Disc Room Critic Reviews

Disc Room might look like a simple game, but there’s some serious depth with its mechanics and old-school style challenge. The addition of accessibility options goes a long way to making it playable everyone, not just those that revel in the challenge.

Its simple controls, understated objectives and clear gameplay challenges combined with a lovingly crafted soundtrack make for an almost meditative experience. It’s been a good year for titles with this kind of nice, ambient experience and Disc Room fits neatly into that roster.

Whether it is unraveling the mystery of the disc, trying to last over 20 seconds each room, or completing it’s Pokedex-ish compendium of discs, or completing the 8 hardcore challenges Disc Room packs a lot for a variety of players. It seems Devolver Digital has been a beacon of light in an otherwise dreary 2020, putting out another title which will likely land on my personal year end list. So let’s hope we’ll see “the scientist” cross over in another Devolver published title where he’ll be grabbing a crown.

Disc Room is incredibly difficult. It definitely won’t be for everyone. If you lack patience and find yourself getting frustrated in games where you die frequently, it’s probably not for you. But for those of us that enjoy being furious, who let that fury push us further and faster because we crave a challenge, Disc Room is fantastic. You’ll find yourself going back again and again, getting a little bit further each time until you reach its conclusion. And you won’t be sorry when you do.

I had no real expectations for this game, and I still managed to be blindsided by what I discovered. Tough, tiny indie games often try to supplement their size with atmosphere, but the results are often mixed. Here, a small project from a smaller team has brewed a fabulous blend of mechanical finesse and atmospheric splendor. The game is crazy hard, and some of the puzzle elements are pretty obtuse, but I still loved it. If you’re not so impressed by the screenshots and the trailers, take my word for it: Disc Room is so much better than you’re expecting it to be.

Disc Room is Devolver Digital’s new indie gem, developed by the same team responsible of High Hell, Heavy Bullets, and Minit. In this frantic arcade action game we must survive inside dangerous rooms full of lethal saw discs. It’s an incredibly simple concept, correctly exploited in unexpected directions.

Disc Room expertly blends together the simple yet unique mechanics of Minit and the lightning-quick carnage and quick challenges of High Hell, so yes, the end result is akin to peanut butter and chocolate. Disc Room is a joyfully insane experience that delivers a terrific dose of old-school arcade action, all wrapped up in an innovative and attractive package, with a set of tricky yet highly intriguing and nicely-designed puzzles to act as the cherry on top. In a way, there’s something for all types of gamers here, so make sure to not miss out on this gem.

Disc Room runs with its easy-to-understand premise almost perfectly, so everyone can easily figure out the basics. The accessibility means that the initial ending can be seen by those who aren't deterred by constant failure. The puzzles related to some of the challenges are brain-teasers, and the simple analog stick and one-button controls are very responsive, providing more incentive for players to dig deeper into the game after the credits roll. Give Disc Room a try, unless you don't enjoy the evasive nature of bullet hell shooters.

Disc Room provides a difficult experience for those looking for a brutal challenge that you’d be happy to brag to your friends that you’ve accomplished. Even though there aren’t many accessibility features available, as a title that was created by a four-person team, it is still surprising to see the number of options that are there for players who need it. Alongside having dedicated challenges, there is also a speed run timer and more options to make your time with Disc Room even more unforgiving. The demanding level of challenge in Disc Room makes Devolver Digital’s latest title a game that I think most people can and will enjoy, even if there might be some rage-induced screams at the same time.

Not unlike the discs we spent so long combating, Disc Room is far more clever than it appears to be at a glance. Like Minit before it, Disc Room is another minimalist concept rooted in classic design and inspiration, except there’s so much more beneath the surface. Just as the ship called out to our scientist like a siren’s song, Disc Room’s cool, addictive appeal does the exact same to me.

Disc Room is an addictive title that lends itself to short bursts of play. On its surface it’s a very basic title, but in reality it plays with its formula in such fun ways that make it more than just dodging discs. Anyone on the fence like I was should try out the demo, which is a great taste for what the game offers, because I don’t think I’m doing this game justice. Neither does all the promotion Devolver has done for this game. Disc Room is something different, and I like it.

Disc Room is addicting, precise, and a blast to explore and enjoy. Not every player will enjoy a tough-as-nails title like this one, but there’s a lot to enjoy here for those that do.

Disc Room is an outrageous experience built around one single philosophy: getting cut in half by spinning discs. However, the challenges for surviving as long as possible and grazing past enemy attacks satisfies a craving that only the most polished of Japanese shmups could satisfy.

Disc Room is a hell of floating discs, obscure puzzles and inevitable death. It's great.

Disc Room wants to cut you in so many ways. It wants to chew you up, dismantle you, and make you say a swear or 50 creatively woven into the same sentence. It’s bullet hell without the regular therapy of being able to return fire. But for all of those aspects, it's also horribly addicting. The ease of picking up where you left off and trying your darndest to survive just a little bit longer to unlock a room left me putting down my controller, rubbing my head, and then often picking it up to say, “this will be the time I get it. This time.” It’s not a ridiculously long or complex romp. But it also doesn’t really need to be. It knows what it wants to be. It wants to be your murderer. And the only way you’re going to thwart it is by surviving just long enough to open its next doors and beat its myriad of challenges.

The game is fraught with dangers and failure, but it frames the handful of seconds you are able to hang on as something exciting, something to be proud of. Disc Room helps you feed on those tiny bursts of success, in addition to providing success in failure, to keep you moving and pushing through all its trials. Maybe we could all learn something from these... rooms full of discs. Like all great twitch-action games, Disc Room is at once exciting and stressful, challenging and fulfilling, and its spinning saw blades can seep into your everyday thoughts. But moreover, Disc Room feels like a pleasantly positive take on difficulty-first games--you didn't die after 10 measly seconds, you managed to survive for 10 whole seconds. And that's good enough for Disc Room. Thanks, Disc Room.

Disc Room is a lively project, designed to be immediately understandable but built with space for mastery and growth. It even features additional settings which alter game speed to circumvent getting hard-stuck, making it nicely accessible to all-comers. All the same, its pared-down gameplay might orient it most towards fans of uber-hard modern platformers, leaderboard crawling, and quirky indies. For them, Disc Room presents a welcome new addiction.

Disc Room offers a simple idea masterfully executed. It’s fun and addictive, and it’s crazy how much it can offer with so little.

Overall, Disc Room is a simple game at its core. It almost feels like it could be a web-based Flash game at times. Between the steady challenge and constant addition of new quirks and twists, though, the game becomes more than a simple time waster. Disc Room is short and sweet, with an interesting aesthetic and some intriguing character building. Unfortunately the latter is hidden in menus, so there’s a chance not all players will get to see what is, in my opinion, one of the best parts of the game. As a quick glimpse into a new kind of madness, this is a game worth a look. Just don’t lose your mind on the way.

A small title that knows exactly what it wants and achieves its purpose with ideas and unavoidably reactive controls. Razor sharp.