An Ankou

About

An Ankou is a single player action game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Alkemi and was released on August 17, 2023. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"An Ankou" is a fast-paced action roguelike where you play as the servant of Death, tasked with ushering souls from the land of the living while battling demons. With multiple professions to choose from, each with unique items and skills, and random events scattered across the maps, each playthrough offers tons of replayability. As the Ankou, collect resources and souls to craft weapons, upgrade, and survive in this haunted open environment.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

74%

Audience ScoreBased on 474 reviews

gameplay40 positive mentions

grinding12 negative mentions

The game has a unique gameplay style that blends time-sensitive exploration, farming, crafting, and combat, making it engaging and fun.
The art style and music are top-tier, creating an immersive atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.
Despite being in early access, the game offers several hours of enjoyable content and has a solid framework with potential for future updates.

The game feels abandoned, with no updates for several months, leading to disappointment among players who see its potential.
Many players find the gameplay loop repetitive and lacking in variety, with limited progression and unbalanced mechanics.
The combat system can be frustrating, as players often feel overwhelmed by enemy waves without sufficient means to upgrade or craft effectively.

gameplay
114 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
60%
5%
The gameplay is a unique blend of crafting, resource gathering, and action-oriented combat, offering an engaging loop that many find addictive and fun. However, some players feel it lacks depth and variety, with certain mechanics feeling underutilized or tedious, leading to a somewhat repetitive experience over time. Overall, while the game shows promise and has a solid foundation, it may benefit from additional mechanics and balance improvements to enhance player satisfaction.
- “Gameplay-wise, it offers something different within the genre; it blends resource gathering and crafting with the standard bullet heaven horde fighting to make something more involved and unique, creating a very satisfying gameplay loop.”
- “The gameplay feels smooth, balanced, and incentivizes players to explore and craft more.”
- “An excellent stylish spin on the survivors-like genre, with some survival and crafting elements that are smoothly integrated into the gameplay rather than being a distraction.”
- “The gameplay loop feels like it is missing a mechanic or two that would flesh it out and make it a bit more fun.”
- “Killing enemies will not upgrade your character; you need to gather and craft for that, which leads to a dull gameplay loop.”
- “In theory, a survival crafting mix with action roguelite and survivors style gameplay should be a slam dunk, but somehow this game manages to muck it all up with awful and clunky combat, incredibly slow and frustrating progression, and super tedious meta progression.”
music
98 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
41%
6%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its dynamic and immersive qualities, effectively ramping up in intensity alongside gameplay challenges, which enhances the overall atmosphere. Many players describe the soundtrack as fantastic and well-composed, with some wishing to download it for personal enjoyment. However, a few critiques mention repetitiveness in the music loops, suggesting that while the music is generally praised, there is room for improvement in variety and length.
- “The soundtrack deserves an honourable mention as it dynamically increases in intensity together with the game's threat level, which means the tempo gets higher as the screen gets flooded with more and more monsters.”
- “The music and sound effects complement the game world perfectly, immersing players completely into the experience.”
- “A thoroughly enticing roguelite, challenging, beautiful art style and the music is pure chef's kiss.”
- “The dev's idea of building up tension is to start playing the background music louder and louder until your speakers burst.”
- “I'm not a fan of the music in this game either, but tastes differ.”
- “Shit music, annoying mechanics but interesting game and concept; will keep trying but definitely a rough diamond.”
graphics
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
44%
6%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their top-tier quality and unique hand-painted aesthetic, which stands out in a genre often dominated by simpler art styles. Reviewers highlight the beautiful color tones, polished visuals, and meticulous attention to detail, creating an engaging atmosphere that enhances gameplay. While some sprites may deviate from the original style, the overall visual experience is considered a significant strength, with potential for further improvement as more content is added.
- “The overall quality is top tier, the art style is a real standout among similar games with simpler art styles, featuring a beautiful hand-painted aesthetic by someone who knows what they are doing.”
- “The visuals were crafted with such finesse; it was as if the artists had poured their heart and soul into the project.”
- “The handcrafted visuals are a testament to the artistry and meticulous attention to detail that the developers poured into every pixel.”
- “This game, for some reason, really eats up your graphics resources even though it may not look like it.”
- “No targeting mechanism, no graphical change for gear, etc...it's a long list, but I would say the potential is there for a positive!”
- “[b]Graphics:[/b] most seem to fit the game's style perfectly, but content is still being added, and some sprites branch further from the original style than others.”
atmosphere
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The atmosphere of "an ankou" is highly praised for its stellar music, captivating visuals, and effective sound effects that enhance the overall experience. Reviewers note that the art direction and emotional depth of the game create a compelling environment, making it a must-play for fans of atmospheric and visually stunning games. While some suggest adding more visual flair to upgrades, the current atmosphere is considered well-executed and immersive.
- “The atmosphere, music, and visuals are great.”
- “While it is limited currently, the music for the game is really stellar and sets an amazing atmosphere for the game.”
- “It perfectly complements the game's atmosphere, evoking emotions that enhance the overall experience.”
replayability
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
62%
19%
Overall, players have mixed feelings about the game's replayability. While some appreciate the viability of all classes and weapons and find the survival mechanics engaging, others criticize the limited content and lack of build variations, suggesting that the current offerings may not sustain long-term interest. However, there is optimism for future updates that could enhance replay value.
- “All of the classes and weapons are playable/viable even on 25 darkness.”
- “An actual survival game where you gather material and fend off waves of mobs, and the replayability is surprising.”
- “It may be light on content, but we can see the outlines for many more features, and it should have plenty of replay value.”
- “Just want more replayability on it than just achievements.”
- “Because the game feels very limited in replayability.”
- “"lack of build variations", "lack of replayability" listen, the game never advertised such things.”
grinding
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's grinding mechanics receive mixed reviews, with some players finding the crafting and farming aspects enjoyable under pressure, while others criticize the slow progression and tedious meta elements. Overall, those averse to grinding for meaningless achievements may find the game lacking in content, offering only 2-3 hours of engagement.
- “Tedious mechanics.”
- “In theory, a survival crafting mix with action roguelite and survivors style gameplay should be a slam dunk, but somehow this game manages to muck it all up with awful and clunky combat, incredibly slow and frustrating progression, and super tedious meta progression.”
- “If you are not a fan of grinding meaningless achievements, you'll get about 2-3 hours of content out of the game.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
Overall, the game's optimization is inconsistent, with solid performance on PC but significant issues on the Steam Deck, where it struggles to maintain 30 fps. Users have reported choppy performance during recording and streaming, indicating that further improvements are needed for a smoother experience. While there are opportunities for better optimization through gameplay progression, the current state leaves much to be desired.
- “Performance is great on PC, but on the Deck, it was under 30 fps. Not sure why, hopefully, they fix it down the line as this game would be a fantastic game for on the go.”
- “I tried recording and streaming with this game and the result was choppy, so performance-wise they still have a ways to go.”
- “I have completed the first map so far on the first character; you unlock new maps, difficulty modes, levels, and items for better optimization.”
story
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The story revolves around completing altar quests for spirit friends who assist players in crafting and gathering materials while fending off enemies. Currently, there are three replayable missions that involve farming, item improvement, and boss battles, culminating in map completion. Overall, the narrative serves as a backdrop for the game's core mechanics rather than a central focus.
- “In short, basically you enter the game, farm and improve your items, complete missions (killing bosses) and will complete the map.”
- “You complete altar quests for spirit friends, up to two currently, that can protect you when you craft or gather materials from swarms of enemies.”
- “3 replayable missions at current early access.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a deep emotional connection to the game, appreciating its mechanics while feeling disheartened by the studio's decline and negative perceptions of the game as an "early access scam." This sense of loss and frustration is compounded by ongoing issues that have led some to abandon the game entirely.
- “The game is really good; it has great mechanics, but the studio is dying, and it's heartbreaking to see people calling it an 'early access scam.'”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game demonstrates strong stability, with users reporting smooth performance on Linux systems.
- “Also runs great on Linux.”