Source of Madness

Would just like to point out that this game is older than ChatGPT and the entire "AI slop" thing. If you laughed at Deepdream and compared it to Lovecraftian horror, well, apparently the devs thought they could work with that. Unfortunately it's (personal opinion) not a great game, but I'd say that it has a place as an artistic experiment of its, albeit short-lived, time. Labeling it AI slop to protect real art is an ironic tragedy.

Game is literally advertised as using AI. The main attraction is basically the interesting use of AI to make eldritch-esque enemies (albeit it's not free of some shenanigans). Reviews saying otherwise shouldn't have bought the game in the first place, much less make a negative review. That's like giving a negative review to a visual novel game for having an anime art style.

Imagine Bloodborne mixed with Symphony of the Night, then drenched in thick Lovecraftian horror that’s Source of Madness. It’s a roguelite with RPG elements, wrapped in beautiful pixel art and backed by a haunting soundtrack that absolutely nails the cosmic horror vibe. The monsters are genuinely unsettling, constantly shifting into new grotesque shapes that keep every run feeling strange and unpredictable. But for all the style and ambition, the game struggles with consistency. Character personalization is pretty limited, and the combat while flashy feels floaty and imprecise. Aiming is especially unreliable, which turns fights into chaotic flailing more often than deliberate skill. Procedural generation can also be hit or miss some runs feel varied and exciting, others repetitive or unbalanced. Performance hiccups and frame drops show up during busier moments, adding to the already wobbly combat feel. And while the progression system works, it doesn’t meaningfully change your playstyle, making long-term runs feel a bit samey. There’s a genuinely great idea here, and the atmosphere is spot on. With more polish and tighter mechanics, this could be something incredible. As it stands, it’s a unique, eerie experience but one that needs refinement before it reaches its full potential.

Ignore the "AI SLOP!!" drooling brainlets. The developer described their process of designing and drawing the art for this game, which yes, they then used an early form of AI to apply different styles and textures OVER THEIR OWN HANDMADE ART.
None of these sloppy reviewers have an IQ higher than their own age and it shows.
Less than 2 bucks is a steal for what has been the funnest first hour to a roguelite that I've enjoyed in years. It's a fun, tight-controlling side-scrolling roguelite that feels bouncy and floaty thanks to its physics based movement and environment. The feeling of moving around and fighting feels intuitive, but odd. It's fitting for the visual style IMHO.
I get hating on AI and its morally bankrupt and inappropriate usage, but hating on this game for using AI (and not the kind most of you are even thinking of, with chatbots) is like hating an artist for using the smudge tool or an equivalent in Photoshop. Grow up.

the game is pretty fun. I haven't beat it so i can't quite say if 20 is completely valid. Also people are terrified of the term "AI" and think the game has no soul. idk why the game advertised with so much emphasis on the AI because now I feel like i have to explain how that impacts the game for me. As much as I've seen. its not bad and the game looks good
the main AI people seem to dislike is the enemy design and movement patterns. here's the way that goes in game play. basically, there are enemy types you can categorize in limbs, color, or abilities. but the REAL random part is the various extra limbs and appendages they'll have. enemies can be a mess of limbs and bodies that just lunge at you. honestly. with the spastic movement of everything and shooting spells for my life. i really don't look too hard at the details of the enemies. the game looks fine, great even.
the AI enemy design does not make the combat hard to read or play. the spells and unlocks for the wizard are nice and fun with item building and two different spells at a time. the enemies may have a bunch of legs. but its pretty clear what limb will be used to swing at you, the limbs that will be used will literally glow before they swing, and as wizards. all you have to do with your range spells is back away from the enemy as you fight and dash around. As someone that has only gotten to the worm boss with a 26% achievement of simply reaching the boss. the game is fine. a bit overpriced.
I'm not gonna larp about AI morality. people can just be scared of the term "AI" while the dev might have used a micro-amount in the game. or maybe it was obscene. I'll never know. I just care about the game play. and its fine.
also the game feels lacking story. I'm not a story person tbh. but that's a con for someone

Game is literally advertised as using AI. The main attraction is basically the interesting use of AI to make eldritch-esque enemies (albeit it's not free of some shenanigans). Reviews saying otherwise shouldn't have bought the game in the first place, much less make a negative review. That's like giving a negative review to a visual novel game for having an anime art style.

Don't listen to the reviewers crying about AI!
This is one of the most underrated games of 2022!
And by far one of my top 10 favorites of all time.
While I have only 27 hours on Steam, I have nearly 100 more on PS5 and Switch.
First of all, to address the AI so many want to cry about all of the sudden, it is used to make some of the most amazing monsters I have ever seen in a game. Also every major boss is not AI generated. Which is good because sometimes it can take you a try or two or three to fully learn their attacks and patterns. And since the monsters are generated each playthrough, you never fight the same monsters twice. I believe this makes it so that every weapon, hat and accessories are useful. While there are some that are generally more useful than others, I have used every one like it's my favorite of all time.
Next, the movement is floaty. It took me a few runs to get used to it, but once you do, it feels so intuitive. Combine the floatiness with physics based attacks and you can do triple and quadruple jumps if you can get the timing down right.
The atmosphere of the game is dark and lovecraftian to it's core. This pairs extremely well with the glowing bloom from your weapons.
There's exploring to do to unlock altars, which is basically your classes. There are six in all. The meta progression is based on accumulating blood and using it to unlock additional weapons to drop in the world at random. The best part is you can also lower the drop rate of unlocked weapons, so you can sort of tune certain builds more easily. The bloodmancer is my favorite, but it also really changes the gameplay.
Depending on your class, your dodge ability changes effects. For example, the pyromancer leaves a bomb behind when you dodge. You can use this with some well placed timing to make quick work of almost any monster. Especially when you start being able to have 4 charges for your dodge. The Generalist leaves behind a magical cloud that makes any monster that touches it take more damage for a short period of time. The cooldown on your dodge is very generous.
Overall, I highly recommend this game for anyone who enjoys rougelites and anything lovecraftian in nature. You won't be disappointed.