Abyssal

About

Abyssal is a single player strategy game. It was developed by DigiPen Europe-Bilbao and was released on July 19, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Abyssal is a 3D turn-based strategy game where a Monk, wielding arcane magic, must battle hordes of Eldritch-like creatures with the help of his minions. The story revolves around two brothers, Alaric and Archivald, destined to inherit the leadership of their cult. However, Alaric's greed led him to attempt to kill Archivald to seize all the power, forcing Archivald to flee while his subordinates…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

75%

Audience ScoreBased on 24 reviews

gameplay4 positive mentions

stability3 negative mentions

Abyssal offers a solid and engaging story centered around a revenge plot, enhanced by a dark, atmospheric setting and impressive creature designs.
The turn-based tactical combat requires strategic thinking and offers depth, making it enjoyable for fans of the genre, especially considering it's a free game.
The game is well-optimized, runs smoothly, and features appealing visuals and thematic music, showcasing the effort put in by the student developers.

The game is short, lasting only about an hour or two, leaving players wanting more content and depth.
There are significant quality-of-life issues, including clunky controls, unskippable cutscenes, and a lack of save features, which can frustrate players.
The user interface and camera controls are problematic, making navigation and targeting abilities cumbersome, which detracts from the overall experience.

gameplay
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
23%
33%
Gameplay reviews highlight a mix of innovative mechanics, such as using magic and minions, but are marred by significant issues like a buggy UI and frustrating enemy spawners. While some players appreciate the design and animations, many feel that the gameplay lacks polish and fails to meet high standards, ultimately detracting from the overall experience.
- “The mechanic of using magic and minions to fight your way through actually requires some brain power.”
- “I like the idea, the gameplay, the design, and the music.”
- “The game mechanics are also pretty cool, especially the Ananas brothers, even though I was not great at using those two.”
- “The design and music is somewhat okay, so thumbs up for the designers, but the gameplay and mechanics, along with the buggy mess of the UI, make this unplayable, sorry.”
- “The enemy spawners were pretty annoying; as soon as that mechanic was introduced, I stopped trying to clear each map and instead planned out how to protect the main character Archivald as I used him to run to the exit.”
- “On my side of things, and after spending so many hours working on this, I can't help but see the visual errors and some little 'bugs' (to call them that) that pop up throughout the gameplay - hopefully you newcomers and your fresh eyes don't even notice.”
graphics
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
49%
13%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews; while some praise the visuals, art style, and overall aesthetic as impressive, others find them merely passable and lacking in comparison to top-tier games. Overall, the visuals are appreciated but are seen as insufficient to elevate the gameplay experience.
- “I love the visuals!!”
- “The ambience and aesthetic are really well achieved, and the character designs are great.”
- “It's a nice student project with good visuals and audio.”
- “The graphics in this game are passable, but could be better.”
story
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
The story revolves around Archivald, a monk returning to confront his brother Alaric in a blood feud, featuring themes of rivalry and pacts with abyssal creatures. While some reviewers appreciate the focused narrative and its engaging elements, others criticize the storytelling quality and minimal depth, suggesting it may not be sufficient for all players. Overall, the story is seen as solid yet simplistic, fitting for a short game experience.
- “The story centers on two warring brothers and their feud, involving a pact with abyssal creatures.”
- “In an era of $70 games filled with microtransactions, playing a tight, focused story made by students who clearly love the genre is a breath of fresh air.”
- “The story actually keeps you interested.”
- “The UI, storytelling, and character introductions are straight up bad.”
- “Minimal story.”
- “The little bit of story that's here is fine; it works, and you don't exactly need a ton of depth for such a short game.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
20%
40%
The music in the game has received positive feedback, with many users praising its thematic quality and overall contribution to the atmosphere. While the design and cinematics are also noted as strong points, some players feel that gameplay issues overshadow these elements. Overall, the music is appreciated for enhancing the game's style and setting.
- “The setting and creature designs are pretty cool, the cinematics are fairly well done, and the music is great.”
- “I really enjoyed the music and style, and I really appreciate the effort to translate the game into Basque (although it's a little rusty and needs more than a few corrections).”
- “The design and music are somewhat okay, so thumbs up for the designers, but the gameplay, mechanics, and the buggy mess of the UI make this unplayable, sorry.”
- “I like the idea, the gameplay, and the design and music.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game is mixed, with some users appreciating its overall completeness compared to typical free student games, while others report significant issues such as buggy controls, unskippable cutscenes, and a frustrating user interface that detracts from the experience. These problems lead to a perception of the game as unplayable for some, overshadowing its positive aspects.
- “The design and music are somewhat okay, so thumbs up for the designers, but the gameplay, mechanics, and the buggy mess of the UI make this unplayable, sorry.”
- “The fact that I couldn't save my progress, that there is no way to skip cutscenes and tutorials when you start anew, and that the controls are pretty buggy—sometimes you have to click somewhere before they work again or you have to tab out of the game—made the experience way more annoying and frustrating than it had to be.”
- “I usually go into free student games expecting a buggy mess or a half-finished tech demo, but Abyssal actually feels like a complete, thought-out experience.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
100%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its killer design, featuring genuinely creepy creature designs and visually impressive environments that stand out for an indie project.
- “The atmosphere is killer: the creature designs are genuinely creepy, and the environments look great for an indie project.”
- “The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth needed to immerse players in the game world.”
- “Despite some interesting concepts, the overall ambiance is dull and fails to evoke any real emotion.”
- “The environments are repetitive and fail to create a sense of tension or excitement, making exploration feel tedious.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers appreciate the game's straightforward monetization approach, contrasting it with the prevalent trend of expensive games laden with microtransactions. The focus on a well-crafted narrative by passionate developers is seen as a refreshing change in the current gaming landscape.
- “In an era of $70 games filled with microtransactions, playing a tight, focused story made by students who clearly love the genre is a breath of fresh air.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its impressive optimization, especially considering the likely limited development time, as it runs smoothly even on lower-spec systems that typically struggle with similar projects.
- “I like to check out student projects whenever they look even remotely interesting, and most stress out my computer when the specs on the store page imply that shouldn't be an issue. It was nice to find one that seems to be pretty optimized despite what I'm sure was a short development cycle.”