I try a lot of games for both work and pleasure, and sometimes one grabs me so immediately and completely that I just want to shake it around and shout about it. The Crazy Hyper-Dungeon Chronicles is one such release. Indie developer Fix-a-Bug’s dungeon crawler is one of the best RPGs to cross my table in a while; I was totally sold ten minutes in, and another hour had melted away before I even realized it. Combining D&D-style classes with a unique combat system and an unserious attitude that calls Undertale to mind, it’s free to try thanks to a robust Steam demo, and a bargain price if you want the full thing.
The top-down perspective of The Crazy Hyper-Dungeon Chronicles almost makes it feel like a modern twist on Rogue, but you have more freeform control as you wander its dungeons. Your goal is to seek out the 50th floor, where a legendary relic awaits, but along the way you’ll deal with everything from dodging past traps and scuffling with skeletal necromancers, to cooking up a storm to impress a (literal) troll food critic. There are simple tests of agility, puzzles to solve, hidden buttons to find, cooking and crafting recipes to learn, and a whole ton of loot to gear up your character with.
There’s a simple pleasure to the exploration, but the combat is even more up my alley. Timing-based actions are all the rage these days (hello, Expedition 33), and I love what Fix-a-Bug has built here. Battles pull you to a screen where your enemies stand in boxes around you, and you must target them in real-time to attack or block. Ticking meters keep track of who’s next in the turn order, and every blow is traded with a timing minigame that varies in challenge based on your opponent. It’s not quite like anything else I’ve played, and it sells the fantasy perfectly.
The dialogue is largely lighthearted and, to its credit, lands much more often than it misses, even if some of the jokes had me shaking my head at the fact they’d got me to laugh. There’s a wide range from puns to more nuanced thinkers, and even subtle jokes that play on your knowledge of everything from D&D tropes to classic rock. Fortunately, while it’s frequent, it rarely gets in the way. Fix-a-Bug knows when you just want information presented clearly and when it can have fun, and manages to keep the humor feeling flavorful rather than forced into every corner.
One of the best aspects here is that you can tailor your experience to your tastes. Choosing a character is a simple matter of picking Hero or Heroine (the other becomes a Gary Oak-style rival who appears periodically to taunt you as they attempt to stay one step ahead) and setting your starting weapon. The spear is perfect if you like to be fast, the sword and shield allow you to strike a balance between offense and defense, and the mace is ripe for all-out destruction.
After that, however, you’re asked to pick a play style, and this is more about how the game presents itself to you. I went with ‘explorer,’ which grants you more experience and inventory, and ramps up the amount of puzzles and crafting you’ll have to deal with. Choose ‘resolver’ and you’ll get more dialogue, easier battles, and even key encounters you can talk your way out of. Opt for ‘destroyer’ and you’ll face more, tougher foes, while the typically lengthy chit-chat is cut down to a bare minimum. It’s a clever twist on difficulty that makes me eager to try out the other settings and see how they compare to my first playthrough.
The Crazy Hyper-Dungeon Chronicles is out now on Steam, with a 10% launch discount meaning you’ll pay $11.69 / £9.89 if you buy it by Thursday October 30. You can also download the free demo to try it out first; just be warned, you might get sucked in as quickly as I did.
Love discovering hidden gems? Then be sure to check in with our pick of the best indie games in 2025. If you’re mostly here for tales of dragons and derring-do, here are the best fantasy games on PC.
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