Ship of Fools is a rogue-lite from Team 17 Software, and they were kind enough to send me this after they sent me Nice Day For Fishing Steam Review, which I appreciate both. They make some great games, so please go check them out.
The game starts out simple enough: you are stranded on an island thanks to some calamity, given a boat and some cannons, and you must go fight evil creatures in an attempt to collect power-ups, save new crew members, and stop the forces of evil.
I think that’s the story anyway, I wasn’t paying attention, I was killing flies, trying to sink my ship, and smacking stuff with a boat oar. It takes effort to run around loading cannons, collecting wood to fix my ship by firing harpoons, and all that jazz that keeps the game exciting. Make no mistake, playing solo, the game is fast-paced and exciting. Do not be fooled, though, while there is a trophy for playing solo, most people don’t have it for good reason. This game is made for two players, either online or couch.
With fluid controls and cute graphics, and multiple crew members known as Fools to choose from, each with different abilities that make them better at certain things, the replay value is pretty high. Even the process of unlocking them will take more than a few runs.
Which Fool to use isn’t the only choice to make; which cannon to use is also a decision. Do you want two cannons that fire slower but will auto-target enemies when you aren’t using them? Do you want one that can be charged up to unload all of its ammo? Speaking of ammo, different ships have different ammo, and different ammo can be found during a run. Some freeze enemies occasionally, for example.
Ship of Fools is an amazing game if you like multiplayer games, but it does lose something when playing alone. It is still an 8/10 game, but it is absolutely made for 2. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
Savior Gaming 