Taking the concept of "roguelike" maybe a little too far, Brut@l plays like an action-filled dungeon crawler which borrows its aesthetics from the original 1980 release. It exchanges the original's ASCII-filled dungeons for a contemporary playing field, but they are still all around you, like reminders of an era long past. Your character, your enemies, weapons, and items are all made out of ASCII characters. This is more than an aesthetic choice; it also has a direct effect on the gameplay. Crafting a weapon requires you to collect the correct letters first. Then you can watch as all those Ls and Ts form the spikes on a club, for example. It's pretty neat and makes you wonder why nobody thought of this before.

The game itself is suprisingly fast-paced and action-oriented while still proudly upholding certain roguelike traditions. What's in the purple potion" You won't find out until you drink it! If you're below a certain age, you might be appeased by the addition of skill trees and the like. Turns out that Brut@l is not completely old-school, after all.
On your way to floor 26 and the final confrontation with the dungeon's evil guardian, it's best to take a friend with you. Two-player couch co-op might be the best way to enjoy the game. If you're more creatively inclined, you might want to try the dungeon builder, which allows you to create and share new dastardly dungeons. If there's one issue, it's that the game's limited aesthetic range start...