The Swords of Ditto

The fact this is sitting at Mixed reviews utterly flabbergasts me. I can only assume it's from people expecting this to be a clone of Zelda - it isn't, not by a longshot. If that's what you're hoping for, you'll not enjoy this.
Swords of Ditto does have a few elements shared with older Zelda titles - unlocking new gadgets can unlock options for areas previously explored, and each area is a distinct tile that you travel between. You also have a limited loadout of things to use that you can change at any time.
That's where the similarities end however. Swords of Ditto has much more of an RPG focus than Zelda, rather than an adventure focus. Equipment and stats are upgradable in many ways. The way you setup your equipment will have a large effect on how you play (I myself use poison and range predominantly), and figuring out how you want to set yourself is fun, because you can experiment without issue. Despite the tag, I don't know that I'd call this a Roguelike either. Runs don't end because you die, and things aren't super random. Enemies might be randomized, but maps and the like are hand-placed.
Sound, visuals and just general presentation manage to be both cute, yet tell a surprisingly adult story. I obviously am nowhere near the end of the game, but the collectable messages and the like tell a pretty interesting story where the "good guy" is an ephemeral concept. As usual, Devolver Digital publishes a game with a cute artstyle that manages to be way deeper than that would suggest. Lastly, the value. Even at full pop, this is under $20 Canadian, and routinely goes on sale for half that or even less. This is worth that by a country mile, and I feel a little guilty for having gotten this at 75% off on sale.

Progression is funky, the beetle sucks. But it starts coming together after you beat the witch, and the NPCs can be charming & the dungeons are pretty nice. Pretty quick per run so it's worth a try, if you want to try it get it on sale.

its a fun experience and a silly dark adventure

Solid Rogue-lite.
The "Mixed" rating for this game is a travesty, it does not deserve a rating that low.
Most of the negative reviews appear to be people that didn't realize this was a Rogue-like/lite game:
-Yes, you start over when you die (but can spend currency you earned during that playthru to send items to your next character.
- No, you don't go thru the whole "tutorial" again -- its your traditional Rogue-like/lite gameplay loop.

Super cute and fun game! Highly recommend for anyone that likes games with style and zelda style dungeons!

The only Roguelite, where I don't mind to die in a playthrough. The artstyle and music are great, it is way more lighthearted than most roguelite I have seen. It is funny and silly at times, which is perfect when playing it with someone else! Also great with Steam Remote Play btw

My wife and I enjoyed every bit of this cute rouge-like co-op game, the combat, the story, the items, and the random challenges. Until the ending - which basically sums up to "the world is like this because of you" - that doesn't leave any way to fix the world in any capacity before rolling the credits.
A great game with a great story but a lackluster ending. 3/5