Ancient Kingdoms

About

"Ancient Kingdoms" is a classic 2D RPG that pays homage to the genre's golden age, with a rich and immersive world to explore. Choose from 6 classes and various races, and embark on a vast journey filled with secrets, ancient ruins, and formidable enemies. The game is designed to be accessible to newcomers while offering depth for veterans.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

86%

Audience ScoreBased on 36 reviews

music3 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

The game offers a nostalgic MMO experience with a fun community and engaging co-op gameplay, allowing for up to four players.
The developers are highly responsive to player feedback, frequently releasing updates and improvements, which shows their dedication to enhancing the game.
There is a wealth of content to explore, including numerous quests, dungeons, and a variety of character classes, making for an enjoyable open-world RPG experience.

The game is not well-suited for solo play, as many players find it challenging to progress without teaming up with others.
Inventory management is cumbersome, with limited space and a lack of sorting options, making it difficult to manage items effectively.
There are several technical issues and balancing problems, including clunky combat mechanics and unresponsive enemy engagement, which can detract from the overall experience.

story
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
54%
23%
The story is described as engaging and reminiscent of classic questing in MMOs, featuring a variety of tasks such as defeating enemies and collecting items. However, players express frustration with certain gameplay mechanics, such as the tediousness of inventory management and the need for backtracking, which can detract from the overall enjoyment of the narrative experience. Despite these issues, the game is noted for its rich storytelling and immersive world.
- “Single/multiplayer, co-op, much loot, story rich, ultra low system requirements, everything is here.”
- “Very fun game in the style of classical quests and MMO.”
- “Story: good”
- “It's kind of weird that I was able to interact with an object that is required for the next quest, despite not having the quest itself.”
- “I feel like I want to stop playing until this issue is solved in some way; it makes exploration tedious and instead of having fun, you are forced to carefully manage your inventory space, completing one quest at a time and traveling back to the city to store and sell items.”
- “Quests consist of killing a few mobs, reporting back, killing a few more, reporting again, talking to someone to get another quest, and then killing a named enemy that requires a party.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
45%
27%
The gameplay is generally enjoyable, featuring straightforward mechanics and a classic MMORPG structure with a focus on the holy trinity of roles and a rewarding level grind. However, players have noted issues with broken mechanics and a lack of clarity on certain gameplay elements, which can detract from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, the game offers a blend of nostalgic and modern elements, providing a meditative and engaging exploration experience.
- “General gameplay is fun and progression feels (mostly) good.”
- “The gameplay itself is heavily inspired by classic MMORPGs in that you have the holy trinity (tank, DPS, healer), a meaty level grind, and a large world to explore that may suddenly surprise you with an ultra challenging boss in a low level area that you may decide to return to later when you've geared up your character more or perhaps find a group of friends to help out.”
- “It’s a fantastic blend of classic MMO vibes and modern gameplay.”
- “Each class's gameplay is straightforward to its standard RPG fantasy.”
- “I don't think that was of much importance, but it kind of sucks that you cannot go back and check that later in case you forgot something about basic mechanics.”
- “There are still a lot of broken mechanics, and when I pointed out that things weren't working, I was met with 'well this is how it should be and it should be working,' rather than accepting that there may be something still broken.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding in the game to be a mixed experience; while some appreciate the MMO-like depth and enjoy the grind as part of the gameplay, others feel it makes exploration tedious and inventory management cumbersome. The need to frequently return to town to manage items can detract from the fun, but many still find satisfaction in the grind, especially for those seeking a chill RPG experience.
- “I feel like I want to stop playing until this issue is solved in some way. It makes exploration tedious, and instead of having fun, you are forced to carefully manage your inventory space, completing one quest at a time and traveling back to the city to store and sell items.”
- “The amount of grinding required in this game is reminiscent of MMOs despite it being a single-player/4-player game.”
- “18 hours of grinding, I was able to buy a horse for around 8k, but only have a couple grand after that.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its nostalgic and relaxing qualities reminiscent of classic titles like RuneScape. However, some users have reported issues with the music controls, specifically the inability to turn off the loud music, which detracts from the overall experience.
- “I enjoyed the music; it reminded me of RuneScape back in the day.”
- “Pleasant music and sounds.”
- “Nice relaxing and ambient music.”
- “The game is quite good, but there are a lot of bugs. First of all, I couldn't turn off the loud music. As soon as you press the Esc button, it automatically turns back on.”
graphics
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
75%
The graphics of the game are highly praised for their retro style, combining old-school aesthetics with modern execution. Players appreciate the catchy visuals and the overall atmosphere, highlighting the appealing pixel art that enhances the gaming experience.
- “Loved the visuals; the atmosphere is decent, and there's something catchy about the game that I can't quite put my finger on.”
- “Superb game with awesome old-school graphics style recreated in a modern way.”
- “Nice pixel graphics.”
- “The graphics feel outdated and remind me of games from the 90s.”
- “While the gameplay is enjoyable, the graphics are a major letdown, lacking detail and polish.”
- “The retro graphics might appeal to some, but they feel too simplistic and uninspired for a modern game.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
50%
The game's atmosphere is praised for its captivating visuals and a nostalgic retro style reminiscent of 80s and 90s games, creating a unique and engaging experience that resonates with players.
- “Loved the visuals, decent atmosphere; there is something catchy about the game, and I'm not sure what it is.”
- “The retro style and atmosphere of games from the 80s and 90s is fantastic.”
- “The retro style and atmosphere of the game remind me of the classic games from the 80s and 90s.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The early access release exhibits notable technical issues, including significant performance drops to 20 fps in certain areas, although some players with similar hardware report no such problems.
- “The early access release has some obvious technical issues, with performance dropping to 20 fps in certain areas, while others with similar rigs experience no issues at all.”
- “Optimization is severely lacking, making the game unplayable at times due to frequent frame rate drops.”
- “Despite having a decent setup, I often encounter significant lag and stuttering, which detracts from the overall experience.”