{"id":1648964,"date":"2026-07-30T14:31:48","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T14:31:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ApHFdsicD2DtnNiAeeKgDE"},"modified":"2026-07-30T14:31:48","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T14:31:48","slug":"guillermo-del-toro-is-asking-for-a-slightly-more-forgiving-dead-cells-checkpoints-and-all-for-the-elderly-players","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcader.org\/news\/guillermo-del-toro-is-asking-for-a-slightly-more-forgiving-dead-cells-checkpoints-and-all-for-the-elderly-players\/","title":{"rendered":"Guillermo del Toro is asking for a slightly more forgiving Dead Cells, checkpoints and all, ‘for the elderly players’"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I drip-feed roguelikes into my gaming schedule: one too many total resets and my brain could break beyond repair. I always knew this wasn’t an unusual approach but I didn’t ever think it would be an opinion I’d share with one of my favourite filmmakers, Guillermo del Toro. But the world is a strange place. <\/p>\n

Thanks to a new interview with IGN<\/a> we now know that Guillermo del Toro isn’t just a gamer, and one with excellent taste I may just add, but also a fan of Dead Cells<\/a>\u2014with a small caveat. <\/p>\n

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“Dead Cells was really interesting to me, I just hate respawning,” Guillermo del Toro explains. “You get 35 levels in and then you start again, you get faster, but please do a version without respawning for the older, for the elderly players. I’m available, you contact me and send it to me, please I beg you. Because I like the world, great design.” <\/p>\n

It may go against the entire point of a roguelike\u2014and Dead Cells’ very specific promise of “no checkpoints”\u2014but honestly, I get it. Some of the best worlds in videogames exist in roguelikes, they can be so beautiful to wander through, while also being excruciatingly painful. <\/p>\n

Dead Cells isn’t the only good example of this, there’s also Hades, Noita, Wildfrost, and Binding of Isaac, among many, many <\/em>others. So the idea of having an easier way to explore and experience these worlds does sound pretty nice, although I do also think the difficulty is what makes exploring these games so rewarding. <\/p>\n

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Other than suffering through Dead Cells, del Toro also shares the other games which hold a special place in his heart. “BioShock is a world I could get lost in for ages,” alongside Journey and Monument Valley. “I love Left 4 Dead, Death Stranding made me cry, Shadow of the Colossus made me introspect about so many untangible things.” <\/p>\n

Hell yeah, excellent choice Guillermo. Shadow of the Colossus is one of my all-time favourite games, its setting, musical score, boss design, and subtle story are all absolutely outstanding\u2014it’s one of the few games I always love to replay. <\/p>\n

All of the above are pretty standard del Toro games, but then he throws in something of a last minute curveball: “Every day of my life, every moment I have free I’m still playing Angry Birds\u2014I’m really good at it.” You know what, hell yeah again. I remember Angry Birds as being a good bit of fun back when I played it a lifetime ago. I’m glad someone’s still finding joy in it, I guess. <\/p>\n

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