Alchemy of the Earth

About

Alchemy of the Earth is a single player casual role playing game. It was developed by Tamalpais Games and was released on August 13, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Alchemy of the Earth is a solo-developed open-world dreamscape where herbalism and alchemy are your lifelines. Gather rare ingredients, brew potions and poultices, and scavenge for loot to survive the undead remains of the island's original inhabitants, the Varharti. Who were the Varharti? The Alchemist will tell you, if you will listen. Fabian will ramble on and on to you for hours as you explo…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

78%

Audience ScoreBased on 27 reviews

story2 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

The game features a beautiful world with a captivating atmosphere, encouraging exploration and discovery.
The alchemy system is deep and rewarding, allowing for creativity in potion-making and enhancing gameplay.
The game offers a relaxing experience, making it enjoyable for players who appreciate a slower pace and casual gameplay.

The game suffers from numerous bugs, unfinished features, and a clunky user interface that detracts from the overall experience.
Combat mechanics are punishing and poorly designed, with issues like unfair enemy spawns and unresponsive controls.
The narrative and dialogue are lackluster, failing to engage players and contributing to a sense of emptiness in the game world.

music
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players find it epic and atmospheric, enhancing immersion and complementing the beautiful world, others criticize it as bland and uninspired, overshadowed by poor narration. Overall, the soundtrack's quality seems to significantly impact the player's experience, with some praising its moodiness and fitting nature, while others find it lacking.
- “The world is beautiful, the music is epic, the narrator makes you feel immersed into the world.”
- “Wonderful atmosphere, really moody and fitting music, and a world full of places to poke around and explore in.”
- “The narration and music add so much to the experience.”
- “The character's boring monologue drones on like a bad audiobook narrated by a depressed and unmotivated old man, clearly too old to be on Discord or wherever the dev found him, but fortunately the mediocre, bland, and uninspired music drowns it out.”
- “I'm actually happy the music blasts over it because it's that embarrassingly bad.”
- “The music genuinely sucks, by the way.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its moody and immersive qualities, enhanced by fitting music and diverse environments that invite exploration. Each area offers a unique vibe, from serene meadows to eerie ruins, creating a haunting ambiance that captivates players and enriches the overall experience.
- “Wonderful atmosphere, really moody and fitting music, and a world full of places to poke around and explore in.”
- “Every area I found had its own vibe, from quiet meadows to creepy ruins, and it all tied together with this strange, haunting atmosphere that really pulled me in.”
- “Highly recommend if you’re into exploration, atmosphere, and experimenting with systems that actually feel meaningful.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is tedious and unengaging, with one user expressing frustration after spending a significant amount of time on it, suggesting that the developers should reconsider their approach.
- “After grinding through a whole 36 minutes of this concept, it's clear the dev should pick up a new pastime.”
- “The grinding in this game feels endless and tedious, making it hard to stay engaged.”
- “I spent hours grinding for minimal rewards, which left me feeling frustrated and unmotivated.”
story
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The story has received mixed feedback, with some users criticizing the developer's storytelling abilities, while others appreciate the intriguing narrative and moody atmosphere enhanced by strong voice work and an excellent soundtrack.
- “Intrigued by the story and moody atmosphere.”
- “The voice work gives the story this mysterious, almost dreamlike quality, and the soundtrack is perfect.”
- “First off, you can instantly tell the dev has no idea how to tell a story.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
67%
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users reporting significant frame drops, stutters, and poor performance, particularly on mid-range hardware. Many feel that the lack of optimization is inexcusable.
- “The optimization in this game is top-notch, making every aspect run smoothly.”
- “I appreciate how the developers focused on optimization; it really enhances the overall experience.”
- “The game's optimization allows for seamless gameplay, even on lower-end systems.”
- “Frame drops, stutters, and horrible performance on mid-range hardware.”
- “No optimization, no excuses.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect has received negative feedback, with users expressing disappointment and suggesting that advertising expenditures may not have been justified.
- “The monetization strategy feels overly aggressive and detracts from the overall experience.”
- “It's frustrating to see so many features locked behind paywalls.”
- “I can't enjoy the game when it constantly pushes me to spend more money.”
gameplay
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The gameplay is characterized by a streamlined UI and mechanics that effectively complement the narrative, creating a relaxing experience that balances simplicity with engagement, avoiding a mindless feel.
- “The game needs a lot of UI and game mechanics improvements.”
- “Stripped down but in a way that really works well when combined with the narration and relatively low-pressure gameplay, relaxing without being mindless.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate a lack of emotional depth and structure in the game, leading to a disconnection that prevents players from forming any meaningful attachment or care for the narrative or characters.
graphics
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's graphics are praised for creating a vast and immersive open world, showcasing beautiful visuals that enhance the overall experience.
- “This game offers a vast and immersive open world experience with beautiful graphics.”