Game: Deep Dish Dungeon
Genre: Action, Strategy.
System: Steam (Windows) (Also on Xbox).
Developer|Publisher: Behold Studios | Raw Fury
Controller Support: Yes
Steam Deck: Verified
Price: US $14.99 | UK £13.99 | EU 14,99
Release Date: October 13th, 2026
Review code provided with many thanks to Johnny Atom.
Deep Dish Dungeon – Lost In The Right Direction
A friend of mine has recently been playing Tomb Raider III for the first time, and hearing about his adventures has brought back memories of my own experiences with the game. Back in the day, it took me well over a year to finish, largely because I was determined to figure things out for myself without relying on a walkthrough. It was a game that expected you to explore, get lost and occasionally wonder what on earth you were supposed to do next.
That old-school mentality is something I found myself thinking about while playing Deep Dish Dungeon. This first-person dungeon crawler combines exploration, puzzles, crafting and survival mechanics, but its greatest strength is the way it encourages you to work things out for yourself. It’s not always the most immediately accessible experience, but there’s something satisfying about gradually uncovering its secrets.
Into The Darkness
Deep Dish Dungeon wastes little time getting you started. There’s a brief introduction, but little hand-holding beyond that. You’re dropped into a mysterious dungeon with a small campsite, a few resources and plenty of unanswered questions. Why are you here? What happened in this place? Where should you go next? The game doesn’t rush to explain everything, and I quite enjoyed that sense of mystery. You can discover letters that provide snippets of background information, but the main attraction is exploring the dungeon and deciding for yourself what to investigate. There are some familiar survival mechanics to consider. Hunger and other needs must be managed, meaning you’ll need to collect food, find ingredients and return to your campsite to cook meals. You can also craft tools to help with your adventure. The dungeon itself is often very dark, so keeping a torch handy is essential. You can place torches on walls to illuminate areas, although I frequently found myself carrying one like my special comfort glow wand.
The Joy Of Getting Lost
Exploration is where Deep Dish Dungeon really comes into its own. You’ll regularly encounter obstacles that initially seem impossible to overcome, but there’s usually a solution waiting to be discovered. Perhaps you need to find a key, build a makeshift bridge using planks or stack objects to reach a higher ledge. The game encourages you to experiment with the resources around you rather than simply following a marker to your next objective.
It feels like a carefully handcrafted environment, with little details that reward curiosity. You might spot a ledge that looks reachable, a passage that seems to lead somewhere interesting or an object that could prove useful later. Sometimes you’ll find the answer immediately; most times, you’ll need to leave the problem alone and return when you have a better idea. That process won’t appeal to everyone. There were moments when I found myself scratching my head, wondering what I had missed, and the game expects you to bring a reasonable amount of patience. However, when everything finally clicks, those little Eureka moments are immensely satisfying. Combat is present, with enemies such as skeletons providing occasional obstacles, but it never felt like the main attraction. The straightforward first-person fighting does its job, while the emphasis remains firmly on exploration, resourcefulness and puzzle-solving.
Better With A Buddy?
Although I played the game solo, Deep Dish Dungeon supports online co-op for up to three players. I can see this being a particularly good fit for friends who enjoy exploring together, sharing discoveries and discussing possible solutions when they hit a wall. There’s something appealing about the idea of one player investigating a room while another works out how to reach an inaccessible area. With the game designed around observation and experimentation, having someone else to bounce ideas off could make the experience even more enjoyable.
Playing alone does have a few drawbacks, though. Inventory space is limited, and I occasionally found myself making frustrating trips back to storage because I needed an item but had no room to carry it. Having to decide what to keep, what to leave behind and what might prove useful later is part of the survival experience, but it sometimes felt like unnecessary busywork. I also found myself wishing the survival mechanics were a little less prominent. They aren’t especially complicated, but there were times when I’d have preferred to focus entirely on exploring and solving puzzles without worrying about food and water.
A Dungeon From Another Era
Visually, Deep Dish Dungeon is a real highlight. Its low-poly presentation immediately brought back memories of the original PlayStation era, with chunky character models and a first-person perspective that suits the enclosed environments. The dungeon feels claustrophobic in the best way. Dark corridors, hidden passages, and small and sometimes vast rooms create an atmosphere that encourages you to look around carefully. Rather than relying on elaborate visuals, the game makes effective use of its limited style to create a distinctive world. It feels like a game designed with care, where the environment matters, and exploration is the main event. There’s a refreshing simplicity to that approach, even if some of its mechanics occasionally feel a little dated.
Conclusion: Delicious Dungeon
Deep Dish Dungeon is a pleasant surprise. It takes an old-school approach to exploration, giving you the freedom to wander, experiment and figure things out without constantly pointing you towards the next objective. The puzzles and environmental interactions are the real stars here, and the satisfaction of solving something through your own efforts is what kept me interested. The survival mechanics and limited inventory can sometimes interrupt that flow, particularly when playing solo, but they don’t completely overshadow the experience.
This isn’t a game for everyone. If you want clear objectives, regular guidance and a fast-paced adventure, you might find its deliberate pace frustrating. But if you enjoy exploring mysterious places, getting a little lost and slowly piecing together the answers, there’s something worthwhile waiting here. I enjoyed my time with Deep Dish Dungeon, and I’d be interested in trying it in co-op to see how much more enjoyable those discoveries become with a friend along for the ride.
Final Verdict: I Like It a Lot
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