Zach Aikman Composer(s) scntfc Developer 17-Bit Genres Shooter game, Roguelike | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Writer(s) Jake Kazdal
Mark Macdonald
Kristina Drzaik
Brian Van Buren
Raj Joshi Platforms PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, Linux, Macintosh operating systems Publishers 17-Bit, Sony Interactive Entertainment Similar Broforce, Hohokum, The Last Guy, Skulls of the Shogun, Reality Fighters | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Galak-Z: The Dimensional is a shooter video game by 17-BIT for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux and PlayStation 4. It was announced during Sony's pre-E3 2013 press conference in June 2013. 17-BIT CEO Jake Kazdal describes it as "modern Halo and Far Cry 3 combat in a 2-dimensional shell." Reflecting its inspiration in part by Japanese anime, the game is also known officially by the Japanese title of Uchuu Senshi Galak-Z (宇宙戦士ガラクZ, lit., "Space Soldier Galak-Z")
Contents
Gameplay
Galak-Z is a two-dimensional sci-fi shooter video game with roguelike elements. The game's levels are generated uniquely for each playthrough and are connected as an endless dungeon. The levels include spawners for enemies and traps.
Development
Former Sega Japan developer Jake Kazdal started the game's development company, 17-BIT, in 2009 to make games similar to that of the 16-bit era. They had previously released Skulls of the Shogun for Xbox 360 and Windows phones in early 2013.
Galak-Z's gameplay was inspired by what senior producer Raj Joshi called "'new wave' roguelikes", especially Spelunky and Don't Starve. The 17-BIT team sought to emulate Don't Starve's "survival mechanics", which encouraged players to plan ahead during their games. The team also liked the game's progression tech trees, which provides the player more options as the game advances. Spelunky's handheld release and its "pick-up-and-play" variable game length inspired 17-BIT to release Galak-Z on the PlayStation Vita. Galak-Z's art style draws from anime influences, including Ichiro Itano's signature Macross series "Itano Circus" missile fusillade.
Galak-Z was announced during Sony's pre-E3 2013 press conference in June 2013. A playable version of Galak-Z was on display at video game merchandiser Fangamer and video game collective Attract Mode's August 2013 PAX Prime combined event in Seattle. The game was planned for release on PlayStation 4 in Q2/Q3 2014, followed by Microsoft Windows and PlayStation Vita versions, successively - this was before the team decided to allow themselves more time for development, pushing the release window into 2015. All versions will contain the same content.
On July 14, 2015, 17-BIT announced that the PlayStation 4 version will be released on August 4, 2015, with the PC version following a couple months later. The PlayStation Vita version was cancelled.
Reception
At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the game has received an average score of 83, based on 26 reviews indicating "Generally favorable reviews". IGN awarded it 8.3 out of ten, saying "While not a full-fledged roguelike, Galak-Z's superb controls and charming personality make it great." PC Gamer awarded it a score of 88%, saying "Challenging but immaculately calibrated controls power an exciting and enormously rewarding sci-fi roguelike."