When comparing Crypt of the NecroDancer vs Mercenary Kings, the Slant community recommends Crypt of the NecroDancer for most people. In the question“What are the best low-spec PC games?” Crypt of the NecroDancer is ranked 59th while Mercenary Kings is ranked 93rd. The most important reason people chose Crypt of the NecroDancer is:
Crypt of the NecroDancer is a dungeon crawler that is also a rhythm game. Your character can move, attack, and use special abilities only to the beat of a level's music. This means you have to split your attention between listening to the music and watching enemy movements. If you miss a beat your character won't do anything, but your enemies still get to move and attack. While the enemies are bound by the same rules as you, they won't ever miss the beat. Fortunately enough, they're always bound to a rhythm, so learning an enemy's rhythm is the key to defeating them. As a result, the gameplay stands out in both the roguelike and rhythm game genre.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Unique gameplay
Crypt of the NecroDancer is a dungeon crawler that is also a rhythm game. Your character can move, attack, and use special abilities only to the beat of a level's music. This means you have to split your attention between listening to the music and watching enemy movements. If you miss a beat your character won't do anything, but your enemies still get to move and attack. While the enemies are bound by the same rules as you, they won't ever miss the beat. Fortunately enough, they're always bound to a rhythm, so learning an enemy's rhythm is the key to defeating them. As a result, the gameplay stands out in both the roguelike and rhythm game genre.
Pro Fantastic soundtrack
Crypt of the NecroDancer has one of the best soundtracks you'll hear in a video game, featuring EDM, synthwave, and even heavy metal music. Each song has a unique tempo, rhythm, and feel to it, so you'll never get tired of listening to them.
Pro Deep weapon customization allows for plenty of choice in how you would like to play
This game features a good weapon customization system. The only downside is that this can lead to a certain level of grindiness – but not too much.
Pro Awesome pixel art by Paul Robertson shows off a very polished game
If you don’t know Paul Robertson, check him out. From Adult Swim animations and dozens of video games to feature films such as Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Paul Robertson has quite the catalog of really great pixel animations and graphics.
Pro Great game for those who like Metal Slug
Mercenary Kings is the spiritual sequel to Metal Slug: a two-dimensional, pixel-based, side-scrolling action shooter with co-op multiplayer.
Pro Online or local co-op multiplayer, up to 4 players
Mercenary Kings offers local or online co-op for up to four players.
Cons
Con Extremely hard
The combat in this game has an insanely fast tempo, requiring you to split your attention between the music and the on-screen enemies. Losing focus even for a split-second means you'll probably die, so you'll have to restart the level. At times this will feel really overwhelming, especially if there are many enemies around.
Con Co-op can make the game a lot harder
While Co-op in most games makes a game easier, Crypt of the Necrodancer is the opposite. This boils down to three main reasons.
First, you and your co-op partner have to share money and items. This can lead to two under-equipped characters that struggle with killing enemies and surviving their blows.
Second, there's no splitscreen, meaning your movements need to be in sync with your partners. If you happen to go in the opposite directions, you can get stuck or attract multiple groups of enemies, causing you to get overwhelmed.
Third, you share one beat counter with your co-op partner. So if one if you misses a beat, that's the end of a combo for the both of you. Not keeping up a combo means you'll have less gold and consequently less gear.
Con Controls need to be tighter
Pressing down to shoot does not always fire at once, meaning missed opportunities. After a while this can become quite a nuisance.