Arvale

About

Arvale is a single player casual role playing game. It was developed by Jaybot7 and was released on August 14, 2015. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Duncan Forsythe is the royal gardener of Entoque Castle. He spends his days battling nasty flower beds, hunting down poisonous weeds, and occasionally doing his Royal Majesty’s laundry. Meanwhile, the buzz around the castle is that Duncan once saved the world. This is news to Duncan. He can’t remember a thing that happened over the last few years. He definitely doesn’t remember saving the world. U…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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67%

Audience ScoreBased on 58 reviews

story6 positive mentions

grinding5 negative mentions

The game features a charming story and witty dialogue, making it engaging and humorous.
Gameplay includes visible enemies that can be avoided, allowing for a more strategic approach to encounters.
The game successfully expands on the Arvale universe, providing nostalgia for fans of the original series while introducing new elements.

The game suffers from significant lag and slow walking speed, making it frustrating to play at times.
Technical issues, including bugs and crashes, detract from the overall experience and can make the game unplayable for some users.
The combat system can feel tedious and drawn out, with battles taking longer than necessary to resolve.

story
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
62%
13%
The story of the game centers around Duncan, a hero on a quest to recover his lost memories and heroic skills, with a mix of witty dialogue and humorous interactions that enhance character development. While the overarching plot is somewhat generic, focusing on amnesia and a simple mission, the engaging narrative and character dynamics keep players invested in Duncan's journey and the unfolding mysteries. Overall, the story is a standout feature, providing both entertainment and depth amidst the gameplay.
- “Duncan, our hero, has lost his memory of all his previous exploits, and goes on a quest to get his memory back.”
- “The dialogue is witty and fun (don't forget to talk to the wheelbarrows, pots, barrels, etc.), and it really helps develop the story.”
- “And so the story begins as the king sends him on a simple mission, and Duncan slowly learns more about his past, and how to uncover the details ---- which is critical because dark forces are gathering once again.”
- “The story is just cure your amnesia; you are our hero from yesteryear, go and deliver a message to the village up north.”
- “Tldr: flat self-aware plot device humor.”
- “Generic overarching story.”
humor
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in "Arvale" is a standout feature, characterized by a self-aware, quirky narrative and hilarious dialogue that adds a fresh twist to the traditional JRPG format. While the humor may not resonate with everyone, those who appreciate it find the game to be consistently funny and engaging, with memorable moments that enhance the overall experience. The narrator's witty commentary and absurd scenarios, like conversing with inanimate objects, contribute to the game's charm and enjoyment.
- “Once this is sorted out, Arvale becomes quite an enjoyable game of high adventure spiced with cool humor.”
- “Yet it's a fresh take on the genre, with plenty of hilarious dialogue, and an almost graphic adventure-like treatment throughout.”
- “The narrator is full of good humor, and adds an interesting perspective to the events of the game, as well as being very helpful to the beginning player.”
music
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
37%
27%
The music in the game has received positive feedback for its quality and catchiness, with many tracks standing out as memorable and well-composed. Players appreciate that the soundtrack deviates from typical RPG Maker tunes, enhancing the overall experience, although some have expressed a desire for better control over the music and sound settings during gameplay. Overall, the music contributes significantly to the game's rich environment and enjoyable atmosphere.
- “The soundtrack is phenomenal and catchy.”
- “Music is excellent without being obtrusive.”
- “I'm not sure where these tracks came from, but many of them (the castle music and the first town in particular) are fantastic.”
- “However, I noticed the music from Arvale: Short Tales is missing.”
- “The game is pretty fun and I like the storyline, but I wish we could control the music and sound system. Even when I turn it off, it still plays very loud during combat.”
- “Muting sounds still has the music blasting during combat.”
graphics
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
23%
33%
The graphics in this RPG Maker game receive mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the charming 16-bit aesthetic and beautiful artwork, others criticize the engine's limitations, such as lack of fullscreen support and HD options. Despite the asset-flipped visuals and a humorous tone, the overall quality is seen as acceptable for the genre, with some original elements shining through.
- “These graphics are so ahead of their time!”
- “The artwork is beautiful throughout with battle scenes being especially well done.”
- “The graphics are great - exactly what I'd expect for a 16-bit era game.”
- “As with all RPG Maker games, the poor quality engine displays badly in fullscreen and doesn't have full HD support or any graphics tweaking options, making this unacceptable for any dedicated modern PC gamer.”
- “There's a completely poor attempt at humor amongst the asset-flipped game visuals, and the usual bad anime fan-fic plot.”
- “Graphics, while clean, seem so tiny and old that they are laughable; until after I started playing, I realized it's all part of the charm for this game.”
gameplay
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The gameplay of "Arvale" is a mix of traditional JRPG elements, featuring a blend of town exploration and combat zones, though it suffers from balance issues between these areas. While some players appreciate the nostalgic battle mechanics reminiscent of classic Final Fantasy games, others criticize the overall quality, citing low-quality graphics and a lack of engaging gameplay. Overall, the experience is seen as average, with a decent story but not enough innovation to stand out.
- “Arvale is an adventure game, with 40 hours of gameplay, made in RPG Maker.”
- “The gameplay alternates between safe towns, with weapon and item stores, and maps with enemies and a boss at the end.”
- “The battle mechanics are a throwback to the old Final Fantasy system - not overly complicated and easy to use.”
- “Like most RPG Maker shovelware and asset flips, the game features extremely low-quality, copy-pasted 2D retro pixel art, looks awful, and has even worse gameplay.”
- “Old school RPG gameplay? I think not!”
- “For the price, it reaches way beyond what could be considered engaging gameplay that never delivers.”
grinding
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players note that the game becomes quite grindy in the mid-game, requiring extensive farming for currency to purchase expensive gear, though later encounters yield more money, alleviating this issue. While the game features a rich environment and decent combat, many find the repetitive battles and lengthy leveling process tedious, leading some to quit due to frustration with the grind.
- “It gets pretty grindy towards the mid-game; you'll spend a lot of time farming encounters for the money to buy the oppressively-priced gear. However, towards the later third of the game, the encounters drop so much money that you'll never have to worry about having enough.”
- “On the technical side, the game has a nicely assembled and rich environment, standard music, and a workable combat system, even though it gets a bit grindy at times.”
- “Overall, the game was fun as each new development progressed the plot, but it often got tedious while going through the long parts.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game is criticized as a blatant cash grab, with users highlighting its low-quality assets and lack of genuine development effort. This approach is seen as detrimental to the reputation of amateur developers and contributes to the proliferation of subpar games on platforms like Steam.
- “It's horribly basic, riddled with grammatical and spelling errors, full of stock copy-pasted RPG Maker assets. No real game development has taken place here; this is just a cash grab, shovelware polluting Steam for profit.”
- “This kind of cash grab construction kit shovelware from bad actors like Andorlea gives amateur developers a bad name.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with users reporting frequent bugs and crashes that detract from the overall experience.
- “Unfortunately, this is going to be a short review, as the game is sadly quite buggy and constantly crashing.”
- “The frequent crashes make it nearly impossible to enjoy the game.”
- “I experienced multiple bugs that disrupted my gameplay, leading to a frustrating experience.”