Why Dead Cells Used to be Harder and How It was Fixed | Analyzing Update 1.2

[@Veedotme]

Would you be okay with arbiters in every biome or $250k flask charges?👇🏾

[@duseifert]

Honestly both is bad lol but probably the 250k flask

[@goldsquirrel833]

most definitely not

[@Kedra-v3q]

Is I just me or maybe you should play skill only run

[@rivunma1437]

Secret answer: none

[@cattoduke6286]

Mob density is definitely the biggest difference for me. Back then, running a slow weapon is almost impossible in some biomes. That made the lightning whip so OP. Just spam it mid air and by the time you hit the ground, small enemies are probably at half HP already, and just use the wolf trap on bigger ones. It's probably the only reliable way to deal with the Clock Tower and Cannibals.

[@Veedotme]

No heart of ice, no Kill Rhythm, crusher doesn't slow, only green grenade is Powerful Grenade - can't imagine fighting 12 demons as Survival in 1.2 lol

[@Hedge_the_Hog]

We now have tons of rats on many biomes. Yes, they are at least stompable, but the struggle of slow weapons is still here.

[@vitaliterentjevs3559]

I played the first release of the game when it came out. According to developers, the game was so brutal that 70% of those who bought it couldn't kill the first boss. So they had to drastically reduce the difficulty.

[@rafidzia6463]

I remember when i played it and it only has The Concierge and Conjunctivius. I take me days to defeat Conjunctivius.

[@muhammadizzuddin7323]

@@rafidzia6463 lmao same

[@DrPandemias]

For me the worst part by far were shops. I can understand mob density being off or forge grind being too much, but I cant understand how shop went through QA. I remember spending dozens of games being not able to interact with the shop at all, it was a dead mechanic for most of the runs and anyone playing the game could realize that. This might be a personal perception but I also felt like the entire game was balanced towards parry specially on higher BCs, I've always been a roll player and some mechanics just felt absolute BS without shield. Im glad the game went through so many iterations, such a banger.

[@kaden-sd6vb]

malaise-per-hit and malaise being lethal at full bar was also a nightmare

[@warwicksulista8320]

Fun fact, if you get a fresh save and get the twinblade from your first kill at hand of the king (the one version you use to kil lthe king) That blade even today still has scrolls in it

[@ipsnip5828]

When going for the true ending it also has the stats still

[@thepainpanda7681]

I always thought they purposely kept it there with the scrolls to show it’s really popular but I guess it could’ve been an error

[@planescaped]

I got to 4 boss cells on standard difficulty before they added the accessibility options... and thank fucking god they did. The game is unbearable on higher difficulties, yet you're locked out of a lot of content if you aren't playing on them. Really breathed new life into it for me. As I hadn't touched the game since this update.

[@jellybean5929]

I thought the conclusion was gonna be, that the game was more challenging and more fun back then. But this looked like unfair hell.

[@Calibrilightt]

it was awful specially at 2bc. only viable builds were hokutos bow builds or sadist stilleto builds

[@Raxyz_0]

I remember I hated this game's guts near release. I could see its qualities, but it wasn't fun in any sense of the word. I got to 5BC out of spite just to negate the notion that the only people who didn't liked were the ones who couldn't complete it. The assist update is a prime example how harder isn't always better or more enjoyable. I started a new save after purchasing all the new DLC with only the checkpoints enabled. The game is still bullshit, but at least now it's a fun bullshit that no longer wastes my time for things out of my control. lmao

[@steel5897]

Definitely. The old version around launch walled me hard at 2BC and then REALLY walled me to the point I quit in 3BC. The new game only walled me at 5BC, and I restarted a fresh file like 3 times between them.

[@Calibrilightt]

2bc used to be INSANE the jump 1bc and 2bc was mental i was stuck for months

[@jamessmells123]

I remember seeing a >$100k giant killer in Caverns shop. That thing had its own bonkers economy

[@M0rbidFates]

This makes so much sense! I just started playing Dead Cells again and I had stopped playing before at the 1.3 update. I was wondering why everything felt easier!

[@xkidmidnightx]

Dang, I remember the arbiters and knife thrower spam. That was crazy.

[@iwasdeleted708]

Ah 2bc hell, when I first started playing I gave up after my power died and I didn’t finish the 1% hp hand of the king, now I can actually say I have all boss cells, and be less proud than when I used to say I can reliably reach the second boss in 2 bc.

[@Calibrilightt]

getting past clock tower cavern or any of those biomes before the 2nd boss was a bigger achievement to me that winning a run today

[@0nigohri500]

1.2 was right around when i got *really* into dead cells and watching made me realize why i have such bad ptsd for biomes like the promenade and clock tower. Just the sheer enemy spam made it unreasonably hard.

[@Calibrilightt]

old morass of the banished still haunts me

[@Mrteahuge]

baseball bat + stun granade + wolf trap: nah, i would dominate bosses

[@prcervi]

yep i def do remember that mob placement and density was something of an issue in original version and a million small things that make a mountain out of pebbles

[@Nova-ly7tx]

I´m glad there were changes. 5BC remains difficult but possible, mostly fair and with all the enemys everywhere I think a all enemys can spawn everywhere modifier could be fun now for some nasty combos xD

[@PolandSphere]

I got war flashbacks when you started talking about Arbiters, they were the bane of my existence during my initial Boss Cell climb. Also that thing about the trap sawblades not being able to be rolled through was great because, even in modern Dead Cells, I have conditioned myself to exclusively jump over those sawblades because of my early experiences. I am surprised how little damage Hokuto Bow + Alchemic Carbine was doing to the Giant. It was one of, if not the most busted build in the game, and it was doing like nothing. These days, even after that combo has been nerfed, the Giant would get obliterated pretty much instantly.

[@CitrusLemonTheTruestLemon]

knife throwers were EVERYWHERE in my run ;-;

[@Divine_Intern]

Ah, the good ol' times

[@Tulkop]

Holy hell theres not arbiters and knife throwers everywhere anymore? That was awful. Old malaise was total garbo too, that rework was so needed.

[@motmaverick]

This was great to watch through to see the differences. I don't know how to look it up, but it would be neat to know what year 1.2 would've been in place. I realize the devs have made so many updates/changes that 1.2 might've lasted a month, but to be able to know how many years ago 1.2 was compared to what "modern" Dead Cells is now, would be neat.

[@GoldenCell007]

No wonder I got stuck on 2 BSC years ago

[@topwolf2980]

I remember putting the majority of my 200 or so hours into the game during this update. Listening to your woes reminded me of all the stuff I dealt with back then and despite it all still managed to pull off more than a few 5BC wins. I do remember specifically installing a cell multiplier mod to deal with the ridiculous forge grind lol. I could not be asked to mindlessly grind for meta upgrades when the enemy density was testing me as is. Edit: went and checked some dates and turns out I was playing post arbiter nerf, around 1.5 or 1.6. Overall a lot of this stuff was still present but enemy density probably wasn't as insane nor were the cursed chests.

[@deishukaiki4870]

i still have this(without giant dlc) on my old phone

[@Ramotttholl]

yeah i was wondering why it felt easier these days. old DC i was stuck on 1BC. but now i blaze through some parts i used to struggle with. thought it was just experience but this also be the case.

[@harpoonlobotomy]

As someone who used to play a lot of Dead Cells but stopped years ago, that just looks like regular Dead Cells to me. Guess we've put a timeline on when I stopped playing lol

[@poksi1]

stumbled upon this video. i bought dead cells on 2021 when fatal falls came out. never really got into it and still at 0 BC. seeing your vid makes me want to try and play it again lol. will be checking your other vid for beginner's guide.

[@Calibrilightt]

i got into it in 2020 when bad seed came out, played until i got wbc right around when fatal falls came out. quit cuz of how hard wbc was for me back then. returned to this game today and beat 2bc today lol

[@hi65835rox]

these were awesome streams to watch while you got this footage

[@i-totally-am-nabstablook-hehe]

I remember playing when you had to check how much things recycled for, and I remember neither me or my dad could beat concierge for a few weeks, this was a few years ago, this video explains why lol

[@TheHeadlesss]

honestly from what i have heard, speedrunning was a LOT harder too because the war javlin isn't how it works now and it recuired soo many weirder stuff than now, and im thinking of actually playing it

[@scato]

Double boys axe - the memory lives on.

[@BuoyBweh]

I played before 5bc was added and I almost exclusively used the cursed sword

[@-Kayzi-]

i would love to see a long play of this

[@yagizc3842]

ahhhhh thats why ı got oblitrated 2-3 years ago thanks god ı can finally finish it

[@xkidmidnightx]

It’s way easier now. Stuff like the deck and the bat alone make the game easy for people that want to use the cheesiest weapons

[@Calibrilightt]

or the throwable objects with literally almost any weapon

[@Allen-jj7vv]

It's way playable now. 1.2 version is just unfair😅

[@fireredgaming1]

Hard ❌ Unfair ✅

[@dinehut]

Great vid! I'm very surprised you didn't use double binding as that seemed to be our answer for the game's brutal difficulty back in the day lol (electric whip + ice shards i'm looking at you)

[@Veedotme]

Trust me, I tried but 1.2 Ice Shards has AMMO to it and dual binding just uses it all up 💀

[@Calibrilightt]

haha yeah that and blood sword hokutos bow

[@Calibrilightt]

dot damage used to go crazy

[@MHunnterZ]

Holy, I remember this was the time when I first saw a videi if yours, I clearly remember to thing omg how does he shit on the giant so hard with just boomerangs or the shotgun while I got oneshoted 3 runs in a row? That point on I never miss a single video, also this was the patch when I got hardstuck in 4BC. Thanks for the nostalgia shot Vee, I very much appreciate it

[@Veedotme]

was a blast to replay this for yall 😆

[@Terra-Slayer9]

I was stuck at the first boss in the black bridge, good thong it was reworked, im comin back

[@chris61986]

I just picked up the game after playing on release way back when. Fresh save. I got to the throne and won on my second try. First try I died from a one hit curse, otherwise I think I would have won that run, too. I don't know remember far I got on the launch version. I know I beat the king. I could have sworn the game was way harder and it took me tons of tries to get to the final room. Guess I was right. Just seeing the mob density in the first minute of the video confirms it. Here I was, fresh off Hollow Knight, thinking I was just in peak 2D platformer mode.

[@fewfwefwfwff]

after a while, this game made for addicts. no fun at starting all from the start. rip

[@MrAzramez]

'just watched the introduction and i have been thinking about this topic recently. I had different criteria, i originally played dead cells before the rise of the giant patch. If i was to compared with now i would have looked at just before the rise of the giant patch. :)

[@Ingeniousleo85]

I used to think it was messed up the final boss would kill you so fast without really having any time to learn his moves. I beat the game only 4 times in around 60 runs. I know you’re meant to start again from the beginning, but somehow I wish there was a better way to tackle the final boss and learn the moves without having to run the whole game every single time

[@GadingKhaeran]

It's hard... But it give a super santisfying feeling when you beat it 😊😊

[@Drawin-Circles]

Back then I wasnt able to beat 4 BC and now I recently played again I did beat BC4 and 5 first try without any problems. Its not piss easy, but its rather nicely balanced I would say.

[@heshermunson]

I love Dead Cells but honestly it feels like a chore even now if you're not in the mood. I've got to 5BC right before the update that removed double weapons in the same button. Never got to unlock every weapon, never even seen the shipwreck, after getting to 5BC I've never manager to even see the hand of the king. I'm getting back to it eventually but parry timing still feels off to me, can't get it right to save my life. Even though I get every scroll and I did grind the forge on the old hellish requirements, I always feel weak fighting bosses. If I were to wait for myself to defeat the spoiler boss before watching Vee videos I'd just never watch any, ever. PS: I think we should have a weapon unlock list in-game telling you how to get them. The secret behind getting them is pointless if you can see it online and there's a lot of crap like the Oil Grenade I didn't even bother trying after some time because it drops on maps I avoid.

[@planescaped]

That's why I was so happy they added the ability to lower enemy damage and health in the options. Game went from unbearable and unfun to playable again.

[@jamessmells123]

Absolutely hated rerolling for scrolls. I never cared about affixes, just the scroll colours.

[@gantzplayer.n.m4410]

played dead cells in the very very early days, like day 2 of it being playable and it was SO DAMN HARD it took me so long beat conjonctivius i remember my hands hurting, now i played it again after two years of not touching it and its much much easier

[@GamingWithNeytiri]

i'm playing this game for a long time now and as i understand the game better now i decided to start over and see how fast i can prgress this time. i'm uploading the first part (3.5 hours) of gameplay just to show my entire progress. even though i have lots of videos on my channel already i only have 19 subscribers but still i hope you'll take a a look at it maybe give me some tips. (as of right now youtube says it will take 6 hours to finish the upload.)

[@oritfx]

Thank you. O got filtered by the original DC. I will give it another shot.

[@curses9757]

FIRST also yeah some of the runs i do sometimes its quite sucks to get everything whenever you start a freshly save and yes lost my old save last year so yeah but sometimes its getting a lil lazy for me to get everything cause of the new yk dlc and new melee or items so yeah also love your videos vee been a fan since quarantine ❤❤

[@highabsolute899]

Nah this deserves more views

[@Mahonokage]

Ah yes, old dead cells. Back when the sparta boots didn't have a combo. There were no cross overs with other games yet. You could stack "-10% damage" with necklaces and items. And running brutality after 2BSC was completely unviable. Tactics items didn't have a range you had to stay in, so you tossed them down and hid to deal with the hoards enemies. Malaise was even in 2BSC if memory serves me right. Good times. I would say new dead cells is easier because the game is more balanced. Still challenging, but also, I came back to the game to go from stuck playing at 2BSC but having the 3rd, to playing on 4 like its no big deal, and perfecting timekeeper, HotK, and conjunctivitis. I already had the perfect Concierge, garb sported by the lowliest of achievers.

[@SynysterProjects]

Okay so it WASN'T just me, Dead Cells actually used to be a f***ing slog 😂🤣🤣 I played this game a few years ago and, despite really wanting to love it, I just couldn't stand how long it took to make any progress towards power scaling. I've never been a fan of roguelikes, but the aesthetics, art style, and snappy gameplay of Dead Cells really drew me in. I played for about 15 hours, and haven't touched it since. Guess I'll download it again (on PS4 this time instead of Switch) and see if I enjoy it any more than I did before!

[@terrariagell1604]

scrolls in items look cool and helpfull for me

[@bertalanjakkel4038]

This was fun to watch

[@m3anmug]

Even with all this said i still had a way easier time beating the game before they nerfed the hell out of items. I used to like the Electric whip and it's not nearly as good now.

[@seiuchicompositions]

I wish arbiters were on like 1 more map and or had their omni directional attacks cause they're chumps in current patch in my opinion

[@brominete9]

Recovery looks kinda better in comparison to today

[@SyRose901]

I am pretty sure Recovery was designed to work in this old environment, where you WILL trigger it almost all the time.

[@FelipeKana1]

Oh so that's why I bounced off the game after beating 0 BC when I used to play it near release

[@hehehe6344]

I started crying when you said it used to be harder

[@Sachin1671]

Would the mobile version still be considered as the old deadcells? I was told its slower to get updates from the pc and switch ver.

[@thisnowthen]

No. It's not that old. It is relatively new even. It has all the new paid DLC. Only missing the end is here updates.

[@GamingWithNeytiri]

i have absolutely no idea what you're talking about even though i'm indeed playing this game for a long time now. so yes, tips are very welcome.

[@imducky-]

I want some of these old contact in the new dc because it's kinda "easy" maybe because I'm mobile idk

[@metroidman9161]

I don't think it's been changed much, but I have clips of some absolutely whack hitboxes that I'm really not a fan of.

[@malorivandervaart5823]

this is the first version i ever beat

[@mito-ek8407]

Veedotme: make a list on what you think made the game hard u wont get half of them Me a 1.1 mobile player : The game was hard? 👁️👄👁️

[@glorkish_james]

Why are you playing 1.1, are you stupid?

[@veduzumaki3332]

I played this version before the present game so when i get the present game i got to the throne rome easy

[@jttasso753]

Bruh I dunno bout that one. Cleared 0BC on my second run ever 2 years or some back. Stopped after that. Recently got into Dead Cells again. At something like 20 runs. Still haven't beat 0BC... :( Though to be fair I am rying out all kinds of shit right now whereas back then I try harded and rushed the shit outta it all.

[@thisnowthen]

They might have nerfed a couple of weapons. Very long time ago heavy crossbow was a 1 handed weapon for one. Which is crazy because it can kill THOK easy on 0 and 1bc that way even without the modern reload/crit thingie. And you have a shield too.

[@sandroamorales2922]

the game was ok, when you unlocked 2bc on your 250-300+ run, not on 3rd

[@commentor8737]

So back when I played it wasn’t a skill issue

[@Calibrilightt]

it wasnt bro, you either broke the game with hokutos bow or ice shards or died

[@newjersey973]

What is the little blue hand icon bottom right? And wait I just saw you can press a button to destroy HoTK flags? Can you do that in modern? I never noticed before lol Lastly, imo clean cut update made the game harder. The new update thats going to come out is also going to make the game harder. Only been playing for a year ish I think so not really familiar with any updates before that.

[@M1K0G3]

That is old killstreak icon

[@newjersey973]

​@@M1K0G3ah should have realized from the placement. It just looks so different and out of place. I thought it was a mutation specific mechanic maybe. Thanks for the answer.

[@5lkp4]

Oh they made it easier?? No wonder, i thought i just got good 😭

[@iliasik2nd]

Nah, rampager plus demolisher look legitimately nice in comparison with this bullshit

[@ApollyonTheEmpty]

I feel like this is for every game, we might be just getting better I guess.

[@BevinEG]

First ahd foremost, this video essay was very fun to watch for me at least and I think you cooked. Now.. SO MANY BOMBERS!

[@Veedotme]

it was tough but i'm glad to hear people like it

[@BevinEG]

@@Veedotme I'm glad you did what you did.

[@the_actual_lauren]

Man I miss old dead cells, the game we have now is kiddie

[@scbtripwire]

25:07 "How do I destroy the protector at the bottom?" What you did was nothing, what you should have done was stomp down to it, mash your abilities, dodge roll, then escape. Kill anything that follows you away from the protector (or where it used to be) if it survived your initial onslaught).

[@blackestbill7454]

goat

[@bethvictoria8661]

I can say that modern bosses are much harder I cannot beat those endgame womens without no hitting them, LITERALLY. AND THEY SAY, "GO TALK TO THAT GIRL, THE WORST THING SHE CAN SAY IS NO."

[@alessandrobaggi6129]

The Queen wasn't so difficult if compared to her 3 guards, at least for me.

[@10Filip]

Dollars?

[@gabrielgodoi4565]

So you actually had to play the game to win. Interesting.

[@ChurroTheViscous]

Why are you counting legendaries with stats as a bad thing? Don't stats make the game easier?

[@Veedotme]

Sorry, I can't find a timestamp where i talk about legendaries so here is the answer in case anyone else is wondering: In update 1.2(this video), the stats (Scrolls and base damages) on legendaries are actually lower than the stats (Scrolls and base damage) of an S quality of the same weapon

[@Monke1640]

No way I’m the 100th viewer

[@Veedotme]

🍰🍰🍰

[@joshuavance5076]

You're a great player and I enjoy your content, but your vids are too long IMO.

[@Veedotme]

Hi there, if you mean explainer vids like this there are a lot of points to cover and examples to show. I'd hate to cut out a point but maybe you saw a moment here that didn't build onto the story? If you mean gameplay vids, 1 full run of Dead Cells is 1.5 hours irl time. To cut those below 30 minutes would remove a lot of the gameplay and decision making I used to win. If you have an example of a youtuber posting these action roguelikes with shorter videos, I'd love to see them 👍🏾

[@xzxxx-km4vy]

Dead Cells is nothing but a random spastic button mash game. Dying is completely random in these type of gaymes.

[@krazykuz13cmc]

No you just suck at it. Skill is most definitely involved in killing things.

[@alessandrobaggi6129]

Grind that 0bc and you can make it. 😉

[@Flightless_Wings]

Skill issue

[@tacofitness1876]

cat.gif!?