Artifact Adventure Gaiden

About

Artifact Adventure Gaiden is a retro-style, roguelike RPG with card-based combat. You'll explore an open world, collect and upgrade cards, and face permadeath in this nostalgic adventure. The game features pixel art graphics and a chiptune soundtrack, creating a charming and immersive experience. With its strategic battles and procedurally generated content, every playthrough offers a fresh challenge.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

82%

Audience ScoreBased on 33 reviews

story5 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

The game offers a fun retro style action RPG experience that evokes nostalgia for classic titles.
Gameplay features engaging side-scrolling combat with a variety of character customization options and meaningful choices that affect the story and endings.
The open world design allows for exploration and replayability, with multiple quests and a New Game Plus mode that enhances the overall experience.

The lack of controller support and poor default key mapping significantly detracts from the gameplay experience, making controls uncomfortable and frustrating.
The game suffers from pacing issues, with slow combat and a lack of clear instructions or tutorials for new players, leading to confusion.
The ending feels rushed and unsatisfying, failing to deliver a cohesive conclusion to the intriguing narrative built throughout the game.

story
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
58%
16%
The story is engaging, featuring a classic hero's journey with a time skip mechanic that adds weight to player choices, influencing the game's multiple endings. While the overarching narrative is straightforward, the quest system is rich with decision-making opportunities, though some quests can feel vague and repetitive. Overall, the game successfully combines retro aesthetics with modern gameplay elements, offering a deep and interactive storytelling experience despite minor issues with quest clarity.
- “One thing really good about this game is that depending on your choices for the quests, it actually changes the ending of the game.”
- “Don't be misled by the old-school colorless graphics; it is actually a simple story, but what you can do ends up being pretty deep.”
- “There are dozens of dungeons for you to find, secret quests to uncover, and the choices you make will directly change how the story pans out.”
- “Most of the quests are fairly boring, however.”
- “The overarching main story is quickly told: you are the hero out of nowhere who has to save the world (very 'retro' indeed).”
- “The quest log could also use some work; a lot of descriptions seem unfinished and, especially with companion quests, it's very possible to forget what you're meant to do and get stuck.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
45%
27%
The gameplay is engaging and unique, blending classic RPG elements with modern mechanics, including a time skip feature that enhances the stakes of player choices. Players appreciate the action-oriented combat system, accessible character development, and a quest system that encourages exploration and decision-making. However, some find the difficulty balance inconsistent, with normal mode being too easy and hard mode presenting unfair challenges.
- “Really fun gameplay that manages to feel unique even though it's mostly just a mash-up of a few classic genres.”
- “The gameplay of building your character and making choices is really engaging, and made it worth playing through multiple times.”
- “That said, Artifact Adventure Gaiden still is a well-crafted effort to bring back that kind of 'retro atmosphere' of 2D JRPGs, where it certainly has its roots, adding modern polish to the overall gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is where things really pick up.”
- “Difficulty is a little screwed up at the moment; normal mode is incredibly easy while hard mode, due to some peculiar mechanical choices, is filled with instant deaths.”
- “The gameplay is a little different from the previous, but it's still completely worth it.”
graphics
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
33%
33%
The graphics of the game are intentionally designed to evoke a retro Game Boy aesthetic, featuring simple, colorless visuals that may not appeal to everyone but can grow on players over time. While some reviewers find the graphics repetitive and lacking in detail, others appreciate the nostalgic charm and the clean presentation, especially during more complex combat sequences. Overall, the graphics serve the game's retro intentions, providing a straightforward yet polished visual experience.
- “Don't be misled by the old school colorless graphics; it is actually a simple story, but what you can do ends up pretty deep.”
- “After a while, it grew on me, and the more complex combat graphics are where it really shines.”
- “Graphics are simple but with a clean look.”
- “Visually, I'm not a huge fan of the graphics, but I understand they are trying to reproduce the original Game Boy style.”
- “If the graphics and lack of color are bothering you, there is the DX version available that is pretty much the same game.”
- “Graphics therefore are simple but with a clean look.”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
44%
33%
The music in the game is described as retro-inspired, reminiscent of 8-bit tracks, but ultimately lacks diversity and becomes repetitive over time. While it fits the game's nostalgic aesthetic, many reviewers found it to be passable and suggested that it might be better muted during gameplay. Overall, the sound design is considered solid but not exceptional compared to classic titles.
- “The music and sound effects are fine, nothing amazing, but it fits the Game Boy style and doesn't feel out of place.”
- “For 'retro' intentions, both graphics and music are Game Boy-ish.”
- “The music is passable but nothing special, especially compared to old NES or Game Boy titles.”
- “There are only a few tracks in the style of 8-bit music (with a modern approach), which do an okay job in accompanying your adventure but lack diversity and soon become a little bit overplayed.”
- “Furthermore, the music is worth muting.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
Players appreciate the game's replayability due to its challenging New Game Plus mode and the variety of unique systems that encourage experimentation with different party combinations and skills. This diversity significantly enhances the overall replay value, making each playthrough feel distinct.
- “This is an inventive game with lots of unique systems and good replayability.”
- “The possibility of different party combinations and therefore different combinations of skills adds to the replay value of the game.”
- “Also, the fact that the game gets harder in New Game Plus mode adds replayability too.”
- “This massively adds to the replay value of the game.”
- “While this is very basic, the possibility of different party combinations and therefore different combinations of skills adds to the replay value of the game.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be minimal and non-intrusive, as the combat is engaging and allows for character progression without the need for excessive grinding typical of retro RPGs. The game features an accessible experience system that enables players to become powerful through exploration and quest completion rather than repetitive grinding, making it enjoyable even for those unfamiliar with the genre. Overall, the game strikes a balance between providing a fulfilling experience and avoiding traditional grinding mechanics.
- “Even for players who are not on the retro tracks, this game can be fulfilling. Unlike typical JRPGs, there are no grinding barriers, and the game is relatively short. I didn't do a 100% playthrough, but maybe 90%, and I've played 8 hours in total.”
- “The combat itself is pretty fun, but you can easily spend most of your time in the game grinding.”
- “You will get quite powerful without needing to fall back on old 'retro' grinding mechanics.”
- “The game features repetitive towns and dungeons, which can make the grinding feel tedious.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the emotional aspect of the game to be surprisingly profound, as the simple mechanic of "touching" enemies during battles evokes a deeper connection and intensity. The gameplay, which revolves around jumping and running while engaging with foes, adds to the emotional experience by emphasizing the personal stakes involved in each encounter.
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Character development in this retro RPG is driven by an item-and-experience-oriented system that allows for meaningful progression without the need for excessive grinding. Players can make impactful decisions through an engaging quest system, which enhances the overall experience, although the ending feels somewhat rushed. The game offers a solid balance between exploration and character growth, making it accessible even to newcomers.
- “The character development system is item and experience-oriented, allowing for a satisfying progression without the need for excessive grinding.”
- “I love how the game features a highly entertaining and interesting quest system that incorporates decision-making, making my character feel truly unique.”
- “The split between the main game and endgame lets me choose how much time I want to invest, which adds a personal touch to my character's journey.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of "Artifact Adventure Gaiden" is praised for successfully capturing the nostalgic essence of retro 2D JRPGs while incorporating modern enhancements, creating a well-crafted and immersive experience.
- “Artifact Adventure Gaiden is a well-crafted effort to bring back the 'retro atmosphere' of 2D JRPGs, where it certainly has its roots, adding modern polish to the overall gameplay.”