Net.Attack() is a very unique take on survivor-like roguelikes with programming your abilities

Net.Attack() takes the basic idea of the action from Vampire Survivors and other survivor-likes but, it gets you to program your abilities with code blocks. Disclosure: a key was provided to GamingOnLinux.

I already tested out the demo previously but now it's available in Early Access and I've played a lot more.

It's not just the block coding and stitching them together to create attacks that makes it unique, it's also the level setup too. You have a small arena to run around in, where you need to hack into little CPUs to grab some money. After you've done them all, you can then proceed deeper and it will get progressively more difficult. This loop is very satisfying.

The result is something very unique, managing to carve out a place in a very crowded genre with more games releasing in it all the time. You don't need to be any sort of coding wizard to appreciate it either, it's all very clean and accessible with you dropping blocks around and then just hooking them up and each is explained clearly. What you can make with it is at times quite funny, because you can cause all sorts of crazy attack loops to just annihilate everything in your path.

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More so than any other roguelike survivor-like, it truly rewards your constant experimentation thanks to the block node coding system. The way you can chain attacks together is something really special. It's not just that attacks will come from you, but your nodes can also have enemies hit by particular attacks activate other attacks, so you end up causing big chain-reactions. It really begins to feel more like an automation sim when you get further in, as you constantly move around these nodes to optimize your attacks. Absolutely brilliant fusion of ideas.

Thanks to that system, I don't think I could ever see myself getting bored of this — ever. There's a decent amount of different types of attacks already, and when you get other characters that tweak all the behaviours it only gets more depth.

But you have to also add to that the traditional level-up system from collecting XP orbs here too, which allow you to buff up various character statistics too. So you will be not only crafting your attack patterns, but also upgrading your overall build as you go too. Completing a level will also then allow you to pick a Premium Node, to add special extras into your little programming area.

Net.Attack() really can get challenging too, especially if you're trying to grab every single CPU node for money on each level, as you only have a limited amount of time before a firewall activates and brings in a Battle Royale styled bubble to reduce the safe area.

One mark against it right now is that it has no gamepad support, which I find pretty odd. This type of game fits perfectly with a gamepad and I'm really surprised it released without that ready. It would be another match made in heaven for the Steam Deck and anyone who prefers a gamepad but until that's in you may want to wait.

Aside from the above, playing it on Desktop Linux (Kubuntu) with mouse / keyboard has been truly fantastic. There's nothing quite like it.

Highlights:

• Program your own attacks: A user-friendly interface allows you to easily construct and refine powerful algorithms, making the art of coding both fun and accessible.
• Survive waves of enemies: Engage in fast-paced, top-down action where each round pushes your strategic limits.
• Endless possibilities: The game constantly evolves with new challenges that test your problem-solving skills and creativity.
• Rich content: Huge variety of unlockables, including new nodes, characters and more.

Really love the idea and I'm thoroughly excited to see what content is added in during Early Access. I want to program the most ridiculous attacks that I can. Plays perfectly with the latest Proton 9.0-4. Early Access is currently planned to last 6 months to add in more characters, more code block nodes for attacks, more challenges and so on.

A must-buy for survivor-like fans, and for anyone who likes top-down action with repeatable runs that allows you to craft your attack patterns into something crazy.