Rust
Rust
Game
Game2024
Duck Paradox
Developer Magic Games
Shoot bouncing bullets in this roguelike precision platformer killing corrupted ducks while searching for Dr. Paraducks’ beloved pet throughout the multiverse! To return to safety you’ll need to tackle difficult-to-master trials, run after run, earning upgrades, while maintaining your sanity! From the Steam store page
156 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Jul 7, 2026 · last updated Oct 8, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
94
LovedLoved
135 positive · 9 negative
95% range 89–97%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 135 | 9 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
171 of 182 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
93% recommend · 138 yes, 11 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 149 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (312 of 328 positive).
Some find the difficulty too high, especially with jumping and bullet hell elements. [1][2][3] The game is noted for its polished design and cute pixel art style. [4][5][6]
Liked
Representative posts
- [2]
90% difficulty of the game lies in the anti-intuitive jumping design. It can be extremely frustrating when I fail at some unexpected point of a stage due to a failed jump, which would not happen in any platformer with a standard jump-design. Interesting design that I get killed by my own bullet, but the jump stopped me from liking the game. 屎一样的跳跃手感，为难而难。设计挺有意思，但是瑜不掩瑕
- [7]
This is an adorable, challenging, must play game! the mechanics are easy to understand, levels are designed so that the newely added features of each level fit in just right. Highly recommend anyone seeing my comment to give it a try, while the experience is short it is packed with enough content and ducks that could satisfy any human being
- [4]
On first glance, the pixel art style looks great on the Steam Deck OLED, some nice effects and vibrant colors. Once you start playing, it becomes quickly very challenging (for me at least), but addictive. It has a feel of a puzzle in motion with the need to keep track of your reflective fire as it cascades around the room, and lots of fun trying to piece together how to improve your tactics. Cool game!
- [10]
While i had a good time with this game and would recommend it, it is by no means something for everyone. As said in the games tags this game is difficult which mostly has too do with the bullet hell nature of it and the weird jumping which seems too be influenced by your horizontal movement speed. I got used too the controls in a few levels but i still dont understand why the jumping is like this. The disco levels …
- [1]
i'm on level 9 and i think i'm about to kill myself, overall good game but its too hard for me
Summarised from 34 of the 161 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 11, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Duck Paradox sits at 94% positive across 144 opinionated reactions from 4 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Reactions
60 of 156 · most liked firstEvery year, despite judging IGF, and spending waaaay more of my time on it than is reasonable or healthy, the finalists come out, and I go "oh yep, yep, yep- wait HOW THE FUCK DID I MISS THAT-" and, it's always a Nuovo game, and This year's is "Duck Paradox": store.steampowered.com/app/2058150/...
neutral · AI labelView post →This is an adorable, challenging, must play game! the mechanics are easy to understand, levels are designed so that the newely added features of each level fit in just right. Highly recommend anyone seeing my comment to give it a try, while the experience is short it is packed with enough content and ducks that could satisfy any human being
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →HIII live raising money for @streamforacause.bsky.social for their Indie Game Parade!!! Come on over while we check out Tombwater and Duck Paradox, annnnd maybe donate to a good cause? twitch.tv/TheRealRascallyGrandpa
neutral · AI labelView post →i'm on level 9 and i think i'm about to kill myself, overall good game but its too hard for me
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I forget where I first spotted this, but I've had it on the watch-list for a while now, waiting to grab it once it finally released. Didn't know much going into it beyond a singular fixation on ducks, but having played it quite thoroughly, I can say I enjoyed my time with it! About my biggest criticism with this is the difficulty with regards to getting the endings isn't as high as I was expecting from the outset. The core of the game involves bringing Quark the duck back to the start of the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a seriously Ducking good time, lots of challenge and varied game play. Do you like platformers? Great! Do you like games with simple mechanics that first ease you in and then challenge you to keep you interested? Great! Do you like projectiles that never disappear and haunt you in your paradoxical nightmares? Great! Like ducks??? I would really hope so, as this game is Ducking full of them.. Stop Ducking this one and give it a Quack. All jokes aside, this is a great game with a lot to…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The villain of this game is my own recklessly shot projectiles that come back to kill me. Cute, pretty, and BRUTAL. Give it a go and feel my pain.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of the most promising games I tried at PAX this year. I played the demo and then turned around and bought it before I left the booth. In a hectic game like this, tight controls are paramount and they already have that on lock. Once you get a feel for it, platforming feels smooth and intuitive. Even in early access, the core game loop is already rock solid. From here forward all they need to add is more variety to levels and (potentially) more power ups to try out. I eagerly look…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very niche audience: precision platformer + roguelike shooter + puzzle lover. I don't know whether that person exists who the dead have in mind, but good luck out there. I think the goal should be explained better, that is to say why do you have to kill the enemies even after saving the duck on the given levels? Also why isn't any progression between "runs". I think the technical part is OK, but the game itself as an experience sucks.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Got to play some rad games at GDEX this past weekend including: ✅ Collapsus from @wraithgames.bsky.social ✅ @midwestgamesco.bsky.social's new slate including Duck Paradox and Hive Jump 2: Survivors ✅ PrimRows from @tursiopsstudios.bsky.social ✅ Mole Maiden from Game Tastie
neutral · AI labelView post →On first glance, the pixel art style looks great on the Steam Deck OLED, some nice effects and vibrant colors. Once you start playing, it becomes quickly very challenging (for me at least), but addictive. It has a feel of a puzzle in motion with the need to keep track of your reflective fire as it cascades around the room, and lots of fun trying to piece together how to improve your tactics. Cool game!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very clever game, deceptively simple but once you get into it you find surprisingly deep gameplay combining a puzzle platformer with roguelike elements in a very unique way. Controls are tight, visuals are very well executed.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Such a cute game, 11 ducks out of 10 🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆🦆
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →IGF 2025 Honorable Mentions: Best Student Game Cards of Heart (GoodMind Games), Duck Paradox (Magic Games / Midwest Games), Lost Garden ( Ori Shany, Yoni Pushett, Ramon Zerem), Perfect World (Michael Overton Brown), Timeworks (Starworks Studios) #IGF2025
neutral · AI labelView post →Good challenge, it was fun to play. I am looking forward for more levels and possible easter eggs hidden paths. Also it would be nice to have steam achievements for dev: At the boss fight in the end the discoball sometimes get stuck behind, when the duck snaps at you.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Duck Paradox is nominated for 2 categories at Gamescom LATAM!!! 🦆Best Student Game 🦢Best Game LATAM To celebrate, we have a message from the Magic Games team! www.youtube.com/watch?v=DiYa... #indiegame #platformers #gamedev
neutral · AI labelView post →After playing this game for 3 hours, I can say it is A LOT of fun. I am new to this style of games, but have definitely learned to develop a joy for them. The game is especially difficult if you try and go for all of the extra eggs, making it a lot harder to complete your run. I would recommend giving this a try yourself and pushing yourself to get all of the extra eggs.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Really fun chaotic platformer. A unique take on the genre which reminds me of a lot of classic arcade games. Definitely recommend giving it a try!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Decline's Drops: Smash Bros style combat with a bit of Megaman X in the soundtrack, whilst piloting a puppet Crow Country: PS1-styled survival-horror game. a little easy, but still a good time Duck Paradox: collect ducks, shoot ducks, BECOME DUCK. Arcade-kinda platformer-shooter, maybe a bit lenient
neutral · AI labelView post →Very good after the full release. The issues I had with the early access version have been resolved, changing it from what was a somewhat fun but rather rage inducing game to a challenging but very fun platform shooter.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →alright im not good at this game at ALL, but lemme tell you: this game is really polished. i love it. please play it
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's actually an interesting concept that your bullets ricochet indefinitly in the room, so every missed shot will haunt you and be a threat later. But as it stands there isn't much more going on in the game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →....................ducking amazing. ⠀⠀⠘⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⡜⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠑⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⡔⠁⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠈⠢⢄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣀⠴⠊⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⠀⠀⠀⢀⣀⣀⣀⣀⣀⡀⠤⠄⠒⠈⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠘⣀⠄⠊⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⠿⠛⠛⠛⠋⠉⠈⠉⠉⠉⠉⠛⠻⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⠋⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠉⠛⢿⣿⣿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⡏⣀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣀⣤⣤⣤⣄⡀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠙⢿⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⢏⣴⣿⣷⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡆⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠈⣿⣿ ⣿⣿⣟⣾⣿⡟⠁⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⢢⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢸⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⣿⣟⠀⡴⠄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠙⠻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣄⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿ ⣿⣿⣿⠟⠻⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠶⢴⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣿ ⣿⣁⡀⠀⠀⢰⢠⣦⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⢀⣼⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡄⠀⣴⣶⣿⡄⣿ ⣿⡋⠀⠀⠀⠎⢸⣿⡆⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⣴⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⠗⢘⣿⣟⠛⠿⣼…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Back to the Future, produced by Amblin Entertainment (founded by-- remember this, it's important --Steven Spielberg), is still to this day hailed as the best paradoxical media the world has ever seen. Since then, we have yearned to beat this, only to fail each time. We, the paradox community, have lost approximately 38 years of sleep merely trying to invent something worthy. Back to the Future II was less than Al Dente, and part III was more spaghetti western. After all this time, many people…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hey man! I’m not sure if this counts as you may have already played it but Duck Paradox is a game I did some additional sound design on it alongside Adam Brown. I feel like I’ve seen you play 2D platformer before… store.steampowered.com/app/2058150/...
neutral · AI labelView post →Here we go again in our never ending quest to save ducks "accidentally" sent into a time flux or something? #indiegame #duckparadox #pngtuber https://twitch.tv/infinitemetal https://kick.com/infinitemetal
neutral · AI labelView post →Hey, I know you said one person can claim only one game but no one commented yet. So, Can I get Duck Paradox too? I will not mind if you deny.
neutral · AI labelView post →Really fun game. Slo-mo mechanic is perfect game design. Exploding a room filled with ducks gives me the funny chemical. -------------------- The last level was quite a difficulty spike for how long the boss charges, making me panic and mis-time the jump. I have a bias against variable jump height so don't take my words for this one. Double jump somewhat makes up for it however.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →While i had a good time with this game and would recommend it, it is by no means something for everyone. As said in the games tags this game is difficult which mostly has too do with the bullet hell nature of it and the weird jumping which seems too be influenced by your horizontal movement speed. I got used too the controls in a few levels but i still dont understand why the jumping is like this. The disco levels are very hard which mostly has too do with the ball feeling very unpredictable…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I’m not too into sidescrollers, but this is pretty solid for what it is.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →pro game to play when you think all other games are boring
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →could use more ducks
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Nice bullet hell platformer. The jumping feels kinda inconsistent, but overall a nice game. -[url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/43914013-Free-Game-Amasser/]Free Game Amasser
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is one Bullet Hell i will probably never play again, dying 20 times within the first few minutes not from enemies but my own bullets that bounced off a wall and killed me. This might be entertaining for some but definitely a HARD pass for me. Also the game wasn't designed with a controller in mind, the controller are very odd feeling and will force you to use the mouse and keyboard.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It was a fun game. The bullets were really well designed, I enjoyed it very much. Can't wait for the full release! 8/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Be ready to die... Overall it is a good game you will need to be very good at your jumps and dodging your missed shots as you play through the game. I would love to have this get controller support it would make this much easier to control. EDIT: The devs added controller support and added a rouge system. I like the changes made and can't wait to see the next modes that they may add.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Beautiful experience creating it with such awesome people!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Going to take on some Disco Ducks tonight in Duck Paradox! Probably going to do some other stuff too. How long is a game about time loops anyway? #duckparadox #indiegames #pngtuber https://kick.com/infinitemetal https://twitch.tv/infinitemetal
neutral · AI labelView post →THIS TIME I'm really playing Duck Paradox, probably! First playthrough, know very little about this indie game, but it has Ducks and Time Travel or something so lets GOOO! #indiegames #duckparadox https://twitch.tv/infinitemetal https://kick.com/infinitemetal
neutral · AI labelView post →Not bad. Short gameplay, but good if you just quickly want something new for half a day.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very fun experience that I intend to play more of with super unique and fun gun play. Although it does have some faults, namely the alt weapons feel very overpowered and take away from the feeling of calculating plays and consequences of bad execution. Also after the first 2 loops through the game the balance feels very player heavy where you can kind of just turn off your brain for every level. But otherwise this game is really something special and anyone into bullet hell type games should…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is a LOT more than the sum of it's parts! The bouncing projectiles make it stand out by forcing the player to not spam, and to be a lot more deliberate with their shots. The upgrades completely change the way the game is played, so many possible strategies! There are SO MANY SECRETS! It's incredible! Why are there so few reviews? This game is one of my favorites this year!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's an awesome game, also I was lucky to get it for free. To be fair, sucks to be you if you haven't gotten it during it's pre-release.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you want a honking fun time and you're good at platformers, you'll love this game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good fundamental gameplay that is really innovated on well.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lovely game, I had the game in my library for the longest time while it was in Early Access, and only just realized it fully launched, I was expecting to pay for it, but it was free for me. The only thing I think should be changed is ricochet physics (only a few bounces before the bullet disappears) but its your game. Keep it up!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I would reccomend this to anyone who likes platformers/shooters, it's a brilliant game and the devs work very hard on it
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was not sure what to expect but I enjoy checking out Indies. This was a fun, unexpected rogue-like. I ultimately like the friendly fire mechanic, it makes you have to earn the shots you take, blind fire would be too easy. Working my way through this. Good time though, worth checking out for folks!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Need more of this game in my life ASAP, but by the looks of things they haven't worked on it in over a year. Extremely fun, tight, and aesthetically pleasing proof of concept EDIT: BIG UPDATE DROPPED... we're so back
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →cute duck 10/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →What's not to love about this game? The Mechanics work great, The gameplay is a nice balance between easy and difficult at times. The duck(s) is/are cute and surprisingly. I have not encountered a single bug. It costs you nothing to check this work in progress out. The development is steady and updates improve the experience. [Steam Deck]: Works perfectly out of the box. If Proton 7 doesn't boot it, try Experimental. Basic WASD and Mouse controls work without issues, especially if you are…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →No foul play please, this game is eggcellent!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very fun and cute game!! Cant wait for more
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was surprised at how funny yet challenging this was. It's a simple, but really good concept for a platformer. I wasn't able to make it past level 6? I just couldn't figure out that one, so I gave up. But the rest was good. Also, controller support is not the greatest, but mouse/keyboard had a lot of balanced control. Just an observation, I'm sure this will be sorted out one way or the other. I uploaded a video of my impressions and early access test. Best wishes.…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A lovely short game with ducks. incredible.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I keep shooting my self accidently
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →it's a fun game if you know what you're doing
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →i discovered secrets while playing but cannot figure it all out but also this game was frustrating because i would always get killed by my own bullets
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Watched Flightless Sloth play this game on youtube and just knew I had to go and play it for myself. It is a great game. Simple and fun mechanics that make for an enjoyable platforming shooter that all fans of the genre should play. Additionally, there are ducks in this game! What could be a better game?? Quack Quack!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great challenging 2D platformer with an interesting mechanic: your bullets ricochet and can hit you if you miss your target. This gives you a penalty for missing the target, so I think it's a really well implemented mechanic. It is also not an easy game, but it is fair. If you lose, you know it's your fault, not the game's fault. Overall pretty fun and enjoyable :)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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