Dead Cells is an extremely popular india metroidvania roguelike. I have never liked roguelikes or in general valued replayability much. But last year I sunk about a 100 hours in Hades II and I really liked it. I thought about why and came to the conclusion that it's the progression I really liked. Each successful run unlocks permament progression on two fronts. Firstly, you get permanent upgrades that make subsequent runs easier. And you also progress the story. The story wasn't anything special but watching it play out with a vibrant cast and good voice acting was fun. There is also something to be said about the granularity of the progress, about how much progress each run unlocks, how much you get to keep if your run fails and so on. But I cannot construct an educated opinion on it because it has been a while since I played it.
Dead Cells executes the metroidvania combat excellently. The gameplay is tight. What I didn't like was the agency. I felt like it was completely on RNG what kind of run I was going to have. The variety of weapons is massive but I would only get to play what was rolled for me. The progression also felt whacked. Unlocking the first and second health potions is quick but later upgrades require an hour worth of cells which felt grindy.
I played it for two days, about five hours in total. I was getting absolutely demolished. Then I rolled a specific build (ice bow for free stun, crazy good broadsword and devices, all red) which made the whole thing a cakewalk. I killed the king and thought there would be more but no. That was the end of the run.
I understand there is more to the game than that. There are other final bosses along branched paths. There is the option of unlocking higher difficulty. But I don't really care for this stuff. I also understand this is a matter of taste and opinion so I don't think low of Dead Cells because of this.
For what its worth it made me appreciate Hades II and made me realise that most roguelikes ain't for me.