Mighty Quest Rogue Palace Is a Hack-and-Slash Roguelite With Corny Characters and Silly Dialogue

Mighty Quest Rogue Palace, the sequel to The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot, is out now on Netflix Games on iOS and Android mobile devices. Part of Netflix's significant expansion plans for gaming in 2023, Mighty Quest Rogue Palace has been developed by Ubisoft and is exclusive to the Netflix Games platform on iOS and Android, for now. The game is a hack-and-slash action and adventure title that puts you in charge of a band of heroes tasked with freeing the sleeping and nightmare-ridden mind of a king. The game can be downloaded now on supported devices.

Mighty Quest Rogue Palace: How to play

As with other Netflix Games titles, Mighty Quest Rogue Palace is free to play - if you have a valid Netflix subscription. The popular international streaming platform has been working to establish itself as a provider of not just movies and TV shows, but also mobile games, in a bid to establish itself as an entertainment hub for all kinds of recreational content. Netflix Games titles can be downloaded as separate apps on iOS and Android, but will need you to log in to your Netflix account or be already logged in through the main Netflix mobile app on the same device.

Mighty Quest Rogue Palace: First impressions

Developed by Ubisoft, Mighty Quest Rogue Palace puts you in charge of hero Lord Logan, returning to the palace of the king. Unfortunately, the palace has been overrun by a ‘void' of sorts, which has swallowed the entire kingdom save for the palace and a few of its occupants, which interestingly includes a royal cat and an entirely useless non-playable character with a wooden bucket on his head, whose only job is to crack silly jokes.

I did have a chance to play Mighty Quest Rogue Palace for a bit ahead of its public release. The game starts off a bit confusing, especially if, like me, you aren't familiar with the series' previous instalment, The Mighty Quest for Epic Loot. The learning curve isn't difficult in itself, but you might spend a few minutes initially just aimlessly slashing away at enemies without properly understanding the point of it all.

Fortunately, the core gameplay is quite easy to get the hang of, since Rogue Palace is, at its heart, a hack-and-slash action game with Roguelike elements that involves attacking and dispatching numerous enemies. That said, you'll have to keep an eye on your own health, build up your skillset, learn when it's best to use particular skills, and upgrade your gear and abilities along the way.

The actual action takes place in the mind of the king, as he is locked in an endless slumber while the ‘void' surrounds his palace. The objective of Mighty Quest Rogue Palace is to enter the king's mind, free all the heroes, defeat all the monsters and bosses occupying parts of the mind, and eventually banish the void to wake the king and rescue the kingdom. Trips into the king's mind don't eliminate the heroes even after all health is drained; you simply return to the palace in the ‘real' world to upgrade your abilities and gear, and go again.

While the gameplay of Mighty Quest Rogue Palace is fun, I found the long room-clearing procedures a bit repetitive. You'll find yourself often going through the same rooms and fighting the same bosses as you attempt to progress, and defeat sends you back to the beginning to try again. Apart from improving the Hero's skills, you'll also find yourself learning and improving along the way, but that doesn't let you save progress often enough, unfortunately. Although, that is to be expected with the Roguelite tag that comes with the game.

Is Mighty Quest Rogue Palace worth a try?

Netflix Games are notably free of in-app purchases and are positioned as premium games as part of your Netflix subscription. That makes Mighty Quest Rogue Palace a worthwhile game if you already have a valid Netflix subscription, since you aren't paying anything extra and are getting a top-notch mobile game for it. Expectedly, there are no in-app purchases, so you can enjoy the entirety of the game from the get-go.

The platform also recently brought Raji: An Ancient Epic to Android and iOS and is working closely with developers to build on the catalogue of mobile games for its subscribers. After Valiant Hearts: Coming Home and Mighty Quest Rogue Pałace, Ubisoft is also working on an Assassin's Creed title for Netflix Games, although no release date for that has been announced yet.