Dex (video game)

Lore & Background

Dex is a 2D side-scrolling platform game focused on exploration and non-linear gameplay. The player controls the eponymous character, Dex, and receives quests from NPCs, each with multiple possible solutions. Experience points earned from quests and enemies grant skill points for skills including fighting, shooting, hacking, and lock-picking. The story follows Dex, a young woman living in Harbor Prime, a city controlled by corporations integrated into a secret authority known as the Complex. Dex becomes a target of the Complex, which sends assassins after her. She is saved by a hacker named Raycast, who reveals that Dex is the 'fragment of Kether,' a supreme Artificial Intelligence program created by the Complex and shut down when it lost control. Dex joins the resistance against the Complex.

Reader's Guide

Dex was announced at the Game Developers Session 2012 and originally scheduled for 2013. A Kickstarter campaign launched on November 12, 2012, seeking £14,000; it reached that goal in a week and ultimately raised £30,647. The game was greenlit for Steam on November 4, 2012. An Alpha version entered Early Access on August 14, 2014, with limited quests and locations; a second build followed three months later. The Beta released on April 1, 2015, adding most final features, and the final version launched on May 7, 2015. A physical PlayStation 4 version was released on July 29, 2016, by publishers PQube and BadLand Games. Reception was mixed. Critics praised the gameplay system combining 2D sprites and modern action-RPG elements, the story, and the atmosphere, but criticized the save system, journal system, bugs, and some combat and hacking mechanics. The console version received more positive reviews, holding a 69% rating on Metacritic. Dex won the Czech Game of the Year Award for artistic contribution in 2014, and Games.cz voted it the best Czech video game of 2015 after post-release updates. The Enhanced Edition was praised as a must-play for cyberpunk RPG fans.

Did You Know?

• Dex was crowdfunded on Kickstarter, raising £30,647 against a goal of £14,000.
• The console version holds a 69% rating on Metacritic, higher than the PC version.

Gameplay & Design Philosophy

Dex positions itself as a 2D side-scrolling platformer that leans heavily into role-playing conventions, prioritizing exploration and non-linear progression over rigid level structures. Players guide the titular character, Dex, through a world populated by NPCs who dispatch quests with multiple possible resolutions, leaving the method of completion entirely to the player's discretion. Progression is driven by experience points earned through quest completion and enemy defeats, which in turn unlock skill points that can be distributed across a variety of disciplines including melee combat, ranged shooting, hacking, and lock-picking. This design philosophy gives the game a distinctly RPG flavor within a 2D framework, blending expressive sprite work with modern action mechanics. The non-linear quest structure and player agency in how challenges are resolved set it apart from more linear platformers, creating a sense of personal investment in the character's growth and the path they carve through the game world.

Narrative & World-Building

The story of Dex unfolds in Harbor Prime, a city where corporate power has merged into a clandestine governing body called the Complex. The protagonist, a young woman, finds herself targeted by the Complex's assassins after circumstances place her in their crosshairs. Her savior is Raycast, a hacker who not only rescues her but reveals a staggering truth: Dex is the fragment of Kether, the supreme artificial intelligence program the Complex once created before losing control and shutting it down. This revelation propels Dex into the resistance movement fighting against the corporate-authority regime. The narrative draws clear parallels to cyberpunk staples, with reviewers noting its resemblance to Deus Ex and Shadowrun in tone and thematic territory. The world-building emphasizes corporate overreach, artificial intelligence gone rogue, and a lone individual thrust into a larger conspiracy, creating a familiar yet engaging backdrop for the player's journey.

Development Journey & Crowdfunding

Dex's path to release was a multi-year endeavor that began at the Game Developers Session in 2012, when Dreadlocks Ltd. first announced the project with an initial target of a 2013 launch. That timeline quickly shifted, and by late 2012 the studio turned to Kickstarter to fund development, launching a campaign on November 12 with a modest goal of £14,000. Backers responded swiftly, hitting the target within a week and ultimately pledging £30,647. Around the same period, on November 4, 2012, the game received a greenlight for Steam distribution. Development then proceeded through several public stages: an Early Access alpha build appeared on August 14, 2014, offering a limited set of quests and locations, followed by a second build three months later that expanded the content with additional quests, areas, and characters. A beta build dropped on April 1, 2015, incorporating nearly all planned features including the full story, available exclusively through Steam's beta channel. The final release arrived on May 7, 2015, and a physical PlayStation 4 edition, produced by PQube and BadLand Games, followed on July 29, 2016.

Reception & Legacy

Dex's critical reception was notably split, with the PC version drawing mixed reviews at launch while the later PlayStation 4 port fared somewhat better, holding a 69% score on Metacritic. Reviewers consistently praised the game's atmosphere, soundtrack, and the decision-making embedded in its side-quests, with comparisons to Deus Ex, Shadowrun, and Ghost in the Shell appearing across multiple outlets. Arcade Sushi highlighted the blend of expressive 2D sprites with modern action-RPG mechanics, while Czech outlet Zing lauded the world's mood and narrative. However, bugs at launch were a recurring complaint, and both the save system and journal interface drew criticism. The situation improved substantially after Dreadlocks shipped multiple patch updates, leading Games.cz to name Dex the best Czech video game of 2015, calling it the undisputed best title in that category post-patches. The game also won the Czech Game of the Year Award for artistic contribution in 2014. On the console side, opinions ranged from Elias Blondeau's glowing comparison to Ghost in the Shell to ZTGD's negative take on combat and controls, and Brandon Marlow's criticism of gameplay as a dull affair.