Catacombs 1: Demon War

About

Catacombs 1: Demon War is a single player role playing game. It was developed by SimProse Studios and was released on July 12, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Catacombs 1: Demon War is a 3-chapter game where you become a brave hero on a mission to uncover the dark past of your cursed home and defeat evil forces. The game features high-res graphics, customizable controls, and an immersive original orchestral music score. With over 300 weapons, armor, and items, and hundreds of thousands of possible combinations, the game offers a rich and engaging RPG experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

64%

Audience ScoreBased on 25 reviews

graphics3 negative mentions

The game features a strategic RPG battle system that requires players to manage their HP and MP effectively, adding depth to combat.
The story is engaging with some good plot twists, and the inclusion of voice acting enhances the overall experience.
The game offers a variety of side quests and in-game achievements, providing additional content and replayability.

The game suffers from low-quality graphics and a lack of polish, with many assets feeling generic and poorly implemented.
Gameplay can be repetitive and grindy, with issues such as awkward controls and a confusing interface that detracts from the experience.
The game is very short, with a playtime of around 3 hours, which may not justify the price for many players.

story
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
74%
13%
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with many praising its engaging plot twists, improved voice acting, and the inclusion of side missions that add depth. While some players found the overarching narrative to be basic and reminiscent of typical RPG tropes, others appreciated the unique details and retro graphics that enhance the experience. Overall, the story is seen as a solid foundation for future installments, despite some criticisms regarding repetitiveness and simplicity.
- “The ending of this game is a good plot twist, and I love how it ended.”
- “While the overall story of saving a hometown isn't the most original, it's the details that make it stand out and adds a bit more of a unique twist to it.”
- “Only this time there is better artwork as well as introducing voice acting for the storyline narrative.”
- “The story is what you would expect from a cheap title, so no complaints there.”
- “It's as if a ten-year-old had written a story named 'War of the Stars' or 'Master of the Ring' and were incredibly proud of it.”
- “The setup with the locked dungeon, the side quests (collecting vegetables for a random guy in a locked dungeon... yeah, sure), nothing makes any sense whatsoever.”
graphics
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
28%
43%
The graphics in the game are a mixed bag; while it features retro-style visuals that evoke a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic RPGs, the limitations of the RPG Maker engine result in poor fullscreen performance and lack of HD support. Some players appreciate the unique artwork and improved animations, alongside voice acting that enhances the narrative, but overall, the simplistic graphics may not meet the expectations of modern gamers.
- “Graphically, the game looks nice enough and gives me a sort of Ultima vibe.”
- “Only this time there is better artwork as well as introducing voice acting for the storyline narrative.”
- “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.”
- “Simplistic graphics.”
- “The first of three chapters of a larger story, Catacombs 1 has different graphics than most RPG Maker games.”
gameplay
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The gameplay is criticized for being repetitive and outdated, with low-quality visuals typical of RPG Maker titles. While some mechanics may initially feel unfamiliar, they eventually become manageable, but the overall experience is marred by grindy random encounters and a lack of innovation. Reviewers suggest that the game would benefit from insights into better RPG Maker design practices to enhance its gameplay foundation.
- “The armor and weapon break mechanic adds an interesting layer to the gameplay.”
- “Mechanics were different from what I was used to, but once I got used to them, everything flowed fairly smoothly.”
- “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.”
- “The gameplay itself seems repetitive and a little outdated.”
- “On the gameplay side, most of it consists of the usual RPG Maker grind against invisible random encounters, plus a bunch of fixed visible boss encounters.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some users find it low caliber, basic, and repetitive, others appreciate the custom compositions that enhance the game's grim atmosphere. Overall, the investment in quality assets, including music, is noted positively by some players.
- “On the positive side, the creator has invested heavily in assets (Pioneer Valley tilesets, custom music which is actually pretty nice), and the few ounces of voice acting are also fine.”
- “The music is low caliber, pretty basic and repetitive.”
- “The only thing I loved about this game is the setting, the grim mood it creates, and its music.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews on the aspect of "grinding" are mixed; while some players appreciate the straightforward gameplay that avoids excessive grind, others find the random encounters repetitive and dull, leading to a sense of monotony in the experience. Overall, the game strikes a balance for some, but others feel it leans too heavily into grindy territory.
- “Dull, boring, grindy, and repetitive random encounters in the zone every few steps.”
- “I am okay with the game concept and storyline, but the little I played seemed rather repetitive and grindy in this turn-based RPG.”
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.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has limited replayability, with many users noting that there isn't much incentive to play it again after completing it.
- “Not a lot of replay value.”