It’s been a hot minute since we’ve seen a brand-new game from Goichi Suda, better known as SUDA51. With No More Heroes 3 dropping back in 2021, fans have been waiting years to see what kind of beautifully unhinged project he’d cook up next.
Enter Romeo Is a Deadman—a loud, neon-soaked, genre-mashing fever dream that feels like SUDA firing on all cylinders again. It’s weird, messy, funny, frustrating, stylish, and unapologetically itself. The real question isn’t whether Romeo Is a Deadman is good… it’s whether it’s your kind of good.
Gameplay & Story
First things first: SUDA51 games are not for everyone. Never have been. You either bounce off them hard or you fully surrender to the madness. Romeo Is a Deadman proudly continues that tradition.
The story is, by any traditional standard, an absolute mess—and that’s kind of the point. Trying to make sense of it in a linear, logical way is a losing battle. Instead, the game dares you to just roll with it, absorb the vibes, and enjoy the absurdity as it comes at you at full speed.
If I were allowed to rename the game, it would be something like “Romeo vs. Juliet: Back to the Future of the Walking Dead in Space”, and even that wouldn’t fully capture everything going on here. Time jumps, undead enemies, sci-fi nonsense, melodrama, and fourth-wall-winking chaos all collide into a story that’s more about experience than explanation.
On the gameplay side, things are much more immediately satisfying. Combat is fast, flashy, and relentless. You’re constantly carving through waves of enemies—often zombies—while juggling melee attacks, special abilities, and over-the-top finishers. It’s not the deepest combat system you’ll ever play, but it’s stylish, responsive, and consistently fun.
Boss fights are where the game really flexes. These encounters are big, dramatic, and packed with spectacle—complete with wild designs and memorable personalities. Even when the mechanics aren’t doing anything revolutionary, the presentation alone keeps these fights exciting.
In short: if it feels chaotic, excessive, and slightly unhinged, that’s because it’s working exactly as intended.
Graphics & Design
Visually, Romeo Is a Deadman is unmistakably SUDA51. Neon colors explode off the screen, character designs toe the line between grotesque and hilarious, and the whole game feels like it’s daring you to look away.
It’s bright. It’s twisted. It’s violent in ways that are sometimes shocking and sometimes cartoonishly funny. If you already love SUDA’s aesthetic, this is going to feel like coming home. If you don’t? This game will do absolutely nothing to change your mind.
One standout element is how the game occasionally leans into horror. Sudden bursts of gore, unsettling imagery, and tonal whiplash give Romeo Is a Deadman an edge that keeps it from feeling too silly. It’s not full-on horror, but it’s enough to keep you uncomfortable in the best way.
There are also sections that switch visual styles—most notably pixel-art-inspired areas. These are fun at first and conceptually cool, but their novelty wears thin faster than the game expects.
Feedback
Critiquing a SUDA51 game is always tricky, because so much of what might be considered “flaws” are clearly intentional design choices. Romeo Is a Deadman knows exactly what it wants to be—and it refuses to compromise.
That said, not every idea lands equally well. The pixel-art sections, while charming initially, start to feel like speed bumps after a while. What begins as a neat stylistic detour eventually turns into something you’re just trying to get through to return to the main action.
Similarly, some of the sub-space traversal and backtracking can feel unnecessary. There are moments where you’re moving back and forth through areas without much added payoff, and it slightly drags down the pacing. The game thrives when it’s pushing you forward at full throttle, and those slower stretches feel more like filler than flavor.
Still, these issues never fully derail the experience—they just keep it from being as tight as it could’ve been.
Final Verdict
Romeo Is a Deadman is SUDA51 doing exactly what SUDA51 does best: making a game that refuses to meet players halfway. It’s loud, messy, stylish, and intentionally alienating in ways that make it genuinely difficult to ever give one of his games a perfect or extremely high score. These aren’t designed to be universally appealing—they’re designed to be unapologetically SUDA.
That said, as a longtime SUDA51 fan, I had an absolute blast with Romeo Is a Deadman. The chaotic storytelling, over-the-top combat, and neon-soaked absurdity all clicked for me in the way his games often do. It feels like a creator fully comfortable making something weird for the people who get it, and I think other SUDA51 fans will feel right at home here too.
If you already love his work, this is an easy recommendation. If you don’t, this probably isn’t the game that’s going to change your mind. And honestly? That’s kind of the point.
If you’re in the mood for something a little more focused—but just as stylish—be sure to check out our Nioh 3 review, where we break down its refined combat, brutal difficulty, and why it continues to set the bar for modern action RPGs.
