Super Alloy Crush Preview – Fast-Paced 2D Action with Anime Style and Boss Chaos

Super Alloy Crush is an upcoming 2D side-scrolling action-fighting game from developer and publisher Alloy Mushroom. The game is coming to Steam soon, with a demo available now. I’ve thoroughly played the demo, and I think this game deserves to find an audience.

The demo teases a number of interesting elements, but it’s worth noting that it is very limited in scope.

What is Super Alloy Crush?

S.A.C. is a fast-paced 2D action game dripping with 90s nostalgia. It’s a clear homage to old-school Mega Man, and that influence is felt in every moment. The art style and visual direction are undeniably eye-catching, with the overall effect heightened by a CRT filter and hi-fi colors. The pixelation and vibrant palette even reminded me of Sega Genesis Sonic games!

Alongside these gorgeous, nostalgia-inspired anime characters is a really strong soundtrack. The background music that accompanies the gameplay is a perfect fit. Its upbeat energy and swelling intensity during boss fights are nothing short of exhilarating.

Super Alloy Crush is likely to be an attractive game for players of a certain age, but how does it actually play?

Again, the demo is very limited, but what’s available is highly intriguing. The story mode isn’t particularly interesting to me personally, but it does serve to introduce the playable characters (even if it doesn’t deliver a compelling narrative). So far, we’re shown two optional protagonists that represent distinct playstyles: a projectile-shooting option similar to Mega Man, or a melee-only option. Both playstyles felt complete and genuinely fun to control.

The best moments in the demo come during the chaos of combat. The story mode offers a bit of side-scrolling travel, but it ends very quickly. Battle Frenzy mode holds the real potential to shine. It’s this game’s version of a roguelite mode: the player fights through waves and waves of enemies that spawn into the arena. After vanquishing enough enemies, you move on to a new location, where you can choose from a selection of upgrades—much like in Vampire Survivors and similar roguelites. This is where the game has strong potential to become addictive.

After a certain number of waves, you face a boss-fight round, and these encounters are a lot of fun. The absolute highlights are the moments when you’re juggling several enemies in the air while double-jumping and dashing between targets.

I personally feel the game would benefit from deeper progression options and a few more weapon varieties, but it’s very possible those will appear in the full release.