ARENA an Age of Barbarians story

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ARENA an Age of Barbarians story is a single player and multiplayer casual fighting game with violence and erotic themes. It was developed by Crian Soft and was released on September 15, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

A non-stop action game, completely skill based. Immerse yourself into an incredible adventure in a world inspired by the 80s’ Sword & Sorcery fantasy. Frantic action, brutal fighting, monsters, romance, and plenty of Heavy Metal rhythms.

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63%

Audience ScoreBased on 108 reviews

story4 positive mentions

stability6 negative mentions

Fast-paced and skill-based brutal combat capturing classic 80s sword & sorcery vibe with satisfying gore and visceral finishers.
Strong atmospheric presentation with impressive visuals inspired by Frank Frazetta art, complemented by a fitting heavy metal soundtrack.
Multiple playable characters with unique move sets and branching story outcomes increase replayability and player experimentation.

Frequent and severe game crashes severely disrupt gameplay and progress, making it often unplayable for many players.
Clunky, unresponsive, and sometimes inconsistent controls alongside bugs negatively impact combat fluidity and overall experience.
Game design choices such as harsh time limits, limited continues, frustrating death traps, and some unfair enemy mechanics make progression needlessly punishing.

story
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
77%
10%
The story in "Arena: An Age of Barbarians Story" serves mainly as a simple backdrop focused on gladiatorial combat rather than deep narrative development, emphasizing arcade-style action over elaborate plot or RPG elements. While some players appreciate its straightforward, immersive framing and character introductions for upcoming titles, others find it lacking in depth, variety, and adventure compared to its predecessor, noting a short, linear experience with limited modes and minimal storytelling complexity.
- “Arena: An Age of Barbarians Story, developed and published by Crian Soft, is a ferocious side-scrolling action title that embraces the raw intensity of classic sword-and-sorcery pulp.”
- “After a brief cutscene, the story mode (which includes randomly selected opponents and contains a unique story for each of the selectable characters) sees you enter the first of many arenas.”
- “It took me more than 15 hours to clear the story mode with Sheyna.”
- “Khan is a broken piece of trash that is almost impossible to kill without abusing game mechanics, almost 0 story and game can be finished in around 30 minutes.”
- “This game lacks the story, the map, and the sense of adventure that its predecessor had.”
- “Sadly, Arena is too linear of an experience for me, and while Age of Barbarian was no storytelling masterpiece, each level had its own mini-story and unique environment.”
gameplay
29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
76%
10%
The gameplay emphasizes fast-paced, mechanical mastery and intense combat but is marred by clunky controls, technical issues, and unforgiving minigames that can feel frustrating or borderline unplayable. While challenging and sometimes janky, it rewards persistence and suits fans of sword-and-sorcery fighting, though newcomers may struggle with its minimal guidance and difficulty spikes. Overall, despite flaws, the gameplay offers a satisfying, nostalgic challenge with potential for improvement in future installments.
- “It prioritizes mechanical mastery, unapologetic violence, and stylistic intensity over complexity or polish.”
- “The inclusion of these extra game mechanics is pure genius on the developer's part, removing the annoyance of having opponents winning through simply button-mashing or spamming special moves, and should really be a standard in this genre.”
- “It's a great continuation of the ideas in that game, and while it can seem pretty tough at first, in part due to the minimal explanation of new game mechanics (and that 'barbarian brothers' inspired battle will frustrate the button-mashers out there), once you get a handle on things it becomes a hell of a lot of fun.”
- “While the gameplay is faster paced than the original and the controls are slightly different, not to mention the fact the game wasn't designed to be easy to beat, none of these are the culprits for the clunkiness; the game is simply janky in itself and sometimes it's borderline unplayable, especially in the infamous trap rooms.”
- “If you like the original game and sword and sorcery in general, I'd definitely recommend getting a taste of this, but adjusting to unpolished mechanics will give you a hard time, no matter how good you are.”
- “That said, I hope that for the next one (in development) they have incorporated experience and help, because I have nothing to object to regarding the graphics; the gameplay is satisfactory and surprising, but all the games in the series, especially this one and the DLCs, suffer from technical problems that seriously tarnish the gaming experience.”
graphics
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
52%
16%
The game's graphics are widely praised for their bold, exaggerated barbarian fantasy style, vibrant 2D arenas, and striking visual aesthetics reminiscent of classic fantasy artwork. While visually impressive and atmospheric, some users note technical issues and express a desire for enhanced effects like blood splatter to deepen immersion. Overall, the graphics effectively capture the game's campy, intense fantasy vibe and are considered a major highlight.
- “The graphics in this game are stunning.”
- “The various 2D arenas serve as virtual canvases reminiscent of Frank Frazetta's legendary fantasy artwork.”
- “Visually, the game leans heavily into exaggerated barbarian fantasy aesthetics.”
- “Need DLC or new sequel with way better graphics.”
- “With Intel Core i5-6600K 3.50GHz CPU, and an NVIDIA GeForce 1070 graphics card, this game runs horribly, crashing at every instant it can.”
- “Why hide your artwork under that filter?”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
45%
11%
The game's soundtrack features energetic heavy metal and up-tempo rock tracks that effectively heighten tension and momentum, especially during boss fights. It includes memorable vocalized songs and an exceptional arena theme, contributing to an engaging and thrilling audio experience that complements the game's tone perfectly.
- “The soundtrack complements this tone with driving heavy metal tracks that elevate the energy of each encounter.”
- “The music amplifies tension during boss fights and reinforces the relentless forward momentum of the campaign.”
- “The soundtrack consists of suitably up-tempo rock music, with the title screen and credits featuring two fully vocalized rock tracks.”
- “Decent music.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as brutally hilarious, irreverent, and uniquely enjoyable, blending juvenile, dirty, and gory elements with clever references to movies and comics. Its quirky, broken rooms and character-specific reactions add to the comedic charm, making it a fun and entertaining experience despite some odd gameplay mechanics.
- “Brutally hilarious & completely enjoyable.”
- “There's plenty of references to movies, comics, etc. and a unique sense of humor.”
- “Just seeing Rahaan's simple reaction at the end of the arena being entirely unique to him, and nobody else, made me laugh out loud.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from frequent crashes and various glitches that disrupt gameplay, such as screen bugs and enemy-related issues requiring level restarts. While improved from the original, stability remains a significant problem.
- “Does anyone else have problems with the game suddenly crashing or the snake passing you and it glitches out and you have to start all over again?”
- “Second, there are several glitches and crashes.”
- “The amount of glitches also seems to be far lower than the original, which still has a couple that made me have to restart the level (basically I got killed and after respawning the edges of the screen remained in combat, but with no enemy in sight, meaning I was stuck).”
replayability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
Replayability is enhanced by character variety and branching outcomes with multiple endings, encouraging players to explore different paths. The arcade-style spinoff offers short playthroughs with randomized events for some replay value. However, overall replay appeal is limited, especially after completing the game, with some users wishing for more playable characters.
- “Character variety adds replay value.”
- “The inclusion of branching outcomes and multiple endings further reinforces replayability, rewarding those willing to explore different paths.”
- “An arcade-style spinoff of the main Age of Barbarian that takes about 20 minutes for a playthrough but has some replay value thanks to randomized events.”
- “The game is really hard; replayability if you beat it is a 5 out of 100.”
- “An 'arcade style' spinoff of the main Age of Barbarian takes about 20 minutes for a playthrough but has limited replay value despite randomized events.”
- “I think it's a cool game, old-school and fun, but I feel that more playable characters would improve replayability.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is widely praised as flawless and immersive, effectively complementing the game's visuals and art. It sets a strong tone that enhances the introduction to the protagonists and the overall experience, making it a standout aspect of the game.
- “Simply put, the atmosphere is flawless, 10/10.”
- “While the storyline plays second fiddle to the visuals and atmosphere in this kind of game, I really like it, as it serves as the perfect introduction to Yanah and Xodan, the protagonists of the upcoming AOB Chronicles game, which we will hopefully see released soon.”
- “Good concept, atmosphere, and art.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development is praised for its realistic and engaging designs, achieved through a blend of digitization and CGI techniques, resulting in visually impressive and well-crafted characters.

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3h Median play time

3h Average play time

1-4h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

ARENA an Age of Barbarians story is a casual fighting game with violence and erotic themes.

ARENA an Age of Barbarians story is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 3 hours playing ARENA an Age of Barbarians story.

ARENA an Age of Barbarians story was released on September 15, 2017.

ARENA an Age of Barbarians story was developed by Crian Soft.

ARENA an Age of Barbarians story has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its stability.

ARENA an Age of Barbarians story is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

Similar games include Age of Barbarian Extended Cut, RWBY: Grimm Eclipse, Eldest Souls, Slain: Back from Hell, Evil West and others.

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