Chicken Dungeon Time! I love Dungeon Builders and had a blast with most of the ones released in the last decade. So, will this be another winner-winner chicken dinner? Let’s find out.

Super Dungeon Maker, created by Firechick and Rokaplay, is a unique game where you take on the role of Fink, an anthropomorphic and adventurous chicken, as he explores many dungeons created by the game’s growing community of players. The game draws inspiration from top-down dungeon crawlers like classic Zelda games and level designing mechanics of games such as Super Mario Maker.

Gameplay

So what do you get? Each dungeon in Super Dungeon Maker is designed wildly with various obstacles and hijinks that Fink must overcome before he can reach the golden egg to progress. The game underwent a lengthy Early Access period before release, during which players contributed to laying the foundation of what the game is now. I haven’t played the Early Access, so I can’t comment on the process that changed this game into what the build turned into you’re reading about now.

As the designer, you can create your top-down dungeon with as many enemies and dangerous traps as you like and even choose the level of difficulty by placing traps and obstacles strategically. The editor allows you to add different bosses and change the dungeon’s theme to resemble nature, desert, ice, or cyber-esque elements. You can also alter the lighting in the room to make it more challenging for other players to progress—a great design choice since I often miss this option in other dungeon games. Impire, for example, was a pretty dark dungeon designer and could have benefited from these options.

Tools of the Trade

When playing a created dungeon, Fink has access to his sword, but players can also be given other tools, such as a grappling hook or bombs, found in locked chests, requiring keys, making it feel like a classic Zelda adventure. You can explore user-created dungeons in the HUB World Village, which doubles as a relaxing change of pace. The music, an 8-bit soundtrack, sets the mood for this retro adventure and inspires creativity. After playing through a dungeon, you can vote using hearts, and the more liked dungeons appear on the top trending section in the Eggpedia building. The problem with these kinds of games is that it’s pretty community driven. I don’t know if this will get the same community as Super Mario Maker, for example. Still, what’s here is a great starting point with almost endless potential. I enjoyed the consistent role of new playable dungeons while challenging myself to create levels in which players will have fun. Yes, it requires patience, but the result is exceptionally charming.

Conclusion

Super Dungeon Maker gives players the tools to create their retro dungeon crawlers in a user-friendly way that anyone can enjoy. This release out of Early Access has all the tools someone needs to make the dungeon of their dreams, so here’s to hoping the community stays strong. Oh, and Nintendo Zelda Dungeon Maker is pretty much overdue by now. So, let’s talk about that soon, okay?

7.5/10

Tested on the Nintendo Switch.