Kingdom of Night

I think Kingdom of Night is mischaracterized as an ARPG in the Diablo vein. Sure, it can be kind of loot heavy, and there’s somewhat if a skill tree (with comparatively little customization option tbf once you have your class locked in), but the action is very rudimentary and the gear you pick up as well. The pixel art-style, basic combat, some (yes, basic) adventure elements as well as the isometric POV actually seeks more inspired by a different sort of vintage: I could not shake off the feeling that I was playing a lost third game developed by Dreamforge Intertainment, who made two very similar style games in the early-mid 90s for SSI: Veil of Darkness and The Summoning. Not that is a bad thing for the most part. I have enjoyed my time with KOTN thus far. The 80s era aesthetic it is going for is right on point. Anyone nostalgic for that specific era would find lots to like here. The synth-heavy music is also on brand. It also has a very 80s horror/sci fi story to navigate through, which really would not be out of place in a VhS you’d rent from your local Blockbuster for the weekend based just on the catchy cover art alone. The action can and does get QUITE repetitive though, and the game world could’ve used some tightening up, as there’s lots of backtracking through large empty spaces as the game opens up as you progress. If you can handle the risk of boredom setting in around midway through, this is a really nice diversion, particularly if you’re fond of a very specific era in time. I am, so it worked for me mostly, warts and all. 7.5/10

[h1]🤘Незабутня нічка🤘 [/h1] [b]Kingdom of Night[/b] - це буквально суміш [b]Stranger Things[/b] та олдскульного RPG-вайбу, яка залетіла мені максимально кайфово. Пройшов майже на одному диханні! По сюжету тут класика: настав кінець світу, і вся ця пекельна каша має розрулитися буквально за одну ніч. Наш головний герой опиняється в епіцентрі з купою демонів і тонною квестів [b]Що прям дуже порадувало:[/b] [list] [*]Бойовка - це топ. Коли починаєш комбінувати скіли, чисто ловиш флешбеки і відчуваєш себе Інвокером з Доти [u] (рекомендую брати саме чаклуна, бо я грав за некроманта, що теж ок, але чаклун може перетворятись у орла і швидко відкривати мапу)[/u] [*]Однокласники!! Реально порадували - всі абсолютно різні, живі, і кожен має свою унікальну особливість (дехто супер адеватний, а дехто галімий лох) [*]Повага до часу геймера. У гри купа різних кінцівок, але розробники не змушують тебе перепроходити все це діло 6 разів. Спокійно завантажуєш попередній сейв і дивишся інші фінали [/list] [b]Але без душноти не обійшлося:[/b] [list] [*]Напівпорожня мапа. Світ реально величезний, але деякі шматки локацій тупо порожні. Там немає жодних квестів чи цікавих NPC - просто бігаєш і зачищаєш пачки монстрів... [*]Деякі квести відверто душили і буквально форсили тебе робити речі, яких у реалі гг міг би спокійно уникнути, враховуючи весь арсенал його здібностей [/list] Загалом - гра мені дуже зайшла. Концентрований мікс ностальгії, крутої магії та демонів

This game looks like a no brainer to me : Diablo, Weird 80s Horror John Carpenter / Stranger Things vibe... But really, it's awful. I can't deny it is a work of love, but everything but the setting sucks. Combat is awful, boring and repetitive. UI is bad and nothing makes sense. Builds and Loot are unexciting... and worse of all, the game is EXTREMELY chatty. Like a lot. SO MUCH unskippable stuff I don't care about. Ho and you'll spend an awful amount of time running around empty maps trying to figure out what to do next, which I HATE in Hack'n Slash games. A large open world is only interesting if there are things to do in it. Not running around aimlessly. This game is a mess that doesn't know what it tries to achieve and sucks at everything. That's a real shame.

Fun pixel action rpg adventure game with Stranger Things vibe. This is one of those games that once you pick it up, you have to try really hard to put it down. Only problem i had with this game is playing with a friend, the loot is not shared. Just whomever picks it up first.

Pros: Art, music, atmosphere, plot. All there. Cons: Gameplay. After 3-4 hours, game gets boring until the very end. Melee is too repetitive. Don't know about magic, though. 'Skill tree' is more like a 'skill straight line'. Maze-like locations that take forever to navigate (sewers, i'm looking at you). Some quest targets are not on map, therefore easy to miss (found Fred by sheer luck). Conclusion: RealIy want to post a postive review. Alas, it is what it is.

This game snatches defeat from the jaws of victory. Everything seems like such a good idea, everything looks great at first glance, but you play for a few hours and realize it just doesn't come together. The writing has a perfectly pulpy small-town, teenage-drama kind of setup into a supernatural mystery only to fail completely to capitalize on it in any way - and even if what little writing there is was great, it gets drowned out by gameplay. Sigh, the gameplay - it is just bad. Tedious, slow grind through enormous hordes of completely unthreatening enemies, using a barebones combat system with no feeling of oomph to any moves or spells, and all that while navigating frustratingly empty maps and picking up tons of meaningless loot. This being a somewhat niche product, I thought the kind of players that buy it would be more exacting about their reviews so I was doubly surprised. Overall I'd say I regret the purchase, but I will spare a glance for whatever devs cook up next.

This game is the unholy lovechild of Baldur’s Gate 3 and Diablo that snuck out the back while Stranger Things was babysitting. Combat’s real-time, not turn-based, so quit clutching your dice. Tiny heads up on the controls: there’s a separate button to flip into Attack Mode and the targeting could use a touch of polish, but honestly after 20 minutes you’re used to it and you stop caring because the rest is just that good. Smashed the entire game in splitscreen co-op and got so hooked it should be a controlled substance. The graphics, music and levels are dripping with love, and this absolute banger from a small studio deserves way more eyes on it. Devs: make a DLC. Or let me build on this thing myself, I am begging you ;)

Pixel art, Stranger Things/80s aura, low price point; I expected a simple, decent to mediocre indie game -- instead I was constantly surprised at the quality and depth. The dialogue is clever and, at times, quite funny. The class and stat system is fleshed out for a hack and slash. The magic wielding option is radically different. The world/areas are massive from what I was expecting. Some quests require some thought. Some exploration/dungeons can feel lengthy and tedious, but the chapter boss sections all are very different experiences. The real standout, though, is the story. It could've been trite and straightforward. Instead we are anchored by recognizable characters going through chaos rooted in mystery. The mystery unfolds at a commendable pace to a surprising level of complexity in depth, lore, and themes. Despite the stakes raising, it keeps the story grounded of your teenage character centered on his peer group. There's themes that are not new, but the overall architecture of the story is incredibly original. Strongly brought back memories of Crono Trigger and FF7.

Neat action-RPG game with pixel graphics, 80's suburban America setting with demons and zombies. Overall, I enjoyed the game in general. Positives: - Good and interesting characters - Good dialogue - Interesting story (starts cliched, then goes deeper than expected) - Good graphics and fine music - Also, nice length Negatives: - Most of the combat is pretty repetitive. Only played as a Paladin, had a very straightforward combat mechanics. - Some bosses are good, some are pretty easy and boring - A lot of backtracking - A lot of quality-of-life improvements are missing, weak inventory management, no comparison of items, difficult to track some quests. - Very few save slots (why there are save slot limits to start with)