Arknights

About

Arknights is a single player survival role playing game with fantasy and science fiction themes. It was developed by Studio Montagne and was released on January 15, 2020. It received positive reviews from players.

Through the darkness, we see light

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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85%

Audience ScoreBased on 10,000 reviews

story1.8k positive mentions

grinding833 negative mentions

Beautiful graphics and character designs that enhance the overall experience.
Engaging and challenging gameplay that requires strategic thinking and planning.
Very free-to-play friendly, allowing players to progress without spending money.

The sanity (energy) system is too restrictive, leading to limited playtime.
Repetitive grinding for materials can become tedious and time-consuming.
The story presentation can be lengthy and sometimes confusing, making it hard to stay engaged.

story
3,335 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54%
42%
4%
The story of Arknights is widely praised for its depth, engaging narrative, and well-developed characters, often described as dark and thought-provoking. Players appreciate the intricate world-building and lore, which enhance the overall experience, making it feel more like a visual novel than a typical mobile game. However, some critiques mention that the story can be overly verbose and slow-paced, with lengthy dialogues that may detract from the gameplay experience. Overall, the combination of a compelling story, beautiful art, and strategic gameplay makes Arknights a standout title in the gacha genre.
- “The story writing is brilliant, the atmosphere, the lore, the world, the characters, the music, the backgrounds, the dialogues... just perfect.”
- “I've been playing it for two years and there isn't an event or main game portion I've seen that hasn't had wonderful theme and story.”
- “The story is deep and the side stories are amazing.”
- “You rarely see characters move in the story presentation and the sounds are very few and very monotonous; there are no visual effects for explosions or things like that, which can be acceptable at times but inevitably makes some parts of the story not as impactful as they could be.”
- “The story is poorly translated, making the dialogues confusing and difficult to follow.”
- “The story is a bit slow at first, but it becomes amazing after the world is fleshed out.”
gameplay
2,487 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
39%
3%
The gameplay of Arknights is widely praised for its strategic depth and engaging mechanics, combining tower defense elements with unique character abilities that require thoughtful planning and execution. Players appreciate the game's challenge, which remains accessible even for free-to-play users, as well as its generous gacha system that allows for meaningful progression without heavy financial investment. However, some players express frustration with the repetitive nature of grinding and the limitations imposed by the sanity system, which can hinder gameplay flow. Overall, the game is recognized for its beautiful art, compelling story, and a gameplay experience that encourages creativity and strategy.
- “The gameplay is challenging, even with guides, but overcoming the challenges is such a satisfying experience.”
- “Gameplay is great if you don't hate tower defense and the story is amazing as well, also one of the most f2p friendly gachas out there.”
- “The gameplay is fun and engaging, and the story is captivating, making it a great experience overall.”
- “The gameplay is often frustrating due to the fact that it actually requires some strategy and brain power to play.”
- “The gameplay is simple but can get repetitive, especially when grinding for materials.”
- “The gameplay is a tower defense type, but it can feel tedious and lacks variety after a while.”
graphics
1,012 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
72%
26%
2%
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their stunning artwork and character designs, showcasing a variety of styles that enhance the overall aesthetic experience. Players appreciate the high-quality visuals, smooth animations, and the game's ability to maintain a cohesive art style throughout, making it visually appealing and engaging. However, some users have noted issues with in-game graphics during battles, suggesting that while the artwork is impressive, the actual gameplay visuals could benefit from further refinement.
- “I adore the graphics and the character designs.”
- “The graphics and art style of each character are very unique.”
- “The graphics are beautiful and the gameplay is really engaging.”
- “But, the game has a few flaws: the art style is all over the place.”
- “Recent stages have been unplayable due to the high amount of aesthetic-purpose particles causing my device to slow down.”
- “Unfortunately, the in-game graphics are closer to chibi, which ruins the amazing artwork of the characters.”
grinding
845 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
99%
The grinding aspect of the game is frequently described as tedious and time-consuming, with many players expressing frustration over the lack of a skip or sweep feature for farming stages. While some appreciate the auto-deploy function that allows for passive farming, the overall sentiment is that the game requires excessive grinding for materials and upgrades, particularly at higher levels, which can detract from the enjoyment. Despite these challenges, many players find the grind rewarding due to the game's engaging mechanics and character designs.
- “Generous gacha, interesting and deep combat system, amazing art, music, and story. Not too grindy; everything is clearable with free-to-play units. The only downsides I can see are that it doesn't have too much endgame content and no skip for re-clears.”
- “I recommend not grinding or making your units overpowered and just having fun trying to 3-star stages with low rarity units and perfecting the game's mechanics.”
- “Not too grindy, for a grinding game.”
- “However, farming requires you to repeat finished stages (even with the unreliable autodeploy feature, you're still forced to watch/wait until it is cleared or fails due to RNG issues).”
- “The only problem is when you must keep watching the operation when you are farming for many times, it's a bit boring in my opinion.”
- “Grinding for materials to promote operators is a pain in the butt, and I think the stamina cap should increase more with each level up.”
music
768 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
32%
1%
The music in Arknights is widely praised for its exceptional quality and diversity, often described as "bangers" that enhance the game's atmosphere and storytelling. Players appreciate the soundtrack's ability to fit various themes and events, with many noting that it rivals that of AAA games. Overall, the music is considered one of the standout features of the game, contributing significantly to the immersive experience.
- “The music is out of this world, the amount of genres is mind-boggling.”
- “The music is fantastic as well.”
- “The music, art, character design, and the story are all great.”
- “The music draws upon dozens of different genres, but the story dialogues often use the same few tracks.”
- “I have all music and effects turned to 'zero' and 'off' and Arknights will still blast out of my speakers at full volume without warning.”
- “Kinda boring, bland characters and music, looks good and all but it's just meh ... fair enough it doesn’t seem pay to win so far...”
monetization
440 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
16%
71%
The monetization model of the game is generally praised for being fair and free-to-play friendly, with many players noting the absence of intrusive ads and aggressive microtransactions. While some players acknowledge the presence of optional in-game purchases, they emphasize that these are not necessary to enjoy the game fully. However, the game's advertising strategy has drawn significant criticism for being misleading and overly aggressive, which has negatively impacted players' perceptions and willingness to engage with the game.
- “Amazing free-to-play game with no ads, fair gacha odds, and the storyline is fantastic.”
- “Although this game has microtransactions, I have not spent a single cent and still enjoyed it regardless because of how free-to-play friendly it is; no features are exclusive for pay-to-play players only.”
- “The game is entirely skill-based, and never pushes in-app purchases.”
- “The monetization in this game can be a little head-scratching as there are a lot of methods that make you go 'why would I buy x if I can buy y at a much better deal?' and not to mention just trying to pull for gacha can be very expensive.”
- “The ads are driving me nuts.”
- “The game's fun but the ads for it are ridiculously misleading.”
character development
407 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
73%
26%
1%
Character development in this game is highly praised, with many reviewers highlighting the depth and uniqueness of each character's backstory and personality. The character designs are described as beautiful and varied, often avoiding oversexualization, which adds to their appeal. Overall, players appreciate the engaging narratives and the emotional investment they feel towards the characters, making the game stand out in the gacha genre.
- “The story and character development in this game is crazy good and the cast is full of fashionable and unique characters.”
- “The character designs are unique, the music is incredible, and the stories are unlike any other.”
- “The character designs themselves are great and not overtly sexualized.”
- “Last but not least the game itself looks like confused of being a fantasy theme or sci-fi due to the uncontrolled character design. I mean it was really confusing, like some of them wearing cliche anime overdesign style, especially the casters.”
- “Ugly and uninspired character designs compliment the broken English and 2nd grade level story well, but it makes the endless grinding get old quickly.”
- “It doesn't help that it's super boring and character design is wildly inconsistent in quality.”
optimization
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
47%
8%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many players report smooth performance and good graphics on newer devices, there are significant issues with lag and crashes on older phones and during specific events. Users have noted the need for better storage management and options to reduce graphical effects to improve performance, especially in challenging stages. Despite these concerns, some players appreciate the intuitive UI and the game's ability to run well under certain conditions, indicating that further optimizations could enhance the experience for a broader range of devices.
- “The visuals are sleek and clean with the menus and navigation being optimized and intuitive.”
- “I have to say this is one of the most optimized yet cool-looking gacha games I have ever played, even at launch.”
- “Amazing game with surprisingly high performance for its graphics, especially on a phone.”
- “Very poorly optimized, even with a device with 4GB RAM, some stages are very laggy and unstable to auto-deploy.”
- “I have a decent phone and have never once encountered frame drops in this game, not once, but this event for some reason is so poorly optimized that my phone that's never had a problem with frame drops before can barely run 30fps. There's no reason to rush an event; please, optimize the game more.”
- “The new dusk/saga event is so poorly optimized it causes unwanted stutters in the most crucial moments.”
stability
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
94%
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with many users reporting frequent crashes and freezes, particularly after recent updates. While some players have experienced a smooth gameplay experience without glitches, others have encountered significant issues, such as freezing during battles and at the login screen. Overall, there is a consensus that while the game has potential, it requires further optimization to address these stability concerns.
- “Not buggy.”
- “Runs great and is easy to understand.”
- “Crashes and freezes on Samsung Note 10 after software update to One UI version 4.”
- “The only problem is that it freezes during battle.”
- “Constantly freezes, very poorly optimized.”
emotional
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
97%
10%
Arknights is praised for its emotionally engaging storytelling, with many players expressing deep emotional connections to the characters and narratives, often leading to tears during pivotal moments. The game's combination of strong character development, tragic lore, and impactful music enhances the emotional experience, making it a standout in the mobile gaming landscape. However, some players feel that the emotional expression could be further improved, particularly in character animations and writing.
- “Arknights is a phenomenally designed tactics game with emotionally intelligent stories.”
- “Amazing story - you *will* become emotionally invested in this mature, dark and intense world with character development to match.”
- “Honestly, I find this game really interesting and the story is really touching; I recommend playing it.”
- “The story lacks depth and fails to evoke any real emotions.”
- “I felt disconnected from the characters, making it hard to care about their journeys.”
- “The emotional moments felt forced and didn't resonate with me at all.”
atmosphere
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
44%
13%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its stunning art style, engaging lore, and exceptional music, which together create a captivating and immersive experience. Players appreciate the dark, thrilling ambiance that complements the narrative, although some note that the atmosphere can become stale during certain gameplay segments. Overall, the combination of character design, background music, and world-building contributes to a rich and emotionally resonant environment that keeps players invested.
- “The game's atmosphere is just stunning, got me hooked for a year now and I still can't get enough of this game.”
- “The atmosphere is thrilling and epic.”
- “I really love the dark atmosphere in general correlating with the deep lore of the world it is set in, which is pretty much summarized to being a post-apocalyptic world, alongside with an amazing soundtrack and other writing from side stories.”
- “Though this joy goes down later when it starts getting a boring atmosphere; might not be for you.”
- “I really love the dark atmosphere in general correlating with the deep lore of the world it is set in, Terra, which is pretty much summarized as a post-apocalyptic world. Several implications and events enhance this, alongside an amazing soundtrack and other writing from side stories or stories that can be treated as 'spin-offs', which turn out to become fun events mostly.”
- “I really love this game; it is engaging, well-designed, and well-optimized, with charming and interesting characters. However, my only complaint would be that sometimes the game gets way too stale, especially some bosses that don't even feel like bosses.”
humor
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
83%
17%
The humor in the game is widely praised, with players highlighting the hilarious side stories, witty dialogue, and amusing character interactions that enhance the overall experience. The community contributes significantly to the humor through memes, fan art, and engaging discussions, making the game feel lively and entertaining. However, some players express frustration with certain game mechanics, which they find unfunny, indicating a mixed reception in that regard.
- “The story is funny, and yeah... well done devs, thank you!”
- “Arknights keeps it fresh with an encyclopedia of lore, pretty funny dialogue, great characters, and honestly good storytelling (though it can get verbose at times).”
- “My gacha luck is always bad and I should quit while I'm ahead... the memes for this game are hilarious and 10/10 worth checking out.”
- “The ads are so annoying and unfunny that I actually took the time to write a review about it, wow.”
- “2 stars. Why, for no reason, do I get medic units on gacha? 6-star to 4 and 3-stars? Are you saying to go to battle with medic units? Not funny. Uninstall. I'm not a fan of reroll; I play games to have fun, but this is not fun at all. Wasting time.”
- “For f***'s sake, please stop giving me solitary. It's not funny when it appears on 8 runs in a row, and now there's a new mode that's more based on RNG.”
replayability
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
42%
16%
The game offers significant replayability through various modes, including a no-stamina roguelike mode and challenging custom difficulty stages, which encourage players to experiment with different characters and strategies. Quality of life improvements and the addition of permanent repeatable content enhance the overall experience, while diverse gameplay mechanics and a variety of units contribute to its longevity. However, some players express a desire for more diverse character options and additional game modes, such as endless or PvP, to further boost replay value.
- “They added a bunch of new quality of life changes that make the gaming experience smoother and less of a hassle, and added a no stamina roguelike permanent game mode that massively increases replayability.”
- “The new is2 mode gives a lot of replayability as well as a reason to level up characters you never tried before.”
- “I've been playing this game since launch and the game has always been free-to-play friendly, and with the new roguelite mode, the game has a lot more replayability between events and updates.”
- “The game is fun and I want more, but it's a huge stop in the end and promotes no replayability... we need PvP or something.”
- “Having some sort of random dungeon-like mode would add a ton of replayability.”
- “And please add an endless mode that would make the game 10x more playable for those that find it a bit lacking/boring.”