Arhaekon

[h1] TLDR [/h1] Billed as a dungeon crawler, Arhaekon suffers from imbalanced gameplay and other design issues. Hopefully this will be addressed in the full release, but the extent of reworking will be considerable. [h1] Intro[/h1] I feel like I have preface all new reviews with my expectations of games in Early Access. If as a game developer, you release a (free) demo, wanting to solicit valuable feedback (as opposed to paying game testers) to enhance the progress of the game, I would totally understand if the current version was lacking in design, content, and overall polish. If however, you decide to charge for the game (yes, I know we all have bills to pay, but expectations change when money is involved), that’s a whole new ballgame. I would expect a firm-ish game structure and design, informed by a development process that’s been thought through, and somewhat tested; I would also expect more content (at least a chapter or two, worth a few hours’ gameplay, to enable reviewers to get a clear sense of the game), and a basic introduction to the game universe. And yes, I understand that there will be room made for improvement and changes. Still, with the above context in mind, unfortunately, Arhaekon fails to meet my expectations. After starting a new game, you are thrown straight into the dungeon to begin crawling (note that this is in real-time). There is no brief blurb or explanation as to what you’re doing or why, or what the devil an “Arhaekon” is. I’m fine with creating a game universe but how about explaining the names and the jargon? Ok, let’s get to the nitty gritty. [h1] Likes [/h1] [b] + The actual mechanics of moving around and pathfinding is decent, with few issues. [/b] [b] + The atmosphere and lead character are suitably eerie and aligned with the game concept [/b] [h1] Dislikes[/h1] [b] - Apart from the lack of background to the story / purpose / objective, currently there is nothing in the game that would bind or attract a player to keep it (and not get a refund). You play a wraith-like character flitting around the screen, collecting stuff, wayfinding, and getting ambushed by enemies. Where’s the appeal? Why should I care? These questions are currently not addressed. [/b] [b] - Battle is turn-based, and extremely simplistic. Once it commences, You’re transported to a grid-like map with limited actions. You can attack, but not really move; you can only swap spots on your side of the grid. There is no realistic line of sight mechanics, use of cover, pause/delay turn, etc. In other words, very limited tactical options are available [/b] [b] - Combat is also seriously imbalanced. You and your team are almost always outnumbered, outmatched, and have limited options to heal before battles. Thus far, there is only one difficulty setting, and it has rogue-lite type features, so no save / loading is possible; this means you’re unable to try / experiment with a different approach, and have to replay the entire mission from scratch when you are killed (and you will be killed often). [/b] [b] - This imbalance does a serious disservice to the game, since players will be so frustrated by now, getting killed repeatedly by OP and numerous enemies, that they will entirely stop playing and uninstall the game post-haste (I know I did). [/b] [b] - After clearing a level, you are brought to a “base” where you can perform some actions. I’m assuming these actions will be expanded as the game grows, but currently there’s little you can do here except recruit cannon fodder for the next battle (i.e. weak team members) for the inevitable death awaiting. Your recruits are seriously weak, and not at full health. The June update states that they have more health, but I haven't re-installed the game just to check this [/b] [h1] Undecided [/h1] [list] [*] How serious are the issues I mentioned above? Well it depends how much the game can be re-designed at this stage. The issues are not insurmountable, but would involve considerable time and work to address. [/list] [h1] Verdict [/h1] At this point, given that players have to pay for a game in this state of early access, I could not recommend Arhaekon. There are other games in the turn-based (combat) universe that are in EA, but are far more playable (for an excellent example, see the Trese Brothers’ Cyberknights). If you really want to try this game, I would suggest waiting until a few more updates / patches have been released; otherwise, just go visit the crowded (and highly competitive) pool of Steam candidates and pick another to spend C$20 on. 4.0/10.0

[b][i]This is a tactical turn-based dungeon crawler with roguelike elements. Explore procedurally generated dungeons, defeat enemies in turn-based battles, and gain experience and items for craft to increase the power of your minions.[/i][/b] You can select units for your squad, equip them with amulets (augments) and heal them in the camp. You then choose a dungeon and set out on an adventure. The game has 12 units of four classes. Each of your units has experience and unique abilities. You cannot change weapons and class, but you can increase characteristics with amulets (augments) and rituals. You do not need to kill all enemies. Your goal is to collect loot and return to camp. You can find knowledge pages, recipes, and crafting items in chests. You can find statues and perform rituals in some rooms. The game does not encourage hoarding: there is a small inventory and storage. You need to constantly ensure that there is free space, and use or destroy unnecessary items.

We control a materialized spirit that carries out its affairs in this world. We are looking for various useful things, managing squads in tactical battles and exploring this world where each passage can be unique. The game reminded me a lot of the Diablo series and the Heroes of Might and Magic series, but at the same time it is not like them. There are many different possibilities that need to be understood and explored. It will be interesting to watch the development of this game and I really hope that detailed manuals and other languages ​​will be added to further immerse the world of the game and understand what is happening for everyone. The community of players will grow, and then maybe we’ll get to multiplayer games.

[h3]Good[/h3] [list] [*]Does not bother you with reading dialogs/watching cinematic/making story-related choices. Game makes you do what it is supposed to: play. [*]No billions of useless stats like elemental resistances. [*]No ambiguous stats like strength, which gives whatever stats devs thing it should, just raw direct stat hp/dmg/crit increase on level up. [*]Moving in a turn based games is a big mistake that does nothing, but consumes time. This game understands that perfectly. [*]Sound is good [/list] [h3]Bad[/h3] [list] [*]Do you use your players' CPU to farm bitcoin? Why does this game loads it so hard? [*]Lacks skills description. The first tutorial encourages you to hover over hero stats to read info. Okay, I hover over a stat and what do I see? "Shields affinity". Perfect! Don't dev understand, that no one in the world knows what it is? Especially in your game, please care to add some meaningful description. [*]What is corruption? Dare spend some time to write proper description instead of spending time for writing useless text in notes that are found in the game, which no one reads anyway. [*]Character treating mechanic from Darkest Dungeon (that gladly they got rid of in 2nd part of the game). I already have 6 chars to manage, I don't want to put them to treatment for every 2 turns and manage another 12 to play with meanwhile. Also, the idea of "world turns" which pass only if you embark on a quest is stupid itself, why can't you just skip it? [*]Clerics do nothing, their only heal spell could be cast only every 3 turns because of exhaustive mana cost. They just chill on the backline, skipping turns the rest of the time. [*]Moving through dungeon rooms is boring and should be instant. [*]Craft is meaningless, you just combine potion with items to get the same potion with slightly randomized stats. [*]No inventory system, just potions and some ugly looking charms with pointless stats, like +1hp. [*]Game looks like early alpha in terms of interface [*]Animations are very slow, pauses between turns are too big, need a slider to make this 5-10 times faster. [*]Why promoted units has worse stats (initiative) than their former version? [*]Augments are destroyed upon extraction, this is a bias of 90s games that does nothing, but makes them more grindy and not fun, it should be freely removed from character with no penalties [/list] [h3]Bugs[/h3] [list] [*] Some potions are not working, it is said they should e.g. heal 16% corruption, but consuming them does nothing. Also, the overall idea of corruption is again stolen from the darkest dungeon and exists only to stop you from playing your party and create another one for several turns. This is literally a counter fun feature, and mistake of DD game, that unfortunately spread to other titles. [*]Characters just hit/heal for 1 dmg if there is an enemy 2+ level above them present on the battlefield. [*]Any full HP character regardless of build, even tanks, could be one-shot by the same or even lower level enemy at the 1st turn of the battle. [*]Martyric sacrament skill does nothing but sets caster hp to 1. [*]Enemies on the map may not disappear after you defeat them, resulting in endless fights. [*]Character can disappear from party upon mission completion. Yes, full hp one, not dead. [*]If enemy is killed by ranger's (marksman's, they don't even know how their characters are called, and have different names in different menus) intercept skill, the battle is stuck, because dead unit will try to perform action that was intercepted ;D [/list] [h3]Conclusion[/h3] Could be nice, but requires a lot of changes/fixes. Don't buy, but definitely add to wish list.

Nice atmosphere and dark vibe. The battles are turn based, so they need some consideration and strategy, but it's a really good challenge, especially with perma death of units. But don't worry you can go back to your last save if you loose your favourite ;) The levels are generated each time so this keeps the game fresh and interesting. Fun and nicely developed game especially for it's early stages. It has lots of potential, I highly recommend if you are into turn-based strategy games :D

While playing, the thing that stood out to me the most were the dark visuals, the atmosphere really pulls you in. The turn-based combat is very punishing yet rewarding with permadeath making every decision count. You manage a small squad through procedural generated dungeons, using strategy, positioning, and resource management to survive. Between runs, upgrading your camp and crafting gear adds a deeper layer of progression and the eerie, music fits the tone perfectly. If you're into tactical roguelikes with a grim tone, this one’s definitely worth playing.

The game is designed for the cream of the top players, with a nice, lively, and compelling setting. I have to confess, it has been a challenging play for me from the very beginning. I like how you can feel it while exploring the dungeons and world. The little bits of lore are intriguing and well-written, and the game’s concept seems to take you on quite a story. From the pieces discovered so far, I could not figure out too much; it is a kind of mystery box in a locker from a hidden wall of a secret cellar of a house in darkness of a huge forest in the middle of nowhere. The graphics are well done, though some improvements are needed in terms of lighting and shadows. At least for my taste, it is difficult to see in some areas, especially if you are wearing glasses. The sounds and music are what they need to be, and they flow well with what you are doing in the game. When it comes to windows popping up, honestly, I missed the first ones, as one appears after the previous one on the right side. (Tip for you: if you read this, just know that you ignore them at your own risk.) I am still polishing my combat skills. I am not sure if I can cover everything because sometimes I just die very quickly, and I can tell you that quite well in advance. I have to go deeper to understand if that’s a planned feature, requiring a black belt in RPG turn-based combat to survive. I tried to see what others are doing, but so far, in the videos I found, they are collapsing even quicker than me, which has already increased my self-esteem in this field. It might not be a bad idea at all to have a kind of level-tutorial where you see the possibilities of the game without being punished. Despite minor areas for improvement in UI/UX, initiating ritual, balancing, and onboarding, the game’s unique design, mechanics and atmosphere hold great potential. All in all, I find the game intriguing, a top-quality beginning, much higher than your typical early access, at a decent price.

First impressions are positive and remain so for a while. It's a dark world, as intended, with good music and sounds. Visuals are at AA/AAA level, leaving other areas behind. You can get lost in the many intro options, which can be overwhelming. The difficulty level at the start is probably too high, but I expect balancing will come later. You repeatedly lose before understanding winning. There's a lot of content, and you can easily spend tens of hours in the game world, with castles, vaults, running from ghosts, fighting, blocking, attacking, refugee camps, dungeons and dungeons again.

it's a deep party RPG in dark fantasy setting with turn-based combat mechanic. You should form party and clear dungeons (loot & escape are main priority but you can try to beat all enemies), between those runs heroes can have a break in base camp. You can't focus on certain party-units since there's 'corruption' mechanic which will force you to purge warriors sometimes, after injure you need to make medical procedures which meaning those units also will be unavailable for a run until you clear X dungeons. Glad you did a wide graphic settings with nice lock at 30 FPS option but there's lack of gameplay settings like difficulty / damage & resist regulation.

Very interesting game with unique mechanics that can take a while to grasp but feel satisfying to explore