Arboria
It’s a fun, rogue like 3D game, centered around melee primarily, but with abilities that complement the gameplay and really help switch it up. It borrows a bit of mechanics from some other games, like dark souls - and has 3 different movement setups; light/medium/heavy, where dodging and rolling is slower or not able to be done as often with the heavier variant of armor.
The three “builds” are separated into Toughness, Strength, and Focus. Toughness is intended to be the tankiest, and features disgustingly slow weapons that tend to have enormous reach. It tends to require the usage of heavy armor for stability to stop enemy attacks from interrupting yours (it’s really bad when your very slow/high damage attack isn’t able to connect / keeps getting stopped).
– Real player with 152.2 hrs in game
Read More: Best Dark Fantasy Difficult Games.
EDIT: Release update added a page for info on items so my biggest issue is fixed. They also added in an option for the frequency of Rava’s voice-lines which is another great addition, I actually kind of like hearing them now. Dev team has my praise.
Arboria is probably the best souls-like/rogue-lite game available right now. Admittedly that is not a massive pool of games, but even so Arboria stands out as a delight.
Was curious to see what some of the negative reviews were, since I love the game so much. Saw some clown who shit themselves over there being a ~10 minute tutorial, and someone else made some valid points about a lot of the sound files and cut scenes still being somewhat buggy for a game coming to full release but then ruined it by saying weapons feel like they have no impact. Weapon hits are satisfying as FUCK in this game, and many of the “spells” are as well.
– Real player with 110.2 hrs in game
DARK SOULS™ II: Scholar of the First Sin
I am kind of surprised that I have not reviewed this game yet, Surprise! It’s my favorite of the series. I played DS2 twice as much as I did DS and DS3 combined. DS2 really hit the mark as slower pace, tactical, and methodical combat. I love the variety of viable builds in the game. I love the fashion in the this game compared to the others. I love the community that still plays this game and there are fair number of people on my friends list that I have met through this game.
I’m a a Sunbro at heart and the thing that I love the most about this game is the “Frigid Outskirts”. Growing up in Minnesota, it really made feel like home. I spent a good deal of time throwing my summons sign next to Vengarl of Forossa’s sign in the hopes that the host would choose us both of which they very often did. I would stick to Vengarl’s side like glue and watch his back and he would watch mine. It would be me, Vengarl, the host, and maybe another summons going across the frozen waste. Me trying to keep the host from going the wrong direction or running when the blizzard hits. As long as Vengarl was alive, I would be alive and as long as I was alive, Vengarl would be alive except for the times that he got donkey kicked off of the cliff.
– Real player with 598.4 hrs in game
Read More: Best Dark Fantasy Difficult Games.
After doing this game 100% I can safely say this game is an unfair piece of trash game that just wants you to suffer. The bosses are not the issue I did not find them to be unfair for the most part, yet they definitely are not good, the problem lies in the level design where the developers just decided to spam the same enemies over and over and over to just gank you as much as possible, so you suffer as much as they feasibly could make you because their goal was not to make a game like Dark Souls 1 where the player is supposed to overcome the challenges, the goal of the developers was to make a difficult game completely ignoring the vision of 1 where the difficulty is not the focus heck, even the intro tells you how many times you will die.
– Real player with 144.3 hrs in game
ELDEN RING
THE NEW FANTASY ACTION RPG.
Rise, Tarnished, and be guided by grace to brandish the power of the Elden Ring and become an Elden Lord in the Lands Between.
• A Vast World Full of Excitement
A vast world where open fields with a variety of situations and huge dungeons with complex and three-dimensional designs are seamlessly connected. As you explore, the joy of discovering unknown and overwhelming threats await you, leading to a high sense of accomplishment.
• Create your Own Character
In addition to customizing the appearance of your character, you can freely combine the weapons, armor, and magic that you equip. You can develop your character according to your play style, such as increasing your muscle strength to become a strong warrior, or mastering magic.
• An Epic Drama Born from a Myth
A multilayered story told in fragments. An epic drama in which the various thoughts of the characters intersect in the Lands Between.
• Unique Online Play that Loosely Connects You to Others
In addition to multiplayer, where you can directly connect with other players and travel together, the game supports a unique asynchronous online element that allows you to feel the presence of others.
Read More: Best Dark Fantasy Difficult Games.
Blood Omen 2: Legacy of Kain
!!important note!!
This game has crashed a hell of a lot on my windows 7 PC; it’s just something to keep in mind.
What I liked about the game
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Likable characters, like Uma, who are well voice acted.
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I like how Kain draws blood from his victims.
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Awesome boss fights.
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I liked the Victorian/industrial setting of the game, especially at the start. I liked seeing the chimneys and the steam powered or magic powered machines.
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The puzzles aren’t too head exploding.
– Real player with 23.0 hrs in game
I used to have this game for the PS2, very fun, shorter than the other Legacy of Kain games, but fun. Most people seem to ignore it though, and/or dislike it, but that’s mainly because they probably don’t understand it. It is said this game is not necessary to play to understand the Legacy of Kain story. But it actually is significant, if you pay close attention. There are 2 ways to look at it; Kain’s purpose in this game after the first blood omen game, but before Soul Reaver 1. Then what it means after the events of Defiance. So in a manner of speaking, yes, Blood Omen 2 occurs twice, but seen differently after certain events.
– Real player with 21.7 hrs in game
DARK SOULS™ III
This is one of my favorite games of all time. There’s so much depth, variety of playstyles and builds, plenty to explore and learn about the game, so many weapons to use and play with. Weapon arts are cool, hit boxes are (mostly) really fucking good in pve, and there’s an amazing sense of power in actions done in this game.
A lot of people consider ds3 the fastest of the 3, with faster movements, rolling, stamina usage, ect ect.
In my opinion, this gives your player character a “badassatry” that doesn’t exist in any other souls game. You’ll roll through giant moves, just BARELY dodge a flurry of attacks, and slam the enemy with your 66 strength scaled heavy ultra greatsword.
– Real player with 408.2 hrs in game
Masterful level design, compelling combat and weapon systems. varied and fun magical options. Dark souls 3 is the kind of game that you can replay over and over with different experiences each time. At the surface level, the community can seem toxic, but you can fairly easily get past those people to find the passionate, helpful, and friendly community it has to offer. If you’re looking at Elden Ring and not sure if you want to buy it, try this game first. Take the time to read item descriptions and npc dialogue for an interesting and interconnected story below the surface of it all.
– Real player with 289.5 hrs in game
Heart in the Dark
The story accompanies the alchemist and magician Leonidon on a journey through time.
During a magical ritual a dimensional gate accidentally opens and Leonidon is dragged into the portal and lands in a distant future where machines dominate.
There is a millennia-old conflict in which the machines try to change the planet to optimal conditions, but nature has its ways to defend itself, unfortunately the machines are slowly gaining the upper hand. But when Leonidon appeared in this dimension, he had to realize that he was the last man of flesh and blood. Then he decided to use the last reagents that had been drawn into this dimension to create a sword in a magical ritual that was powerful enough to free the souls trapped in the machines.
Hunted: The Demon’s Forge™
Usually it makes sense to start intros off by talking about an initial impression… Instead I’m going to make a suggestion: Pick E’lara, up the difficulty, grab a fastbow, don’t use cover, and only use the ADS and zoom for the very far away targets. The game becomes a pretty damn good strafe shooter. With that out of the way…
Hunted really does not leave a good initial impression. The gameplay, aesthetic, and presentation is an unfortunate result of that era of gaming that had releases proudly wearing a “I’m Gears of War but with blank” badge on their sleeve. Hunted’s blank is dark fantasy. The end result is a mixed bag of good ideas, clunky implementation and inconsistent polish, Yet somehow is still a really good time.
– Real player with 40.9 hrs in game
Normally I like to finish a game before I review it, but since this game is super cheap during the Steam WInter Sale, I wanted to go ahead and give a brief review while it’s still on sale.
Is Hunted a great game? No. It is fairly medoicre, however I do think it is worth the $1.24 that it is selling for right now.
It kind of feels like I am playing an over the shoulder 3rd person version of Diablo, just not as good as Diablo. The levels are quite detailed and interesting giving an open world feel, but is actually linear except for when stumbling onto secret areas. There aren’t a ton of secret areas (so far) but the secret areas are more than just a room too, and are actually a bit more interesting than the main game. The secret areas actually seem to give the world more life than the main game does. There are also some minor secret areas that require either the barbarian or the archer to open and if one doesn’t happen to be running that character it’s a little wonky figuring out how to open them. Thankfully, the minor secrets don’t hide anything important, just the occasional weapon rack or potions.
– Real player with 27.2 hrs in game
Thymesia
Story
A kingdom once thriving on the power of alchemy enters an age of calamity. After discovering the price behind alchemy, an attempt to stop the use of it backfired. Within a few days, the kingdom was in chaos and the streets infested with monsters.
The key to understanding all of this is in Corvus’ hands, but he has lost his memory. The truth can only be found within his memories, but every time he dives back in, he only finds more secrets.
Features
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Harness the Plague: Seize the disease from gruesome bosses and wield them as weapons. Give them a taste of their own medicine. This is the only way to survive this desolate kingdom.
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Embrace the Raven: Shift into your raven form during battle. Throw your feathers like daggers and execute enemies with the swiftness of a raptor.
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Fight Your Way: Upgrade and modify your basic movements and plague weapons. Build your very own play-style and prepare for the challenges in your way.
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Shattered Memories: Recover your memories through adventures. With different choices you’ve made and items you’ve collected, you’ll get different endings. Stitch together your own truth.
Demonicon
Information / Review English
The Dark Eye: Demonicon is an action role-playing game developed by Noumena Studios.
Gameplay / Story
Two decades before the start of the actual plot, Borbarad, a powerful magician, covered eastern Aventuria with undead and corruption. Borbarad fell during a battle and his demon crown, the symbol of his rule, shattered. The so-called shadow lands emerged from his territory. Various warlords fought for the shadowlands until warriors of the goddess Rondra freed the city of Warunk from necromancers and the like.
– Real player with 30.5 hrs in game
I’ve seen a fair amount of negativity surrounding Demonicon since its release - which is what has kept me away from the game until a recent sale. Having just beaten the game this morning, I feel very comfortable recommending this game to RPG fans, or anyone looking for a unique and enjoyable story.
Demonicon’s strengths lie in its commendable use of The Dark Eye universe, it’s RPG & skill systems, the creative and thoroughly engaging story line, the focus on narrative and characters, and a well implemented choice system that affects the story and game world.
– Real player with 26.6 hrs in game
Shattered - Tale of the Forgotten King
I originally reviewed this game back in early access when it was a beautiful, horrible mess. Combat was floaty with no hitstops, the world was large but completely disjointed and there was no ability to customise weapons or improve them.
I then came back to the game after the major pre-release patch and played it again. By Cú Chulainn’s Gae Bolg the game has been improved massively, far beyond what I would have expected. All my gripes about the early access version pre major patch (and subsequently release), were resolved.
– Real player with 108.7 hrs in game
while the game is touted by some as a “souls-like” i’d rather call it an arpg with tiny souls-mechanics.
combat plays similiarly and you also lose your “currency” when killed by an enemy (and you need to grab it or it disappears), and you also reset mob-spawns at “checkpoints”. you can upgrade your weapons and you got health, stamina and enegry (mana) and a dodge+parry.
but unlike souls the focus is definitly on exploration, lore and plot. combat is functional. it sometimes feels kinda clunky, but it works. combat is also much more accessible for none-pro-players. your character can take a hit and then some. you get enough health-refills, checkpoints are numerous.
– Real player with 35.3 hrs in game