Dex: Side-Scrolling Cyberpunk RPG Lands On Kickstarter

A new side-scrolling, 2D role-playing game has been announced on Steam's Greenlight as well as a title seeking public crowd-sourcing on Kickstarter. The name of the game? Dex. It's being designed by a Czech design team going by the name of Dreadlocks Software.

Described by gamers as a Metroidvania version of Deus Ex, Dex offers players all the unique elements that are oftentimes associated with cyberpunk noir, including but not limited to dark, neon-lit alleyways, sexy trench-coats, lots of coiled power cables, an interactive hacking interface, future-bums, badly dressed alley-punks with deadly hair, dystopian-style slums, a highrise cityscape, cyber guns, stealth and plenty of nonsensical but equally cool gadgets.

The game will infuse “meaningful” choices into the equation, giving players the option to exercise multiple choices when dealing with NPCs, as well as branching off the story depending on the decisions you make.

As mentioned on the game's Kickstarter page...

“Explore the dark alleys of Harbor Prime and a host of diverse locations in both physical reality and the wild reaches of cyberspace. Discover the truth behind an enigmatic AI striving to reach the Singularity, a theoretical “event horizon” in which artificial intelligence will surpass human intelligence and all bets about the future will be off. How will you play your part in the story?”

As it's become blatantly obvious, the game puts players in the role of a tough and capable female protagonist. The interesting thing about it is that she's not a gung-ho shoot 'em up damsel of destruction, but more like an Adam Jensen type, which is pretty cool. I wonder what sort of criticisms will be levied against her?

As for the game itself, it plays out like something that could have been a release late in the life cycle of the SNES or a lost gem from the Sega 32X. Fusing stealth with gunplay and melee combat is a great way to keep the play experience feeling fresh. Throw in the hacking mini-games and RPG elements and you now, potentially, have a fully fleshed out experience.

You can check out a few cool screenshots of the game below, or pledge your support to the cause by visiting the official Kickstarter page. Additionally, you can upvote and favorite Dex over on the Steam Greenlight page. Dex will also have support for Ouya and Linux, which means SteamOS support right out of the box. Woot.