Nuclear Throne: An 8-Year-Old Roguelike That’s Still a KING of the Genre

The Nuclear Throne video. Sorry it took so long. ALSO, correction, the console versions DO have a 60 FPS option.
Media Sources:
Blader - Pacman Gameplay [1]: Beginner's luck - • Pacman Gameplay [1]: B...
Snake Latino - 🎮🕹️👉Galaga (1981) - Gameplay Arcade - • 🎮🕹️👉Galaga (1981) - Ga...
Music:
All music is from the Nuclear Throne OST (in order of appearance):
Big Bandit Theme
Kings and Queens of Wasteland
Main Menu Theme
Crystal Caves Theme
Drylands Theme
Frozen City Theme
Labs Theme
Sewers Theme
The Nuclear Throne Theme
0:00 - Intro
0:53 - Consistency Vs. Unpredictability
2:10 - Speed & Difficulty
3:32 - Gameplay Highlights
5:35 - A Touch of Variance
6:55 - Presentation
8:20 - Nitpicks + Skill Issues
9:50 - Conclusion
#nuclearthrone #roguelike #sl1ppey

[@breadguy325]

ror1 did looping back in 2013

[@sl1ppey]

Oops. Thank you for the correction.

[@breadguy325]

you did say "one of the first" so you're still right 😎 banger video as always

[@vesteddrop1300]

Bro I still play ror1 on a ps5.

[@breadguy325]

@@vesteddrop1300 hop on PC we have starstorm

[@skdooobep1275]

​@@sl1ppeyyou should play risk of rain 2 and risk of rain. Returns. They're really good

[@testoftetris]

Something I think people gloss over with this game is that each floor is a continuous space that you can move through freely, as opposed to a lot of roguelikes which break up every floor into a series of locked rooms. This means encounters blend really smoothly into each other in NT rather than having a stop/start pacing like you might find in Binding of Isaac for example. It also basically eliminates the fatigue of "oh i guess it's this room again," which can start to plague games in the genre after enough runs

[@sl1ppey]

Yup, a very good point as well.

[@Thomatos200]

I love the progressive generation of the levels because it makes it feel different while still being quite similar

[@b.w.s3165]

The problem is this also means that the vast majority of the time past the beginning hours, you don't die because you messed up in an encounter, you die because you're fighting the game's map generation more than the enemy itself. Praying that the game doesn't decide to spawn you in one huge open room with no cover where every enemy is already aggroed onto you AND lil hunter is about to spawn in while you're melting? Sorry, no amount of skill is saving you. Better luck next time.

[@SundercoreDev]

I think the reason its not as highly regarded as Isaac and Gungeon, is that its too punishing, there's no time to relax, death could be a frame away. However, this also makes it the perfect arcade game. You can finish a run in 15 mins and deaths are often. Imagine this in an arcade machine.

[@sl1ppey]

Now I want to figure out how to make an NT arcade cabinet.

[@psychicchicken5263]

That's actually my main issue with Gungeon. Once you have a general understanding of all the bosses, you can just breeze through the game due to the extremely generous starting 6 HP and no HP cap. Not to mention how many items cause god runs to happen.

[@xman9354]

​@@psychicchicken5263 Curse, boosted, and challenge runs

[@psychicchicken5263]

@@xman9354 True, I enjoy cursed runs. I remember not finding challenge runs fun, not sure why because it's been a while though. Not sure what boosted runs are.

[@xman9354]

@@psychicchicken5263 I don't like challenge runs either. Cursed runs are fun because better loot and higher stakes, and I might have gotten the name wrong but when I say boosted I mean when the speed of everything is like 1.5x

[@maxfecteau]

My favorite aspect of this game is the IDPD. It’s a perfect application of graphic design, sound design, gameplay design, even world-building. Every part of their existence makes them appear distinct from the other entities you fight, and somehow like the bigger antagonist in a world where everything already tries to kill you. The fact that the grunts, inspectors and shielders so closely mirror Fish, Eyes and Crystal makes the player feel all the more powerful by defeating them. This game wouldn’t be the same if there was no popo.

[@nolamo1496]

so true.

[@JFenixGG]

i love popo

[@YUN6_V3NUZ]

tr8or

[@nocapsbb]

I feel like the holidays are the perfect time to jump into a roguelike, lots of extra time to waste and it's too cold to go outside...

[@jademushroom2906]

This games simplistic gameplay loop and fast pace makes it absolutely amazing, also on console you turn on 60 fps in the settings

[@TheAbvsyork]

Is this true?

[@jademushroom2906]

@@TheAbvsyork yeah

[@TheAbvsyork]

@@jademushroom2906 I had no clue lol

[@Gamesablaze]

Where do I access that?

[@MrWerwoolf]

I need no friends, i need no phone Just a bag of several heads and a Nuclear Throne

[@BiodegradableYTP]

Nuclear Throne was the first roguelike that I actually finished. After sinking 30hrs into it, I finally reached the titular throne and managed to kill it on the first try. I really wasn't used to this style of gameplay at the time, so I got angry and frustrated *A LOT* and haven't touched the game in a long time, but thanks for reminding me that it is a very awesome game and giving me the itch to revisit it. I will be sure to curse out your name for every time I die at the worst moments, sl1ppey. Good video!

[@colonialscenekid]

The crazy part is that's just the beginning! Once you start looping, it's like a whole other game!

[@theramazing4615]

Nuclear Throne is so fun. It's fast, chaotic, and loud in the best way possible

[@noahmcalister]

0:42 i cannot believe that 2015 was eight years ago, having an existential crisis rn And "tinnitus % world record speed run" is beautiful, a phrase I will surely quote at my friends going to concerts without earplugs lol Great stuff, super entertaining man

[@w.iz.]

Now imagine nuclear throne 2

[@sl1ppey]

Don't do that... don't give me hope...

[@nolamo1496]

Nuclear Throne's soundtrack has a really heavy influence from spaghetti western movies, and it makes it really pop out.

[@MaxwellGunt-ul2ne]

Fuck yeah, I haven’t even watched the video yet but I never see nuclear throne content on KZbin it’s a fucking amazing game no one talks about

[@MaxwellGunt-ul2ne]

Great video, great points

[@kaasblokje.]

I remember playing a ton of Nuclear Throne and then trying Enter the Gungeon a while later and I just couldn't finish Gungeon because it felt so slow and almost boring compared to Nuclear Throne. (I did come back a year later to Gungeon to fully beat the game and had a great time.)

[@Sam_Afkhami]

this game has gotten me through so much of my life and the amount of love that i have for this game has no bounds there is a reason that across different computers i have a total of around 800+ hours in this game

[@scottdarrington6009]

Been my go-to for eight years and counting. Vlambeer just knew how to make action feel good.

[@sl1ppey]

Truly. And apparently Vlambeer is back!!

[@tac0perator]

I love that if I have 10 spare minutes I can just boot up the game and instantly get into a run and finish it.

[@sl1ppey]

skill issue there now no one else can say it in the comments also big apologies to Joonas Turner for completely butchering their name.

[@noahmcalister]

skill issue i can still say it, doesn't matter if i'm first

[@anthonylander3562]

tbh for most nuclear throne players you're up there buddy. better give me a high score run in terms of kills though cuz i wanna compare. just show me your stats screen the whole way king

[@DJC3350]

Fantastic review. I do wish you pointed out the daily system as it's one of my favorite implementations of multiplayer in rougelites, the fact the scores are measured in kills also adds another amazing touch to it.

[@sl1ppey]

@@DJC3350I should have, even just as a sentence or two. It’s a fun little feature that more games should have.

[@TeamBobbo6326]

It's fine you took a while. You make some quality content. Hope you recover from covid soon btw.

[@sl1ppey]

Thanks. I've only got a sore throat so compared to almost coughing up a lung the first time I had it I'm fine. Just an annoying inconvenience lol

[@eric.is.online]

Dude, I cannot remember how I found your channel but you are very quickly turning into a solid source for recommendations. Thanks :D

[@supercheesyguy9996]

Nuclear throne ultra still getting updates, which feels nice

[@Readysetheal]

Love the little gags you have on screen for just a second or two!

[@Bunger8539]

Really good video!! This is one of my favourite games ever

[@user-ff4vy1el4x]

Dude I’m so glad KZbin is finally recommending me what I wanna see, nuclear throne is legit mt favorite game of all time

[@w5ildhero]

Can't believe my finals distracted me from seeing this absolute masterpiece earlier, but very much glad this finally happened, amazing seeing how your learning of this from the AK-xlotl video has earned you a new favorite game. If I had to criticize, I'd say I wish there was a small segment with emphasis on the Throne fight, I think the fakeout of the throne being the boss and attempting to instakill you with the laser if you sit on the throne is an amazing thing to mention, probably my favorite part of the game going into it absolutely blind but otherwise the vid is ABSOLUTELY amazing. Some fun facts! You mentioned Steroids reading a book in the campsite being funny, but he's actually an immensely intelligent scientist and his mutation just happened to make him freakishly muscular alongside his massive intelligence, so really it's weirder seeing him do everything else! Funny how it works like that. And speaking of the campsite, did you notice the Throne II bossfight happens in the campsite area? You can even see the corpses of all the other characters there (with the exception of Yung Venuz because in game he teleports back to his mansion rather than leaving a corpse. Also, press B while playing him in game for air horn!). Just a detail that adds a lil extra motivation for you to get that oversized high chair and get your first loop. Speaking of looping, did you know one of the devs actually nerfed one of the IDPD enemies which could insta kill you via reflecting damage during loops because a streamer decided to stop smoking? From the wiki, "On one of Sleepcycles' streams, he made a bet with JW: 'If Sleepcycles doesn't smoke a single cigarette for a month, JW will have to nerf Shielders'. A month after that, in update #73, additional frames were added to Shielders' startup animation, slightly delaying their ability to shield." One of my favorite fun facts in all games tbh. And finally, if you haven't noticed it already, there are subtle hints scattered aaaaaall across the game, that Fish can, and I'm not making this up, ROLL across the floor. Crazy, huh?

[@sl1ppey]

I absolutely love that shielders nerf fact. I hate those guys with a passion lol. And yeah! Throne II being fought at the campsite was a really cool touch. I’m glad you enjoyed the video, and thanks for taking the time to leave this informative comment. Appreciate it.

[@levipromovies]

Very professional video man! Liked!

[@Burr_]

As someone who has never played Nuclear Throne I am now convinced even more to play it. Never realized runs were so quick and well, painful. Great video! Also Galaga supremacy

[@sl1ppey]

It’s basically the progenitor for the modern roguelike. For that reason alone I think it’s worth at least trying!

[@progress_games]

sick video and very much worth the wait!

[@MrSaviorHD]

Personally think this is your best video to date. Good stuff man

[@MightyFahl]

Great tribute to Nuclear Throne. Awesome editing and writing. Easy sub, I’ll be checking out more of your work

[@sl1ppey]

Thank you for the nice comment. Really appreciate it.

[@Kids-qv3kx]

This is my favorite game of all time hands down. Glad to see it talked about more.

[@hannsrhinesdale9769]

I appreciate your use of crunchy to describe this game! Crusty, raunchy and beefy would fit, too. This was the first indie game I bought on steam. My eyes and a few doors were opened after searching for background info for the game. Great video!

[@mattprosser5562]

Great lunch break vid 🤝

[@Gurmudgin]

Nuclear Throne is an insanely simple game where almost every death is your own fault. Its pure distilled gameplay is about skill and decision making and I love it to pieces. If only I was actually good at game.

[@wheaty39]

Awesome video man! You’ve played the shit out of the game and your knowledge of it shows. Also lovely editing in the vid!

[@lucyarisato6850]

So, so happy to see you in my inbox again.

[@sl1ppey]

Aww, thank you :)

[@dabbad9831]

Loving your content so far man. New to the channel.

[@sl1ppey]

Hey I appreciate you giving my stuff a chance! Thank you.

[@ManiacArtist83]

I've regretted buying some games, but Nuclear Throne was never one of those. I recently started playing it alongside Enter the Gungeon. I'm having a swell old time dying. I've never been good at these games, but I do try. I'm surprised I had the game since day 1, and after so many years, I still enjoy it. Great video.

[@gratefulcranegames]

W video, crunchy really is the perfect description for this, Vlambeer just gets how to make satisfying gameplay

[@somefishhere]

I always wondered why Nuclear Throne is in my top ten favorite games but I never had the urge to play and master Issac or Gungeon like I did for Nuclear Throne. Thank you for giving voice to something I hold dear to my heart!

[@LeatherIceCream]

I still think this game needs more people talking about it, it's up there with the top rouge likes. So I appreciate this video Speaking of underrated, people need to pick boiling veins more, that's all I'm sayin

[@walter3953]

Make more YV animations to promote NT

[@LeatherIceCream]

@@walter3953 one day

[@sl1ppey]

Oh I take Boiling Veins A LOT now, especially if I wanna run an explosive weapon.

[@onelazynoob15]

great vid, I need to check this game out

[@igen2435]

This video and your channel are pure peak. I would love if You one day ever get to talk about the mods of nuclear throne in more detail. Stuff like Ultra mod, NTTE and the stuff the COMMUNITY makes really change and give the Game even more life!

[@sl1ppey]

I appreciate the kind words. The mods I’ve seen look awesome. I def need to give them a look.

[@someBSchannel]

Another instant classic! I can't imagine how anyone gets that hitless run w/ how chaotic the gameplay looks from the jump. Very easy to see how someone could sink so many hours trying though!

[@BigSlimyBlob]

Amazing run-based game. The intense, satisfying gameplay, and the joy of getting better (you, not your stats) kept me playing for hundreds of hours and encouraged me to get all achievements. Let's hope that 60 FPS beta finally gets finished sometime in the next five years.

[@thatonegamer_4168]

I had no clue how a snake could be this good at making videos, you are such an amazing channel

[@sl1ppey]

That really means a lot, thank you.

[@thatonegamer_4168]

@@sl1ppey your welcome, hope you get over covid soon

[@SUPERLEAF002]

Playing as Melting means either: you kill all possible beings by exploding corpses, or you die from the first bullet.

[@therealemoboy24]

Great video. Please talk about Scourge Bringer next.

[@codered_dev]

My boy's back!!!

[@olberon]

Sick vid

[@lemonconsumption]

nuclear throne is so unbelievably good. got the unstoppable achievement recently. i am not a loud person but this game, especially when playing with my friends, makes me genuinely scream at the sheer chaos and mayhem. there's so much i can say about this game, but this video sums it up near perfectly. good video random snake thing. i think the something that you didn't mention much is the world building, no worries on that part. it's all show not tell. and the language is so awesome. shame the console version is outdated. my PS5 has an abundance of hours clocked into it. 24 hours on rogue alone.

[@libb_y]

every time you release a new video i wishlist a new game how are you doing this

[@sl1ppey]

Fish can roll.

[@kodahyphenlee]

god i love this game, my friend introduced me to it two years ago and i've loved it very much since

[@duhfish6030]

nice vid mate

[@jackstar-o4728]

5:25 As someone who played Voidigo personally i love this game so much that i got addicted to it before so if Nuclear throne is the game that inspired Voidio then i gotta try nuclear throne after this video

[@davialves5264]

I dont like nuclear throne always. I am not good at nuclear throne. But holy shit this game has given me some of the greatest moments in gaming. Knocking out crystal caves on loop with nothing but an energy hammer, or destroying big dog with an spc were some of my favorites.

[@TheQuirig]

Definitely gonna try this game. I STRONGLY suggest reviewing or just trying death must die. One of the best survivor rogue-likes I’ve ever played

[@doyoulikeworms3151]

Quick shoutout to SleepCycles! He's a good youtuber to watch if you want to get better at this game. He's not the absolute all time best player, but he's definitely the funniest; some of the loading tips are catchphrases of his! He's good to watch both for his stories and to learn which weapons and mutations to prioritize, along with other helpful tips. He quit(?) youtube a while back but he's got a very beefy back catalog to go through. Also as a fun little fact: shielders used to be WAY more obnoxious, but they were nerfed after SleepCycles agreed to quite smoking

[@numimio]

Something I love about NT is that the upgrades are quite simple, but work so damn well. Mix this with EVERY character playing differently, I love this game.

[@markopopovic9874]

Very nice video, suprised you don't have more subs

[@sl1ppey]

Thank you so much!

[@lolhuman25]

In Nuclear Throne, you very quickly learn that destroying props in no wasting ammo. If you don't destroy those cars and barrels, they will destroy you.

[@werce9120]

Used to play this all the time. It's a really neat game honestly.

[@angel_of_rust]

i just like that it's only a couple hundred megabytes in storage, and that kind of satisfyingly small scale permeates through the game somehow.

[@sl1ppey]

Agreed. There’s something almost poetic about getting so much game out of so little data lol

[@toaster9922]

YEEEEES Fucking nuclear throne in the year of our lord 2023/24!!! I swear to god this is the best game on steam. Played since 2015 and I still play it now.

[@duseifert]

DUUUDE your videos are so good, love your art style and comedy, hope you recover from the plag... I mean covid. Also what other games are you thinking about making videos of? Risk of Rain Returns seems great

[@sl1ppey]

Thank you so much! So far I know I definitely want to make a video on Tiny Rogues, and if I can shake it, a short one-off christmas video about the strangest christmas game probably in existence. Also might make one about Undertale Yellow.

[@moroncrow9820]

help, this game is a drug and i'm addicted since launch

[@vario6492]

It's a crime how this game isn't as popular OR MORE popular than Gungeon

[@JaleLkharrat]

fun fact, in the lore steroids was actually a renowned scientist before the cataclysm that transformed the world to its current post apocalyptic state.

[@heyspellicup]

One of my favorite games of all time, the nostialgia is strong with this one

[@fr0sty590]

i've sank about 200 hours into NT and it is great. I do appreciate peoples frustration at deaths that feel unpreventable or 'BS' but I think sometimes people forget that when your skill and muscle memory improves at a game like this, you will be able to sense out the danger easier and they won't become as 'unpreventable' as they may have seemed. Anyway, great video!

[@sl1ppey]

Oh I definitely feel that, although I think no matter how long I play this, I will always think about that time a corpse ping-ponged off two walls into an exploding barrel and think "That was BS" lol. Also thank you!

[@tonypop1007]

I still play every now and then since release.

[@Theonlygamerthatistrulygaming]

Finally. another Nuclear Throne lover.

[@Snugbrrrr]

This video is so good. Now I wanna play Flaming Chair.

[@fish.come.from_the_milk]

once you get to consistently looping and double looping too, playing with endgame mutations and killing huge amounts of enemies with each shot is just so satisfying

[@pixel-junky]

the ending is what true pain sounds like :-)

[@haiperbus]

The thing I appreciate most about NT over gungeon is that every weapon is viable. Finding a new weapon shouldn't feel lame or dissapointing in this genre but gungeon made me feel that way a lot

[@normang3668]

If Nuclear Throne was a 90's arcade cabinet, there would be no more quarters left in circulation, it would have eaten them all up... I will say, on top of the base game being outstanding, there are a lot of mods as well. The most notable being 4 player online co-op, which might honestly be the best way to play the game, because you have supporting players to either help keep you alive, or at least share in your misery of constantly being killed.

[@king.2597]

The game that got me into roguelikes

[@NotWendy3]

Amazing game, one of my favorites too. And I think this video covers it really well! By the way, I heavily recommend using melee and Long Arms for protection in the Everything Hurts run. Veins are good too for making the Hunter fight a lot safer.

[@sl1ppey]

Yeah, that might be the play. I heavily underestimated being able to destroy bullets with melee weapons. Also yes, veins is a must for the real boss of that challenge run in the form of lil hunter lol

[@NotWendy3]

@@sl1ppey I think melee of NT doesn't get enough praise in general. Such a great system, which also makes deep loops possible in general, when most of your screen is just enemy projectiles. And I like how it interacts with moving enemies. It's satisfying to one-hit a jumping Palace dog or a dashing Big Bandit, as they take damage from the melee swing's arc on every frame of their jump/dash, unlike in their normal state. The way you can reflect sniper's bullets back at it is also very fun.

[@Dearty_YT]

Yay! Someone remember this game!

[@renatocfrancisco]

it's Vlambeer. It's automatically good, lol Good review, sl1ppey :)

[@royaloreo1275]

Nuclear throne was my first rougelike, and because of that I couldn't get into gungeon because everything felt sooooo sluggish. Also I'd like to reccomend mods, which can add characters, weapons, mutations, enemies and even a trapped rad canister which explodes if you walk into it, making one of the only things that can't kill you in vanilla dangerous.

[@sl1ppey]

THAT IS SO MEAN

[@The_Ajna]

Nuclear throne is an absolute gem

[@ThisismineIguess]

*Fish can roll* also as one of *"those people"* I reject the title and will call it as it truly is: a Roguelite - not like being a Roguelite makes it bad or worse or anything when it's already as good as it is

[@sl1ppey]

What’s the exact situation regarding categorization of these games? Back when this game was in development, the devs referred to the game as a “roguelike-like” as the term “roguelike” was reserved for games that were like the game Rogue (i.e. turn-based permadeath dungeon crawlers). Now it seems the definition has shifted to Roguelike = Games with no metaprogression and roguelite = games with metaprogression. NT *technically* does have stuff like golden guns and crowns that can make the game easier, but it personally feels more like a roguelike in spirit than a roguelite. That’s just my thought process anyway, my head spins trying to nail down the real meaning of these terms.

[@breadguy325]

​@@sl1ppeyyeah the metaprogression thing is the only difference, though I think it only counts if it makes you stronger in runs (ie. unlocking new weapons or items doesn't count because they're still part of the normal drop pool, but something like extra shop rerolls or increased health does)

[@Steroids_]

No it’s definitely a roguelike, the “meta progression” in this game does not make your character stronger at all

[@tomboy_kisser]

Good to see an honest video that only lasts 18 seconds

[@Dolkip]

aww hell yeah

[@zambrial]

This is a game that I haven't actually played and definitely should. I've just never been very good at twin stick shooters

[@catgirl_warcrimes]

More games need to follow the "Design By Subtraction" method. Its why Nuclear Throne is still one of, if not still, the best roguelike; and is also the reason why Shadow of the Colossus and ICO are also so amazing. Remove all things that do not serve/add to the game's main vision. Trim all the fat until there is little to no extra bells and whistles. Also part of the reason why the game lacks 60fps and widescreen outside of the beta branch is that Vlambeer "shut down", the good news is that Vlambeer is back! So fingers-crossed for more Vlambeer juiciness and 60fps widescreen Nuclear Throne in the main branch.

[@sl1ppey]

Wait holy crap Vlambeer’s back???

[@catgirl_warcrimes]

@@sl1ppey Not necessarily in full swing but no longer in "hibernation". It really only rose from the grave a few days ago so time will still tell.

[@Donchan1]

The game is good but for some reason it keeps kicking me back to the start of a run every time I run out of health?

[@sl1ppey]

Average Melting experience.

[@dswolf9421]

while i cant say it for all of the soundtrack but a good amount does give this wild west/mysterious traveler vibe. like the first track with the beginning is just BLISS, the other tracks use of harmonicas and other things you'd find in other wild west tracks really gives it a different feel from other games but also hypes the player up at just the right time.

[@sl1ppey]

YES, that’s exactly what it is and not sure why that didn’t come to me while writing. Very wild west influenced.

[@theknightwithabadpictotall7639]

Oh THAT'S where the one Gungeon shrine comes from

[@sl1ppey]

This game influenced a LOT of similar games that came after it. Gungeon, Voidigo, and AK-xolotl are just a few off the top of my head.

[@bananafone1414]

​@@sl1ppey not only that but i think it might have been one of the first games to introduce a looping type system

[@Mas-cm6cy]

KINGS AND QUEENS OF WASTLAND WE STILL ARE!

[@dieg0639]

i love them

[@TCICU995]

and oldie and a goodie

[@cactus-mcjacktus]

i miss this game.

[@color2550]

Pog

[@Garlakel]

Hah, I love this game, don't regret getting its collectors edition.

[@Saint-8]

I remember this game

[@leuvter8714]

i still love this game to this day AND if it gets stale there is stil the ultra mod xD

[@trendrekt8363]

I love this game so much because the one thing I've seen unite every single player is their hatred for Lil Hunter

[@sl1ppey]

Every time I kill him is pure, undiluted catharsis.