When comparing Ascendant vs Spelunky, the Slant community recommends Spelunky for most people. In the question“What are the best 2D games on Steam?” Spelunky is ranked 31st while Ascendant is ranked 50th. The most important reason people chose Spelunky is:
Spelunky features 4 player local co-op where players share the same screen, which can get a bit hectic.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Modify ones attacks
Through the use of "Blessings" the user can modify their attacks and make a custom build character that behaves as they want, for their fighting style.
Pro Old school difficult gameplay
This game is tough, much like arcade beat 'em ups that sucked the player in as well as their quarters. But this is all on purpose as the game has randomly generated levels, much like a roguelike and being like a roguelike, death will be frequent.
Pro Up to 4 player local co-op
Spelunky features 4 player local co-op where players share the same screen, which can get a bit hectic.
Pro Provides an interesting challenge by heavily relying on increasing your skill
Spelunky gives the player everything needed to succeed from the start so it is only when the players skills get better will they advance.
Pro Quick sessions so you can play in short bursts
Being that Spelunky is at its heart a roguelike the gameplay sessions can tend to be quick as the player will die quite often. This makes for something that can be played in quick bursts throughout the day. The convenient saving also lends to this as a game that is still ongoing can be quickly saved in order to be picked up at a later time.
Pro Expanded gameplay through mods to improve replayability
Ranging from Mega Man to Metroid, there are a tone of great mods for Spelunky all of which make for a new experience in the game which vastly expands the replayability.
Cons
Con Not much of a story
The game tries to blend different mythologies together into one story containing many different gods. While this is not the worst story to try and tell, once the gameplay begins the story pretty much falls to the wayside.
Con Co-op is boring and confusing
In co-op this game is very confusing with little instruction on how to play. With little to spice up the game play, it gets boring quickly.
Con Difficult to the point of frustration
Spelunky is pretty difficult and some could say abusive, but with practice and a desire for masochism the game can be mastered.