Becastled
- February 8, 2021
- Mana Potion Studios
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Becastled" is a single-player real-time strategy game set in a fantasy world, where players build and defend their castles from sieges. The game boasts outstanding mechanics, impressive visuals, and a delightful soundtrack, but can be poorly optimized, buggy, and require lots of grinding. Explore the ancient conflict between light and dark while managing resources, training an army, and surviving relentless attacks in this highly replayable game.
PC
Windows
Tablet
Reviews
- Fun and relaxing gameplay with a charming art style.
- Engaging mechanics that combine city building and tower defense.
- Active development with regular updates and community engagement.
- Significant pathfinding issues causing units to get stuck or not respond to commands.
- Limited content and replayability, with many players reaching the endgame quickly.
- Performance issues, especially in late game with large armies leading to lag.
- gameplay251 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is generally described as fun and engaging, with simple mechanics that are easy to grasp, making it accessible for new players. However, many reviews highlight issues such as bugs, performance problems, and a lack of depth or variety in gameplay, leading to a repetitive experience after a few hours. While the charming art style and addictive gameplay loop are praised, there is a consensus that the game needs further refinement and additional content to enhance the overall experience.
“The gameplay is well-rounded and the balancing is very good overall.”
“The game offers fun gameplay and can be challenging at first.”
“The gameplay loop is addictive, and the mechanics are simple yet engaging.”
“The gameplay loop is unfortunately pretty shallow and you soon get to a point where you have more resources than you can spend.”
“The gameplay is extremely simplistic, to the point that you can beat the hardest level just by memorizing the order that you should build things to speed production.”
“Overall looks and feels less complete than gameplay in media reviews from over a year ago.”
- graphics158 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their charming and unique art style, which many players find visually appealing and easy on the eyes. However, there are significant concerns regarding performance issues, particularly lag and stuttering during gameplay, especially as cities grow larger. While the visuals are considered good for the game's genre, players have noted that optimization is needed to enhance the overall experience.
“The game has pretty visuals and a nice atmosphere all around, so I recommend it but know what you're getting for your money.”
“I really enjoy these low poly type aesthetics and I think Becastled executes it well - it's pleasant to look at.”
“The graphics are great for the $15 price point and the procedural generated levels make replayability good.”
“I had to lower the settings drastically and it isn't my computer; I play plenty of games with demanding graphics.”
“There's a major memory leak or something where the further you get in the game, the tighter Becastled wraps its fingers around your CPU, RAM, graphics card, basically everything, and the game runs at a crawl when it really shouldn't.”
“But it is unplayable; I have the game with all the graphics to the minimum, and it does not stop crashing every few minutes. I couldn't pass beyond the third day in my longest play run.”
- stability142 mentions
- 1 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 99 % negative mentions
The game is widely reported to be extremely buggy, particularly in late-game scenarios where performance issues and pathfinding glitches become pronounced. Players have noted frequent crashes, AI behavior problems, and inconsistencies in game state upon reloading, making it difficult to recommend in its current early access state. While some improvements have been acknowledged, the overall consensus is that the game remains too unstable for a fully enjoyable experience.
“The game looks great, runs great, building mechanics and upgrades are nice, and the whole principle of the game is cool.”
“Really buggy - the longer you play, the worse the performance gets, suggesting poor memory management. The game will frequently crash if too many events occur at once, and upon reload, the state of certain walls and buildings doesn't match the original save point.”
“Unplayable and buggy at this stage. I can't recommend the game in its current state because of how buggy it can be.”
“The game is extremely buggy, but that was a given since it is early access. I played several games and each one of them would eventually end with my army not being able to move to a certain location due to buggy pathfinding, leading to my castle being destroyed.”
- optimization67 mentions
- 10 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is widely criticized, with players reporting significant performance degradation as they progress, particularly in late-game scenarios with larger armies and cities. Many users experience severe lag, crashes, and issues with unit pathfinding, suggesting that the game struggles with memory management and CPU utilization. While the core gameplay is enjoyable, the consensus is that substantial optimization improvements are necessary for a smoother experience.
“The game has some of the typical early access issues (performance, small bugs scattered here and there, some weird AI behavior), but it's generally a fun experience.”
“Game is highly addictive even in its current state, needs a few tweaks and optimizations but mechanics are on point and graphics are good.”
“Loving the updates, hope this keeps going. The recent updates have been great and have made the game much better to play, and the optimization is going well.”
“Really buggy - the longer you play, the worse the performance gets, suggesting poor memory management. The game will frequently crash if too many events occur at once, and upon reload, the state of certain walls and buildings doesn't match the original save point.”
“There's also the issue with performance degradation over time where your FPS will go from 200+ to less than 40 after you have a lot going on.”
“The game is wonderful in many ways, but the poor unit pathing and performance mid to late game makes that part of the game nearly unplayable.”
- story56 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its absence, with many players expressing a desire for a more developed narrative, quests, and campaigns to enhance engagement. While some appreciate the gameplay mechanics, they feel that the lack of a compelling storyline or progression limits replayability and overall enjoyment. Suggestions for improvement include adding missions, lore-based campaigns, and incremental goals to provide a richer gaming experience.
“From a global map where each region represents a scenario, to a tutorial/campaign that gradually unlocks units and mechanics, to a lore-based campaign where each mission represents a certain story, these can really drag a new player in and give them something to do besides replaying the same skirmish maps over and over.”
“With future updates possibly holding a campaign and a more fleshed-out story, I can see this game becoming a brilliant city builder game.”
“I like what little I have seen of the story; you play as the sun-worshiping people, so you have all of the sun up to build and train.”
“In its current state, the economy is not very difficult or diverse, military options and control (micromanagement) is limited and there is not really any story or lore to speak of.”
“So if you want quests and campaigns and all that, or some kind of progression as you keep playing, then you will find there is none.”
“It's fun, but with no story, or really any progression, the only challenge is changing the difficulty which will become old after a while.”
- music47 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received generally positive feedback, with many players appreciating its relaxing and atmospheric qualities that complement the gameplay. While some noted that the soundtrack can become repetitive due to a limited number of tracks, others found it charming and fitting for the game's aesthetic. Overall, the music enhances the experience, making it enjoyable for players who appreciate a soothing backdrop while building and defending their kingdoms.
“The music is superb; I don't know how I've gone 12 hours straight listening to just it!”
“Absolutely beautiful soundtrack and all around a very enjoyable game.”
“Calm medieval music chimes throughout the day and intensifies somewhat at night.”
“I don't like the music, so I turn that way down or off.”
“Game lacks some sounds and music could be better, but overall a fun siege defense game.”
“The music is somewhat repetitive because of the limited number of background music tracks, but given the price of this game, I would say it is fair; I cannot demand much.”
- replayability46 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The replayability of Becastled is a mixed bag among reviewers. While some appreciate the procedural generation of maps and varying difficulty levels that enhance replay value, others criticize the current lack of content and variety, suggesting that gameplay can become repetitive after a few hours. Many express hope that future updates will improve the game's replayability by adding more features and content.
“Becastled is a simple yet perfect game for peaceful town management. The randomly generated lands make the game replayable.”
“There are different levels of difficulty and multiple types of terrain generation which offer a high replayability.”
“Relatively easy to learn, hard to master, with a lot of replayability coming from the unique terrains you are loaded into each game.”
“Lacks replayability and content though, you'll pretty quickly run out of a variety of buildings to construct and it quickly turns into just expanding your territory and building more of the same stuff.”
“Unfortunately, it is quite light on content right now, so not a lot of replayability.”
“Currently there is no replayability and the bugs are almost game breaking.”
- grinding16 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 6 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience. While some appreciate that it isn't overly grindy and offers enjoyable gameplay, many express frustration with the tedious micromanagement and repetitive tasks, especially in the late game. Improvements in pathfinding and the addition of features like a tech tree could enhance the experience and reduce the tedium.
“It's a great base building game that's lots of fun and it's not too grindy.”
“It is casual, it is fun, it is not grindy, it doesn't require you to be a no-life basement dweller.”
“Not too grindy.”
“Late game gets tedious fairly quickly because it becomes quite repetitive and, as of now, there isn't much to do after upgrading your fortress and buildings to stone level.”
“Great game for the first few hours and then gets very tedious repeating the same thing over and over.”
“As I began the review, there is a well-conceived, simple, yet fun game here, and these are all issues that I could easily see being fixed down the line given the early access status; however right now most of the fun is buried under issues that seem to strive to make every action as tedious as humanly possible.”
- humor13 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by its quirky bugs and amusing mechanics, often leading to hilarious situations, such as units dying for no apparent reason and villagers refusing to work. While players appreciate the funny graphics and lighthearted medieval simulation, they note that the humor can become repetitive and is sometimes overshadowed by the game's simplicity and ongoing bugs. Overall, the comedic elements contribute to a fun experience, despite some frustrations.
“A funny and easy medieval simulator with some fights.”
“Ran through the tutorial, died hilariously because I didn't realize that money = army's life force.”
“Now be warned there are bugs and quite a few of them, but if I'm honest, most of them are more funny and silly rather than game-breaking and can be fixed by reloading.”
- atmosphere7 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 29 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is characterized by its unique fantasy world, cute graphics, and calming visuals, creating an immersive experience that encourages extended play. The music complements the aesthetic well, although it may become repetitive over time. Overall, players appreciate the vibrant and lively environment, enhanced by dynamic elements like shifting trees and bustling characters.
“The glowing people set a tone for an interesting fantasy world and make for a unique atmosphere with cute graphics.”
“Very calming, love the atmosphere!”
“The music is great, but it got a little old after a while due to how limited it is. However, it nails the atmosphere and was exactly what I wanted/expected from this game.”
“With a cute aesthetic and atmosphere, it's very easy to lose a few hours in each sitting.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by the deep care and dedication of the development team, particularly in light of their personal experiences as they navigate the challenges faced in Ukraine. This connection adds a heartfelt layer to the game's narrative and overall impact.
“Not to mention the dev team cares so much about this game; it is very heartwarming.”
“All our team members are from Ukraine, and the last weeks have been life-changing and heartbreaking for all of us.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
Reviews suggest that while some players perceive the monetization strategies of these games as cash grabs, others encourage giving the games a fair chance before jumping to conclusions. There is a sense that the simplicity of the games may lead to quick development and abandonment, raising concerns about their long-term value.
“Maybe these types of games are easy to make and abandon for a cash grab.”
“This feels like a cash grab rather than a genuine effort to create a quality game.”
“The monetization strategy is overly aggressive and detracts from the overall experience.”
