Castle Flipper
- May 26, 2021
- ▲ Pyramid Games
- 6h median play time
Get on Steam"Castle Flipper is a single-player shooter game with delightful mechanics, spectacular visuals, and fabulous music, but can be very grindy and buggy. As a medieval builder, you clean, repair, build, and decorate castles across various locations, with the goal of creating your own kingdom. Completing quests allows you to explore new places and renovate different architectural styles."
PC
Reviews
- Engaging medieval building and decorating gameplay that allows for creativity.
- Charming graphics and music that enhance the overall experience.
- Developers are responsive to feedback and actively working on updates and improvements.
- Limited content with only a few quests, leading to a short overall gameplay experience.
- Bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, including issues with building mechanics and missing items.
- The game does not fulfill the expectations set by its title, as it lacks true 'flipping' mechanics.
- story315 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 83 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The game's story is primarily conveyed through a series of short quests that involve cleaning and renovating properties, with some humorous notes providing background lore. However, players find the narrative lacking depth and feel that the limited number of quests (around 10-12) leads to a quick conclusion, leaving little to engage with afterward. While the quests are enjoyable and offer a glimpse into the game's world, many reviewers express a desire for more content and a more robust storyline to enhance the overall experience.
“The quests are cute, and I like the little story told through notes and background details.”
“Playing through the quests was very fun too; if you take the time to read the notes and hidden stories within their pages.”
“The notes you find during the quests add a whole other dimension to the game, and they're fantastic!”
“The game lacks content and there aren't enough quests to keep the player interested for very long.”
“After you complete the quests, there is literally nothing left to do but clean your tenants' houses and collect rent, which obviously gets boring really fast.”
“The execution is bad and the story is lacking.”
- gameplay71 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 75 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay in "Castle Flipper" is characterized by a mix of engaging building mechanics and clunky controls, leading to a somewhat frustrating experience. While players appreciate the casual and visually appealing aspects, many find the mechanics repetitive and lacking depth compared to similar games like "House Flipper." Overall, the game shows potential but requires further polishing and content to enhance the gameplay experience.
“The mechanics of actually building your own castle are a bit clunky at first, but once you figure out how to maneuver the pieces to your advantage, it can be quite fun building your own castle.”
“Fun game! I love the style and gameplay; I enjoy creating homes for villagers.”
“Castle Flipper is an engaging, relaxing, and visually stunning game; however, it's important to note that, as it is a new game, bug fixes and tweaks to gameplay and items are ongoing.”
“The mechanics themselves break down quickly, leading to a frustrating experience.”
“The gameplay loop is very repetitive, making it feel tedious after a short while.”
“The initial free demo made this game seem promising, but what you get is a bunch of pointless fluff wrapped in a clunky UI.”
- graphics57 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the visuals as beautiful and immersive, particularly appreciating the medieval aesthetic and attention to detail. However, many others describe the graphics as mediocre or clunky, noting issues such as bugs, poor performance when adjusting settings, and a lack of life within the game world. Overall, while there are standout moments and decent graphical quality, the consensus leans towards a need for improvement and polish.
“The graphics are beautiful and the fact that I can ideally build whatever from the start is amazing!”
“I've also enjoyed the little graphical touches, such as seeing plants sway in the breeze; the changes to the sky as the day progresses; along with the varying weather.”
“The graphics are great, the building material and furniture manifest the medieval period, which is great if you want to venture upon another era.”
“It is ok, very clunky, graphics are mediocre; this should have been a DLC for another flipper game. It doesn't have the heart to be its own game, probably why it has absolutely no updates or any additions.”
“While the game will list a constant 60 fps even while stuttering, the graphical settings have zero effect on this.”
“Rife with spelling and grammar errors with what texts it does have, vague graphics options, and very 'proof of concept' first levels, this has amateur hour asset flip flavor all over it.”
- music38 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 39 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its relaxing and atmospheric qualities, enhancing the overall experience. Many players appreciate the variety and pleasantness of the soundtrack, although some note that it can become repetitive over time. Additionally, there are options to adjust the volume settings, allowing players to customize their audio experience.
“I genuinely love the music and find the whole experience of playing this game to be relaxing.”
“The soundtrack is nice, or you can turn it off, put on your own playlist, and vibe while you game.”
“The atmosphere, the music, the fact that your footsteps sound different on different flooring.”
“Music is always loud when the game starts despite saving settings from the previous round.”
“There aren't even options to change the volume of music and sound effects.”
“This game has a lot of ingredients, like mechanisms, graphics, music, general ambiance, but it's missing them coming together to create a game.”
- stability38 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is widely criticized for its instability, with numerous reports of glitches, bugs, and performance issues that create a frustrating experience. Many players describe it as feeling unfinished, with frequent freezing and lag, particularly during building and mission sequences. Overall, the consensus is that the game requires significant improvements to its stability before it can be considered polished or enjoyable.
“The game is very buggy and needs a lot of work.”
“Had it been released as early access, I would have been a bit more understanding, but it feels like a buggy mess that would be better suited being called a beta.”
“It's buggy, there's almost no decorations, and you can play through the whole thing in a couple of hours.”
- grinding25 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of "Castle Flipper" to be a mixed experience; while initial missions are enjoyable and not overly grindy, the endgame becomes tedious with repetitive tasks and a lack of engaging content. Many reviewers express frustration with the building mechanics and the slow pace of collecting resources, leading to a sense of monotony as they pursue achievements and manage their properties. Overall, the game offers fun moments but suffers from a lack of variety and flexibility, making the grinding feel more burdensome as players progress.
“Achievement hunting will require a lot of grinding; my playtime to achievements (at the time of this review, 93%) should be indicative of this.”
“It can feel a little bit grindy once you're past the main quests and just trying to build yourself a lovely castle. I do wish the castle building capabilities were more flexible, but it's a lot of fun.”
“The clean/rent house function is incredibly tedious - the minute I turn my back on a cleaned house, it's somehow dirty again.”
- optimization16 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 31 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization has received significant criticism, with many players reporting severe stuttering and performance issues despite high frame rates. Users have noted that graphical settings seem to have little impact on performance, leading to frustration and a sense that the game is unplayable for some. While a few players found it reasonably optimized for the Unity engine, the consensus leans towards a need for substantial improvements and patches to address these issues.
“Such a great idea ruined with poor performance and optimization.”
“I can't recommend a game where optimization is not a key tenant in game creation.”
“Catching rats is not as easy as it seems, the monsters are running fast :-D the game is quite well optimized for running on the Unity engine.”
“The game is very poorly optimized; it stutters with every movement you make, even if I have constant FPS in the 200+ segment on ultra. You can see this clearly even in the dev streams.”
“While the game will list a constant 60 FPS even while stuttering, the graphical settings have zero effect on this.”
“If this is what the so-called 'full release' looks like, you're better off not frying your hardware and wasting your time on this until some third party makes an optimization patch for it.”
- humor10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game features a humorous storyline with cheeky missions and amusing object placements that elicit laughter. Players appreciate the funny notes accompanying quests, which add depth and entertainment to the gameplay. Overall, it offers a tongue-in-cheek take on its setting, making for an enjoyable and lighthearted experience.
“There are day-night cycles in the game, and some missions are pretty cheeky and hilarious.”
“Funny little notes to go along with the quests/tasks you do.”
“It's a very humorous, tongue-in-cheek take on the middle ages, though the buildings and setting are pretty good.”
- replayability10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the ability to redo quests and anticipate future updates that may enhance replay value, many others find the lack of substantial endgame content and limited options for replaying levels disappointing. Several reviews highlight that the game becomes boring quickly due to its short length and minimal content, leading to a consensus that replayability is generally low.
“You can redo your quests after you complete all the available ones, so there is replay value in it as well.”
“Replay value is already quite good as it's a reasonably short game with lots of potential even after the main quest line is finished. However, the future plans for the game mean that it's a game you'll likely be able to come back to now and then and find new things in.”
“This is where the game's replay value comes in, more than with the quests.”
“While it was fun at first, this game has little replayability and I cannot get back to playing it.”
“This game got boring very quickly; graphically it's not great and replayability is boring and non-existent.”
“The flipping elements aren't bad - actually they're pretty good - but there's just not enough content, and there's zero replayability (literally you cannot replay levels without starting a new game).”
- atmosphere8 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in Castle Flipper is generally praised for being relaxing and immersive, enhanced by varied and pleasant music, as well as attention to detail in sound effects. Players appreciate the medieval-themed environment and the larger, exploration-focused levels, which contribute to a satisfying gameplay experience. While some elements may not be particularly memorable, the overall ambiance effectively engages players without detracting from the game.
“Castle Flipper seems to be more atmospheric than the House Flipper base game; the levels are often bigger and more exploration-focused; the music is more varied and quite pleasant.”
“The atmosphere, the music, and the fact that your footsteps sound different on different flooring create an immersive experience.”
“Although none of it was very memorable, it did sell a medieval-themed atmosphere, and I didn’t mute it to listen to Spotify instead, as I usually do with games like this.”
“Although none of it was very memorable, it did sell a medieval-themed atmosphere and I didn’t mute it to listen to Spotify instead, as I usually do with games like this.”
“Of course, I miss the NPCs here, but the atmosphere and the accuracy of the graphics are complemented by perfectly composed music.”
- monetization4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized as a blatant cash grab, with many feeling that it lacks originality and quality. Additionally, the developers' restrictive policy on content creator roles, requiring a minimum of 5,000 subscribers, has been viewed as disrespectful to smaller creators who could help promote the game despite its shortcomings. Overall, the approach to monetization has left a negative impression, suggesting a focus on profit over community engagement and quality.
“It is the definition of mashing a bunch of assets together to quickly create something for a cash grab.”
“It has the potential to be a good game, but they just gave up and made a quick copy for cash grab.”
“Unfortunately, having played several hours of this game, I realize that they added 'flipper' to the name as just a cash grab on the popularity of House Flipper.”
- emotional3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users express that the emotional aspect of the game is influenced by the interconnectedness of residential and commercial spaces, which creates a sense of community. Additionally, personal engagement with the game over time has led to deeper emotional reflections and changes in feelings towards it.
“I started a new game and over the past few days have really dug in to see if the changes made me feel any differently about it.”
