Given the explosion of titles that have been flooding the eShop since the very successful release of Vampire Survivors, it’s nice to see some developers continuing to try to come up with their own unique mark they can leave on the scene. At a glance, Devil Jam would seem to have strong vibes, mixing together reasonably-attractive art, as well as a suggestion of some elements from Hades given that different avatars of the seven deadly sins will be the ones bringing you some of your upgrades. 

Unfortunately, while those elements absolutely do give the game a unique flavor, they’re also not as developed or interesting as they could have been. Without much in the way of a real story, and background rock that simply feels too mild to add real excitement, you’ll quickly learn that the veneer of Devil Jam is a bit too thin for its own good. Thankfully, it’s one of the features that can’t be adequately captured by a few screen grabs or video clips that helps to prop things up.

Rather than simply choose from a few upgrades and then rock on, you’ll instead have to place them on a grid. While I’m not convinced that this strategic element can necessarily give you a game-altering advantage, I do at least appreciate the fact that it gets you thinking and opens the door to at least squeezing every ounce of power possible out of what you get. The pity is that while you’ll be incentivized to keep on the move to try to find upgrades and helpful spots on the map, in general the mobs and patterns you’ll run into begin to feel a bit too familiar. I also wish that the boss battles felt a little more in balance with the run up to that point, and that it was a bit easier to see all of the projectiles being thrown your way. Quite a few times I’d take a hit I didn’t even see coming, but given the amount of visual noise on the screen at times I suppose it just comes with the territory. I credit the developers with making something different, but I just wish it had more depth and refinement to get it up to the next level.