Alchemist's Castle
- November 2, 2017
- kabukgames
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io StoreIn "Alchemist's Castle," players explore a 2D side-scrolling world inspired by classic Metroidvania games, with the goal of stopping a power-hungry alchemist from using the philosopher's stone. The castle is filled with secrets to discover, adding a non-linear element to the old-school platforming experience. As the former apprentice of the alchemist, players must use their skills to survive and complete their mission.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
Linux
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- The game offers a fun and quick metroidvania experience, with enjoyable puzzles and tight platforming controls.
- It features decent artwork and animation, providing a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic games.
- At its low price point, the game delivers good value for a short playtime, making it a satisfying choice for casual gaming sessions.
- The game suffers from various bugs and technical issues, including unresponsive controls and collision detection problems.
- Many players found the final boss fight to be frustratingly difficult and poorly designed, detracting from the overall experience.
- The game is quite short, leading to concerns about replayability and depth, with some players feeling it lacks substantial content.
- story27 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The story is primarily conveyed through journal entries and collectible scrolls, which some players find engaging while others consider it tedious and poorly presented. While the narrative unfolds through exploration and backtracking, it can feel disjointed and lacks depth, with many suggesting that additional cutscenes or character development would enhance the experience. Overall, opinions are mixed, with some appreciating the story's potential and others finding it simplistic and unremarkable.
“The music might be a bit repetitive, but it is more than decent and you can even learn to love it. The story, which is unraveled bit by bit by collecting hidden notes, is quite nice; I especially love the fact that it is written both in the past and present.”
“It has nice music, and a satisfying story that I enjoyed unraveling out of order as I explored the castle, reading back through in full once I'd found all the story pieces.”
“The 43 scrolls scattered all over the map describe the story from the perspective of both the alchemist and apprentice, and the obligatory boss fight at the end provides a conclusion to that story.”
“The story had some potential, but it's told through boring text and could use a twist at the end.”
“The background story is told through various collectible scrolls found through exploration, and they can get somewhat redundant towards the end due to how things are written.”
“Once you get into the meat of the game, however, these notes start to feel a little disjointed, because you aren’t necessarily finding the pieces of the story in the proper order.”
- graphics20 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the decent artwork and nostalgic retro pixel art, while others criticize the simplistic and outdated visuals that lack variety and depth. Although there are options to adjust resolution, many feel that these do not significantly enhance the overall graphical quality. Overall, the visuals are described as adequate but not exceptional, with some noting that they do not detract from the gameplay experience.
“This is a lovely little puzzle-platformer with cute graphics that remind me of the original Prince of Persia.”
“The graphics are atmospheric, there are some light puzzle-solving elements involving getting from point A to point B within some of the rooms, and there are some optional/extra power-ups to be discovered.”
“Graphics are great and the controls are responsive.”
“A choice was made to use obsolete, decades-old retro pixel art as a substitute for contemporary PC graphics.”
“While there are options to change the resolution for the game, all this does is scale up the simplistic 2D art assets used to make the game, which makes little or no difference to the graphics quality.”
“The graphics are a complete mess and make 'Top Banana' look sophisticated.”
- gameplay19 mentions
- 37 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 16 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating its straightforward mechanics and enjoyable puzzles, while others criticize its lack of polish, janky controls, and generic design. Although it offers a short but fun experience for its low price, the game suffers from issues like unresponsive controls and a flawed jump mechanic, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. Despite these shortcomings, some players find the platforming elements and level design to be engaging, making it a decent choice for fans of the metroidvania genre.
“You're probably not expecting more than 4-5 hours of gameplay here, but those are 4-5 hours well-spent.”
“Smooth platforming mechanics.”
“Simple but effective metroidvania game, short and sweet with an amazingly low price tag, there's a few puzzles with a neat storyline and gameplay that feels like a lot of care and attention has been applied.”
“Maybe some potential but comes short in almost every aspect of the gameplay.”
“Gameplay is extremely poor Castlevania stuff with a painfully generic plot, where you jump around various single-screen maps and wonder why you spent thousands of bucks building a bleeding-edge gaming rig so you can look at 1990's pixel crap ripoff games.”
“It's janky and unsatisfying to play... and any experienced gamer will tell you, the handling, responsiveness, and general gameplay feel of the control scheme must be well polished for this kind of game to succeed.”
- music11 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 9 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its decent quality and ability to enhance the storytelling experience, while others find it repetitive or lackluster. Overall, many agree that the soundtrack is enjoyable and complements the gameplay, though opinions vary on its overall impact.
“It has nice music, and a satisfying story that I enjoyed unraveling out of order as I explored the castle (and reading back through in full once I'd found all the story pieces).”
“Pretty short but fun metroidvania with a nice soundtrack and some great potential!”
“It also has great music, visuals and gameplay, all for a very cheap price.”
“You are thrust into the world with blaring music; you get your world info from scroll pickups, and it's not engaging at all.”
“The music is horrible.”
“I don't mind that the combat is nonexistent for the most part, and the music is lackluster at best.”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in Alchemist's Castle is generally described as having a mix of heart and charm, with graphics that contribute to its ambiance, though some reviewers find it to be merely average. The game features light puzzle-solving elements that enhance the overall experience, but opinions on the music and graphics suggest they do not significantly elevate the atmosphere.
“Alchemist's castle is a 2D side-scrolling metroidvania-style game with a lot of heart and atmosphere.”
“The graphics are atmospheric, there are some light puzzle-solving elements involving getting from point A to point B within some of the rooms, and there are some optional/extra power-ups to be discovered.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game is criticized for its short length and limited replayability, which may deter players from returning after completing it. Additionally, the need to adjust controller settings further complicates the experience.
“The game is pretty short and lacks replayability, which is disappointing.”
“There isn't much incentive to replay the game after finishing it.”
“The limited content makes it hard to justify multiple playthroughs.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users report significant stability issues, indicating that the game is plagued by numerous bugs that affect gameplay. Overall, the consensus suggests a frustrating experience due to these persistent technical problems.
“How buggy can a game be... 'yes'”
“The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
“I experienced constant lag and glitches that ruined the experience.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players generally find that the grinding aspect of the game is not tedious, as backtracking is implemented in a way that keeps the experience engaging rather than frustrating.
- humor1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is consistently described as funny, suggesting that it effectively engages players with its comedic elements.
“The humor in this game is absolutely hilarious, with clever jokes and witty dialogue that kept me laughing throughout.”
“I love how the game incorporates humor into its gameplay; the quirky characters and absurd situations are a delight.”
“The comedic timing in the cutscenes is spot on, making even the most mundane tasks entertaining.”
