14 DAY TRIAL // 
Luna is waiting for her dragon to pop out of the egg. She is surrounded by monsters with Lovecraftian vibes, including one fiery demon hound, and she only has two health hearts left. Four minutes into her 20-minute survival battle, she is gaining power at a rapid pace but the hordes of monsters don’t seem to care much.
My character uses a revolver, with a few upgrades that improve the firing rate and the number of projectiles. She also has a buddy who uses lightning to strike down enemies and the ability to deal burn damage with her bullets. But the dragon, the second upgrade I picked, still needs around 309 seconds to cook. It would have been nice to get a level upgrade that speeds up the process.
He appears just as I hit a new level, choosing to add a fireball to my offensive capabilities. Coupled with the fire-breathing creature that moves with me, it seems to almost double the number of basic monsters I manage to kill in the time it takes to empty a clip and reload. Luna feels pretty powerful but there are a ton of enemies constantly targeting her and it’s getting harder to find space to drag them around while avoiding the new groups that are spawning.
20 Minutes Till Dawn is developed by flanne, with publishing in the hands of Erabit and flanne. I played the PC version of the game on Steam and it is also available on Android and iOS. The title mixes action, survival, a rogue-lite structure, and offers a variety of character-build options.
As the name clearly states, gamers have to survive a 20-minute stretch of time while under assault by a constant stream of monsters. This is the entire setup but a little more narrative can be gleaned by reading the character and weapon descriptions. It’s still not much but the gameplay is strong enough to carry the title on its own.
At first, only one character and the revolver are available. She will be dropped in the middle of a blasted land where only the trees stand out and soon monsters are moving toward her. Target one (auto-aim is available), shoot until it's dead, rinse and repeat. The creatures drop experience, which enables our heroines to gain levels, choosing one upgrade for each one.
There’s a lot of variety here. One build might feature extreme rates of fire, curses, and the ability to freeze enemies. Another might be centered on burn damage, fireballs, with some lightning thrown in. It’s possible to focus on companions that deal damage on their own or to create a very fast character with great dodging ability. The game does point out synergies and potential cool combinations but players are free to test ideas and make mistakes.
As the survival clock ticks down, the level of threat increases, mainly because a ton more enemies appear on screen, coming from all directions. New types also pop up, some of them able to shoot at the player’s avatar. Bosses have special abilities but it’s important to kill them because they drop very powerful upgrades.
20 Minutes Till Dawn features a classic run that, as the name implies, challenges gamers to survive for 20 minutes but also has an option to half that time and forgo achievements. Start with the second to see the kinds of enemies and how the challenge level ramps up. During a run players also earn souls as currency that will be used to unlock new characters, each with their own special ability, and extra starting weapon options (the revolver is free and remains a great choice).
Also, make sure to check out the Rune tab before starting a run to invest in offensive and defensive upgrades. I like that the game is generous and the pace of unlocks is pretty good, constantly adding new stuff for gamers to try out.
The progression elements cannot fully compensate for the very repetitive gameplay loop. As with other titles in the genre, kitting is the name of the game. A good run is defined by players' ability to pull enemies in a big group and constantly return to the areas where they can harvest a lot of experience. The boss creatures force tweaks in the tactics and the game is quick to punish small mistakes.
The experience works best when players find and unlock a favorite character and hit on a build that makes them feel overpowered. I tended to focus on the rate of fire, using the revolver, and adding as many lightning strikes as I could. The dragon egg is also a good idea, even if the creature that finally spawns feels a little underpowered. Regardless of build, enemy numbers mean the challenge level remains high.
20 Minutes Till Dawn’s graphics are solid but not impressive. Both the heroes players control and their enemies are drawn using pixel art, with limited detail but some personality. XP stands out in the barren landscape and upgrades and special attacks add to the visual spectacle. There are moments when the screen gets overloaded with enemies, striking powers, projectiles, and more, making it hard for players to keep track of everything. A few extra colors would have helped. The combat sound effects aren’t anything special but the soundtrack is good.
The Good
- Variety of characters
- Some very cool builds
- Felling of power
The Bad
- Core loop doesn’t evolve
- Weapon choice doesn’t feel important
- Limited presentation
Conclusion
The core gameplay loop is familiar and the game doesn’t innovate in big ways. I enjoyed the game most in short sessions, playing two or three runs at a time, enough to unlock new options and see what strategies I can build around them. 20 Minutes Till Dawn is satisfying for fans of the genre but I hope its creators take more risks with a potential sequel.
A review key was provided by the publisher
