| Crypt Custodian | |||
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| Gameplay & Story | Release Date | Pre-Order & DLC | Review |
It’s time to take out the trash in Crypt Custodian! A new cozy metroidvania where you become the janitor for the afterlife. Read our review to see what it did well, what it didn't do well, and if it's worth buying.
Crypt Custodian Review Overview
What is Crypt Custodian?
Crypt Custodian is a cozy metroidvania where you play as Pluto, a recently deceased cat that takes on the role of the afterlife's janitor. The game features an isometric-style metroidvania with cozy visuals and music. It has multiple regions to explore, secrets to find, puzzles to solve, and a lot more garbage to clean up. The game’s combat is a good combination of the movement of Hades and the combat of Hollow Knight, where the game places a big emphasis on its boss fights.
Crypt Custodian features:
⚫︎ Cozy Isometric Metroidvania Action
⚫︎ Interesting Narrative
⚫︎ Comfy Visuals and Music
⚫︎ Multiple Regions to Explore Full of Secrets
⚫︎ Puzzle Solving
For more gameplay details, read everything we know about Crypt Custodian’s gameplay and story.
 Crypt Custodian |
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 Xbox |
 eShop |
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Crypt Custodian Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
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 Cozy Atmosphere and Vibes Interesting Boss Fights Great Narrative Amazing Isometric Metroidvania Design |
Unclear Attack Animations No Tutorial For Advanced Movement Mechanics |
Crypt Custodian Overall - 94/100
Crypt Custodian is an amazing isometric metroidvania that does everything quite well. It has a great art style, atmospheric music, simple-to-follow gameplay, and a compelling story to boot. It’s a gem of an indie game that deserves every bit of attention, and I can attest that you won’t be disappointed. It’s perfect for those looking to play a metroidvania like Hollow Knight to take their minds off of Silksong, and even better for those looking for a great metroidvania to play.
Crypt Custodian Story - 10/10
The story of Crypt Custodian is actually really good. It follows Pluto’s journey to the afterlife, and the game does a great job of making you care about the game’s characters even with little to no explanation, be it by their appearance or their backstories. Throughout the course of the game, you’ll find different characters of differing backgrounds who have different motivations and traits. For Pluto, however, his story is quite interesting since it seems that his sentence of being the afterlife’s janitor is unfairly brought upon by the gatekeeper.
Crypt Custodian Gameplay - 9/10
It’s a rather simplistic metroidvania; the game doesn’t really do anything spectacular with its gameplay mechanics. What it does have is a beautiful combination of elements from isometric action RPGs and metroidvanias. It has fast-paced combat segments, great platforming levels, and engaging puzzle solving included in one big package.
Crypt Custodian Visuals - 9/10
Visually, the game looks amazing. Both the character and environment designs are stellar, and they showcase a different part of the afterlife in each corner of the world. If there was one critique, it would be just a few of Pluto’s attack animations since it doesn’t seem clear how they chain together, but otherwise everything is top-notch.
Crypt Custodian Audio - 9/10
The audio design of the game is also great, from the music to the sound effects and ambient noise. It captures the setting of the game perfectly and even matches the melancholic vibe of the story to a tee. The game even has audible audio cues for attack patterns, which really helps players get engaged in combat.
Crypt Custodian Value for Money - 10/10
For $19.99, the game offers a massive metroidvania package that’s absolutely worth the price. It has great visuals, fun gameplay, amazing audio design, and a compelling story to keep you interested. If that’s not enough, the game has tons of secrets for you to discover and puzzles to solve to change it up once in a while.
Crypt Custodian Review: To Be Simple is To Be Great
Crypt Custodian is one of those games that have things that may be familiar to a lot of people, be it their gameplay, themes, visuals, or something else, and do it really well. The first time I saw the game’s trailer and gameplay, I was instantly hooked as it reminded me of a combination of Hades and Hollow Knight. Two of these games have been widely regarded as great in their own right, and having a combination of these would probably be too much of a good thing, right? In this case, I’m glad that I was wrong.
Both of the game’s visuals and music work hand in hand, as both of them really push the game’s themes and atmosphere. The art style is distinct yet not overly stylized, which makes the different designs in the game pop out a lot more. It’s not particularly mature either. The imagery is in the same likeness of animated cartoons, and the visual lands it well since it just perfectly matches with the vibe.
The music, on the other hand, also has this melancholic feeling to it, as it matches the game’s afterlife aesthetic and atmosphere. All of the sound effects and ambient noise also enhance the game’s atmosphere a lot, and a lot of these are testament to the game’s beautiful mesh of everything that it has to offer.
While the visuals and music work to push the game’s theme of doom and gloom, the story of the game is also quite compelling. The game’s premise is that the protagonist, Pluto, gets a one-way ticket to the afterlife and has to pass judgment if they can get inside the Palace or the game’s heaven.
In a cruel twist of events, Kendra, the gatekeeper, punishes you to become a janitor in the afterlife for eternity because of destroying her statues that were actually blocking your way to get to her to begin with.
The story starts to take shape into a hero fighting an unjust punishment against them, and you actually quite quickly find out that you aren’t the only one who’s been unfairly punished. You meet other characters that are in for the same crime and sentence, and you’ll actually need to work on becoming friends with them with the goal of breaking into the Palace. Each of them has their own stories and motivations for why they want to break in, and without trying to spoil too much of the details, let’s just say that there’s a special treasure in the Palace that they want access to.
Now onto the gameplay—it’s actually quite simple and straightforward. It doesn’t have crazy mechanics or combos that you have to worry about when trying to learn the game’s combat; it’s just a few swings, a special attack, a jump, and a dodge roll; that’s it. There are certain things that the game does have, like a rolling attack and a jump attack, but other than its basic mechanics, there’s not much else. This works to its advantage, similar to Hollow Knight, as the gameplay shows that there’s much to see and do even with its simplicity.
There’s quite a healthy variety of enemy varieties too, from the simple slime type enemies to other enemies that have long-range projectiles while moving from place to place. The best part about it is the game’s progression of seeing these enemies, as it eases you into fighting stronger enemies little by little rather than throwing them straight at you. Speaking of progression, the way you get stronger is also pretty simple. There are several different optional puzzles in the game’s different areas that reward you with an upgrade point when you finish them successfully. This works similarly to Hollow Knight’s abilities, where you can slot in Charms with a maximum capacity of what you have.
The game is built on the foundation of its simplicity, and every aspect of the game shines with this, especially the boss fights. Boss fights in Crypt Custodian are as expected. Some of these have different phases that progressively become harder to deal with, and it may take you some time to learn them, but quite frankly, they’re actually not frustratingly hard to learn and fight against when you start to get down to it.
Let’s also talk about the game’s actual metroidvania, as you don’t really see much isometric metroidvanias out there. It has a huge world to explore and even rewards those that do with several things and upgrades to collect. Not only that, but the game’s movement also fits the metroidvania quite well, as it doesn’t make it too hard for the player to have jump puzzles every now and then, and if they do so, they make it clear if you CAN pull it off or if you need a certain ability or puzzle to get you through it.
All in all, Crypt Custodian is a wonderful metroidvania that shows off every aspect that it has with its simplicity. It’s the full package that every game should try to emulate: great visuals, amazing atmosphere, relaxing and catchy music, compelling narrative, and most importantly, simple and fun gameplay. For those who haven’t tried a metroidvania, it may be wise to pick this game up, as I feel like this is one of the better modern representations of what metroidvania should be.
Pros of Crypt Custodian
| Things Crypt Custodian Got Right |
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Cozy Atmosphere and Vibes Interesting Boss Fights Great Narrative Amazing Isometric Metroidvania Design
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Cozy Atmosphere and Vibes
Despite the story and characters being a little sadder than most of the other games in the cozy games genre, the game’s art style and music definitely make you feel comfortable. Not to mention that everything is well animated as well, which adds to the game’s already amazing atmosphere.
Interesting Boss Fights
The boss fights in the game are great. It highlights the game’s simple-to-learn combat and tests you if you really know how to properly move around the arena. The best part about these fights is learning how you can use both your dodge and your jump to dodge certain attacks, especially when they’re really hard to dodge. The game also comes with a pretty good number of boss fights and even comes with a Boss Rush mode where you can revisit certain bosses in the game for another time.
Great Narrative
Without spoiling too much of the game, the story has a way of keeping you interested, despite the frequent jump between tones. The premise is that Pluto is banished from the game’s supposed heaven equivalent to become a janitor in the afterlife. The game feeds you little bits and pieces about the overarching plot while keeping you occupied with the other characters in the game. Its great storytelling and properly placed gameplay segments make you want for more as you keep playing.
Amazing Isometric Metroidvania Design
The trouble that I have with metroidvanias is revisiting previous areas, especially ones that are pretty far away. Crypt Custodian has a pretty massive world on its own, but the maps themselves aren’t too big nor too small. Not only that, but you can use the game’s teleportation system via Shrines to go around the world pretty quickly.
As for the actual isometric design of the game, it’s done particularly well. The game makes use of the movement with puzzles and platforming segments where sometimes they’re on a time limit, other times they’re just plain execution. Over the course of the game, you’ll be able to learn a couple of new things and abilities that straight up improve your mobility, and I think that’s when the game starts to take to a whole other level.
Cons of Crypt Custodian
| Things That Crypt Custodian Can Improve |
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Unclear Attack Animations No Tutorial For Advanced Movement Mechanics |
Unclear Attack Animations
This might not actually be a total con, but it can get you killed for it sometimes. Pluto’s attack animation chains aren’t clear enough, or it doesn’t look like they’re actually chaining together. I found this apparent since there are some parts of the attack animation where you can’t string a dodge during it. Keep in mind that this may just be a skill issue on my part, but in my experience there were a ton of unforced errors due to not being able to dodge during attacks.
No Tutorial For Advanced Movement Mechanics
The game has a lot of platforming and puzzle segments littered throughout the experience. Some of these are placed in optional areas of the map that reward you with upgrade points as soon as you finish them. They’re meant to be difficult, or at the very least more difficult than progressing through the main part of the game.
However, there wasn’t any tutorial about how to make your jumps a little bit farther, as I discovered that attacking in midair adds a little bit of distance upon landing. Afterwards, I found that there was a difference between immediately dashing after a jump and delaying it during a jump to get you a little more distance. It’s these little mechanics that make the player learn about the intricacies of the game, and I think these should warrant a little guidance for the player.
Is Crypt Custodian Worth It?
Yes! It’s Time to Take Out the Trash in the Afterlife!
For a pretty low price point of $19.99, the game offers a pretty complete experience. The game has everything that you look for: cozy vibes, eye-catching visuals, calming music, an interesting story, and most importantly, fun gameplay. For those of you who are interested in metroidvanias, this game is a perfect match. Especially for those who are Hollow Knight fans, this game can help you get over having no news about Silksong for a little while.
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Crypt Custodian FAQ
What are the different language options available in Crypt Custodian?
The game supports many language options for both the interface and subtitles, namely:
⚫︎ English
⚫︎ French
⚫︎ German
⚫︎ Spanish - Spain
⚫︎ Portuguese - Brazil
⚫︎ Russian
⚫︎ Simplified Chinese
⚫︎ Spanish - Latin America
⚫︎ Japanese
⚫︎ Korean
⚫︎ Traditional Chinese
How do I unlock Boss Rush mode in Crypt Custodian?
To unlock the game's Boss Rush mode, simply beat a boss during the game's main story. The game mode will be unlocked on the game's Title Screen.
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| Title | CRYPT CUSTODIAN |
|---|---|
| Release Date | August 27, 2024 |
| Developer | Kyle Thompson |
| Publisher | Kyle Thompson, Top Hat Studios, Inc., H2 Interactive Co., Ltd. |
| Supported Platforms | PC (Steam), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One |
| Genre | Action, Adventure, Platformer, Indie |
| Number of Players | 1 |
| Rating | E (Everyone) |
| Official Website | Crypt Custodian Official Website |
