DUNGEON ENCOUNTERS

Genius minimalist dungeon crawler, I played on the switch when it came out and had a great time

Don't touch me you filthy casual.

It's a turn-based dungeon crawler where your party must explore 100 floors. Each floor is divided into a grid like a Cartesian plane. Each floor has a track (always different, of different sizes) made up of squares (represented by x and y coordinates). Along the track, you can find enemies, treasures, new skills to use in combat or exploration, and shops. There are also puzzles to solve that award additional rewards. The graphics are minimal and there is no story. I found dungeon exploration very fun thanks to the skills I discovered along the way, and it was a nice challenge to explore 100% of all floors. There are a wide variety of enemies that become increasingly stronger the further you go into the dungeon. The fights become repetitive after a while. However, since they are very fast-paced, they don't weigh down the game. Furthermore, at a certain point, they can be avoided. I found the mathematical puzzles quite challenging, while the ones requiring you to locate a specific box using a piece of map were easier. However, they don't block game progression, so you can skip them. I recommend purchasing it because I found it very rewarding to play, particularly for its original mechanics, which are a departure from traditional dungeon crawlers. E’ un dungeon crawler con combattimenti a turni in cui il tuo party deve esplorare 100 piani. Ogni piano è diviso in una griglia come se fosse un piano cartesiano. In ogni piano è presente un tracciato (sempre diverso, di grandezza differente) composto da caselle (rappresentate dalle coordinate x e y). Lungo il tracciato si potranno trovare nemici, tesori, nuove abilità da usare in combattimento o nell’esplorazione e negozi. Inoltre ci sono degli enigmi da risolvere che danno premi aggiuntivi. La componente grafica è minimale e non esiste una storia. Ho trovato molto divertente l’esplorazione del dungeon grazie alle abilità che ho trovato durante il percorso ed è stata una bella sfida arrivare ad esplorare il 100% di tutti i piani. Ci sono una grande varietà di nemici che diventano sempre più forti, più si scende nel dungeon. I combattimenti dopo un po’ risultano ripetitivi. Però essendo scontri molto veloci, non appesantiscono il gioco. Inoltre ad un certo punto si potranno evitare. Gli enigmi matematici li ho trovati abbastanza ostici mentre quelli in cui bisognava individuare una casella particolare tramite un pezzo di mappa sono più facili. Però non bloccano l’avanzamento del gioco quindi si può anche decidere di saltarli. Ne consiglio l’acquisto perché ho trovato molto appagante giocarlo, in particolare per le sue meccaniche originali che si discostano dai dungeon crawler tradizionali.

This game is cool, and feels immense. the abstracted nature of it might be a turnoff for folks who want a more story or personality-driven experience, but if you love that gameplay loop of go in dungeon, get stronger, return to surface, heal and upgrade gear, go deeper in dungeon, get stronger, return to surface, etc, this is for you. and despite the minimalist appearance, there's a lot of cool stuff and funny moments in here, expressed through the gameplay mechanics.

I totally get that initial "empty" feeling on day one, but once you get past the surface, you realize there’s actually a deep tactical layer hiding under the hood. It turns into a high-stakes game of risk management where you’re constantly weighing how much further you can push into the depths before a wipeout forces a long rescue mission. You really have to learn which enemies to avoid (like those early-game Gargoyles or statues that turn your characters into rock) and how to perfectly split your weapons between physical and magical damage to crack different enemy "bars" efficiently. It has honestly become the perfect study companion for me. Because the game doesn't "hijack" your brain with loud cutscenes or constant movement, it stays in the background as a low-distraction tactical puzzle. It’s one of the few games where you can take a few turns, make a meaningful strategic choice, and then immediately jump back into your work without losing your flow. The theme is definitely minimalist, but the character and enemy illustrations are actually quite sharp and have a nice "soul" to them. Ultimately, I’d call this a "hidden gem for boring adults" who need a game that respects their time and brain space. It might not have the flashy environments of a modern blockbuster, but it replaces that fluff with pure, satisfying math and atmospheric tension. If you want something that offers a "sweaty" tactical challenge without the sensory overload of a typical RPG, this is exactly the kind of slow-burn experience that grows on you the deeper you go.

[h1] 日常用語としての「ゲーム」であればこの作品は限りなく Bad に近いでしょう [/h1] ゲームエンジンが処理を行い，その結果を図画として画面に描写し，モニタに映ったそれをプレイヤが見て判断する．これがよくある現代の「コンピュータゲーム」です．誤解を恐れずに言えばこの作品は，ゲームエンジンが処理を行い，その結果が整形されただけのデータをみてプレイヤが遊ぶつくりになっています．その証拠に，例えば店であれば，イベントブックで表示される「内容」に店主のセリフが表示され，一方フィールドでイベントを実行すると即座に売買の選択が始まります．このおかしさに気付き，そして実はおかしくないと納得できる人でなければ，このゲームと向合うことは大変な苦労を伴うでしょう（しかしだからといってそれはプレイヤが悪いという意味ではありません）． [h2] 我々は本当にこのゲームのプレイヤなのか [/h2] 端的に言いましょう．このゲームをプレイするとき，我々は，プレイヤであると同時に，ゲームのカセットないしディスクのリーダの役割を果たします（厳密には違いますが）．床にイベント番号が書いてあるとき，そこで決定ボタンを押下することは，まさしく「当該の番号のイベントを参照し実行すること」と等価です．モニタに映し出された「このマスに居る」「このキャラクタに話しかける」のではなく，「このマスにある」「この会話イベントを実行する」のです．この構造の面白さに納得できる人でなければ，このゲームと向合うことは大変な苦労を伴うでしょう（しかしだからといってそれはプレイヤが悪いという意味ではありません）． [h2] しかし本当にプリミティヴなのか [/h2] とにかくこのゲームでは「プレイヤとしてゲームに向合ってプレイすること」ではなく，「エンジンの一部となって一緒に処理すること」を求められます．これが制作陣の謳うゲームの本質的な面白さなのでしょうが，それにしてはバトル時を中心に演出や音楽が前面に立ちすぎています．ここも削いでしまうと最早商業ゲームとして成り立たないという営業判断もあるのでしょうが，これがかえって「普通のゲームっぽさ」を演出してしまい，Bad評価に繋がっているのではないか？という感があります．「つまらない」「シンプルさを盾に逃げている」とBad評価をされた方は，その点ではこのゲームがSQEXの他タイトルのような雰囲気を纏ってしまったことによる被害者と言えるかもしれません．ゲーム性とゲーム体験でレイヤがずれてしまったのがこの作品最大の弱点ではないかと思われます． [h3] 以上を踏まえて…… [/h3] このゲームで得られるゲーム体験は，本質的には「ゲーム機がモニタに現状を映すまで」の部分を一般化したものです．固有名詞がFINAL FANTASY TACTICSやFINAL FANTASY XIIに寄っているのは，あくまでもその方が「キャラクタ1」や「近接武器A1」よりも親しみやすいからという情けでしかありません．ではなぜ「マリアル」にしたのか．その中途半端さが非常にもったいないです．そして各種問題の異常さ．せっかく他のイベントがゲームエンジンらしい処理の本質を見せてくれているのに，ここでだけ突然モニタの向こうのプレイヤであることを求めてくる．こういった齟齬の積重ねが，私のような「基幹システムが楽しいのに演出が派手」という感想や，それなりに見られる「もう少し世界説明をしてほしいし何をさせたいのか分からない」という感想を生んでしまうのでしょう．

Proving Fantasy of the Mad Sephiroth What if Squeenix took active time battle and early wizardry and mashed them together with as minimalist yet pleasing an art style as they could? You'd get this. I don't think it's worth $30. It is however worth $15 or less.