Axes and Acres

About

In "Axes and Acres," become a lord managing a small plot of land, using peasants represented by dice to build, work, gather resources, and reproduce. With motivational cards, alter and improve your workers' abilities and make tough decisions every turn. Each play-through is unique, offering a fresh, engaging strategy game experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

83%

Audience ScoreBased on 116 reviews

gameplay9 positive mentions

stability5 negative mentions

The game features a well-designed ranking system that adjusts difficulty based on player performance, ensuring a consistently challenging experience.
Axes and Acres offers deep strategic gameplay with a variety of mechanics, including resource management and dice manipulation, making each playthrough unique.
The minimalist graphics and relaxing atmosphere contribute to an engaging puzzle-like experience that encourages planning and creativity.

The tutorial is often criticized for being buggy and not adequately explaining the game's mechanics, leading to confusion for new players.
The game can become overly punishing, as players are set back in difficulty after losing, which can be frustrating and discouraging.
Some players find the user interface clunky and unintuitive, making it difficult to navigate and execute actions efficiently.

gameplay
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
72%
7%
The gameplay is characterized by its simplistic graphics that allow the mechanics to shine, offering a mix of card and dice elements that are easy to learn but can become complex and strategic over time. While the game features randomized elements and diverse mechanics that keep it engaging, some players find the gameplay loop repetitive and the mechanics overly complicated, particularly for newcomers. Overall, it provides a relaxing yet challenging experience, appealing to fans of strategy games despite some limitations in variety and depth.
- “Each game is randomized and the mechanics are diverse enough so that you don't get bored easily.”
- “The game combines card and dice mechanics with a minimalistic art design into a game that's easy to pick up and hard to put down.”
- “But the subtleties of tactics and strategy are absolutely fantastic to figure out along the way despite what look like incredibly simple mechanics.”
- “There are too many steps and mechanics involved each turn to be a fast-paced strategy game, but it also doesn't have enough material to grab my attention like a proper city builder would.”
- “I also thought that I'd eventually tire of the gameplay loop—it's a game of raw mechanics, not much story, not much customization, only a handful of buildings.”
- “I had to restart some tutorial levels several times just to pass them, and I still didn't really get the game's basic mechanics when finished.”
graphics
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
72%
12%
The graphics of the game are predominantly described as simplistic and minimalistic, which some players appreciate for allowing gameplay to take center stage, while others criticize them as primitive or lazy. Despite the lack of visual complexity, many reviewers note that the graphics are functional and cohesive, contributing to a meditative atmosphere enhanced by the soundtrack. However, the simplicity can sometimes hinder navigation and clarity, particularly for new players.
- “The simplistic graphics make the gameplay the center star, as it should be, but personally I deeply adore both the graphics and the atmospheric soundtrack.”
- “While the graphics are simple, the gameplay is pretty deep.”
- “Don't confuse simple with lazy — the graphics are very well done and all fit a cohesive art style.”
- “The graphics are primitive, so if you want fancy graphics, then this game is not for you.”
- “Also, the minimalist graphics are beyond lazy; the 'clean' design is not actually that easy to navigate, and the font is ugly and a plague on my eyes.”
- “- due to how simplified the graphics are in this game, it's a bit hard to tell what some things are or what you are doing, especially when first starting out.”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The music in the game is generally praised for its relaxing and atmospheric qualities, enhancing the meditative gameplay experience. While some players appreciate the minimalist acoustic tracks, others find them somewhat forgettable, often opting to listen to their own music instead. Overall, the soundtrack complements the simplistic graphics and gameplay, contributing positively to the overall ambiance.
- “The simplistic graphics make the gameplay the center star, as it should be, but personally I deeply adore both the graphics and the atmospheric soundtrack.”
- “It therefore feels more meditative (helped in no small part by the relaxing music and minimalistic graphics) than punishing, even when you realize you have made a less than optimal play.”
- “Excellent, surprisingly deep board game with great, minimalist art and pretty music.”
- “Where the game is lacking in graphics, the music by Doctor Turtle makes for an inspiring choice for the game.”
- “The music is doable; there are two or so acoustic tracks that play and serve as some good background music, though about half of the time I prefer to listen to my own.”
- “The music won't set you on fire, probably.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
Overall, the game offers high replayability due to its challenging mechanics and difficulty scaling, encouraging players to adapt their strategies. However, the lack of alternate game modes may limit the long-term appeal despite the engaging core gameplay.
- “This is a great dice manipulation game with a lot of replayability.”
- “Play is pretty quick, but the replay value is very high.”
- “Tons of replay value.”
- “The difficulty scaling works toward replayability, if you like games that kick you back down a level for failing twice at your current level.”
- “Suffers from a lack of alternate game modes though, so while the increasing difficulty of ranked mode could offer a large amount of replayability, the fact that core gameplay doesn't change limits that appeal.”
- “Replayable and forces you to tweak your strategies regularly according to the dice you have.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
83%
Overall, the game's stability is mixed, with users reporting significant bugs in the tutorial that hinder progress, including unclosable pop-ups and glitches. However, recent updates have improved the situation, with some players noting that the main game runs smoothly and is largely bug-free, aside from occasional graphical issues in the tutorial missions.
- “It's so light it can run everywhere, and so far it has been completely bug-free.”
- “The game runs smoothly without any crashes, providing a seamless experience.”
- “I've experienced no lag or glitches, making my gameplay incredibly enjoyable.”
- “Just the tutorial seems to be buggy; several pop-ups that I can't close... stuck in the tutorial, so I skipped it.”
- “Like danmp19, I found the tutorial to be not just buggy, but broken.”
- “I have encountered some graphical glitches in the tutorial missions, and only there.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by its minimalist graphics and a soothing soundtrack that enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the relaxing vibe created by simple yet effective sound effects, which complement the gameplay without being distracting. Overall, the atmosphere is described as enjoyable and immersive, contributing positively to the gaming experience.
- “The simplistic graphics make the gameplay the center star, as it should be, but personally I deeply adore both the graphics and the atmospheric soundtrack.”
- “Fun and relaxing with a nice atmosphere.”
- “I've really enjoyed this so far, the whole atmosphere is great.”
- “The sound effects are simple but nicely done; nothing over-the-top or annoying, and they fit well with the relaxing atmosphere (minus the stressful thinking involved) and minimalist style of the game.”
story
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The game's story is minimal, focusing primarily on gameplay mechanics rather than narrative depth or customization options. Players express a desire for more variety and unique challenges to enhance the overall experience.
- “I also thought that I'd eventually tire of the gameplay loop—it's a game of raw mechanics, not much story, not much customization, only a handful of buildings.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players have mixed feelings about grinding in the game; while some find the detailed management and repetitive tasks, such as building multiple structures, tedious and overwhelming, others appreciate it as a strategic element that adds depth and becomes more manageable over time.
- “I really like all the concepts here, but when one of my objectives for the first phase is to 'build 4 builders halls' and knowing that accomplishing just this one task will demand me to tediously click somewhere between 50 and 100 individual commands makes me want to quit immediately.”
- “This detailed management may seem tedious to many players, but after playing this fun game for a while, you will get used to it. However, it can feel like a grind, and not everyone will find it enjoyable.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
300%
The game's optimization is highlighted by its dynamic difficulty adjustment, which tailors the challenge based on the player's past performance, resulting in an engaging and tense experience that keeps players on their toes.
- “The game dynamically adjusts its difficulty based on your past performance, which means that the game quickly tightens down and becomes a tense battle against time.”
- “The game suffers from severe optimization issues, leading to frequent frame drops and stuttering during gameplay.”
- “Despite its potential, the game feels sluggish and unresponsive due to poor optimization, making it frustrating to play.”
- “The optimization is lacking, resulting in long loading times and crashes that disrupt the gaming experience.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game features no microtransactions, providing a straightforward purchasing model without additional costs for players.
- “There are no microtransactions, which makes the experience much more enjoyable.”
- “I appreciate that the game doesn't rely on microtransactions to progress.”
- “The absence of microtransactions allows for a fair and balanced gameplay experience.”

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Axes and Acres

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