The first week of April saw a mix of old and new titles hitting Steam. The sequel to 'Hungry Lamb', 'Howling Swan', is currently sitting at 'Mostly Positive', while the highly anticipated 'Subliminal' has left players with 'Mixed' feelings. Even classic 'Resident Evil' titles have migrated from the GOG store to Steam, keeping many players busy. Among the latest arrivals, 'Cinderia', which entered Early Access on March 30, has caught our eye.

Cinderia, which translates to 'Kingdom of Ash', is set in a land scorched by a witch. After a king defeated a wicked witch and raised the child left in her wake with immense love, the story takes a dark turn. On the day the child came of age, she awakened as a witch, slaughtered the king, and reduced the kingdom to cinders. You and your party must now use a ruined church as a base to embark on a journey to end her reign.

The gameplay follows a classic 'Hades'-style roguelike structure. You clear rooms of monsters to progress, with each room offering different rewards. You might find 150 gold coins, a 'Card' room for skills, an 'Ember' room for unique abilities, or a 'Chest' room for gear. The ultimate goal is to push forward and defeat the bosses.

Combat adheres strictly to standard roguelite conventions. Left-click handles your basic attack combos, while right-click triggers special attacks—note that almost every character relies on ranged attacks. You dodge enemy strikes with a dash, and hitting enemies from behind grants a 'Back Attack' bonus for extra damage. You can equip up to 3 active skills, which can be upgraded in designated skill rooms.

Cinderia’s unique twist is the passive ability system called 'Mana Ember'. The lore suggests you are absorbing the witch's residual power, which increases your 'Corruption' level. The stronger the ability, the higher the corruption. Once this stat exceeds 100, a powerful debuff is added; for example, 'Over-thinking' reduces active skill cooldowns by 20%.

Given the inherent risks, these passive abilities are quite potent compared to similar titles. For instance, the protagonist 'Lou' can imbue her dagger 'Stab' with poison, or automate her special attacks within her basic combo. With dozens of passive abilities per character, the potential for unique character builds is vast.

Strategically utilizing random accessories is also vital. Found in treasure rooms, these items come in various grades and offer more than just stat boosts to Strength, Spirit, or Agility. Some generate a shield that negates damage every so often, while others significantly boost back attack damage. When your passives, actives, and accessories align, you can construct some truly formidable builds.

Each character has a distinct personality. 'Lou', available from the start, uses daggers to create clones, throw projectiles, and apply poison. 'Rivet', whom you encounter early, wields a cannon for ranged attacks, summons turrets, and deals lightning damage. Other unlockables include a Druid who periodically summons beasts and a frost warrior who once stood against the witch.

The difficulty is certainly on the higher side. Boss fights are particularly brutal, as they often reposition constantly or blanket the screen with bullet hell patterns. Thankfully, the game features a permanent upgrade system, allowing you to spend resources gathered from failed runs to boost base stats and quality-of-life features. You might struggle with the first boss initially, but persistence will eventually lead you to the final encounter.

As of the 6th, Cinderia holds a 'Very Positive' (86% positive) rating on Steam. User feedback includes comments like, "A bit difficult, but a very well-made 'Hades'-like game", "The characters look cute, but the difficulty is malicious", "Top tier among recent roguelikes", and "Aside from the poor visibility of enemy attacks, I lost all track of time playing it." The game supports Korean, and despite some minor inconsistencies in character naming, it doesn't hinder the experience.