Have a Nice Death

Have a Nice Death is a 2022–2023 action game from Magic Design Studios, published by Gearbox Publishing. It is a side-scrolling action-platformer with roguelite features: permadeath, procedurally generated levels, and persistent upgrades. The player takes on the role of Death, the CEO of Death Incorporated, who must bring his out-of-control subordinates back in line.

In gameplay, the player starts each run with a scythe and receives two randomly chosen additional weapons or spells. A shop lets them buy one weapon of their choice. They can also opt to power up their character for an easier run with more upgrades. Abilities unlocked during a session carry over after death, helping the player progress further on subsequent attempts.

The story begins with Death, tired of his eternal routine, creating beings called the Sorrows to handle soul-reaping through pollution, gluttony, disease, addiction, natural disasters, and war. He retreats to paperwork at his new business, Death Inc. But the Sorrows start competing to reap as many souls as possible, flooding the company with even more paperwork. Forced to act, Death dons his cloak and scythe to travel through the department floors and stop his Sorrow executives. After defeating them, he heads to a beach for a vacation, only to be confronted by Life, his rival CEO of Life Inc. She challenges his role, calling him selfish for taking time off while she works tirelessly. Death wins their battle, and Life vows revenge. Death enjoys his vacation while his pumpkin-headed intern, Pump Quinn, handles the endless paperwork.

The game entered early access in March 2022 and was fully released for Windows and Nintendo Switch on March 22, 2023. Versions for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S followed on December 5, 2023.

Critical reception was positive. GamesRadar called it a difficult but delightful game. IGN described it as a punishing but satisfying roguelike, praising its humor. Shacknews found it fun and rewarding, though they noted repetitive level design, a confusing weapon-description interface, and repetitive humor. Polygon called the game beautiful and praised its battle mechanics, but disliked how the story tried to make the cruel boss protagonist sympathetic. Slant Magazine found early runs exhilarating but said the lack of variety eventually made playing feel like work.