Crafty Survivors
- March 15, 2023
- Flannel Bear Games
- 6h median play time
Get on Steam"Crafty Survivors" is a single-player action game featuring compelling visuals and unique mechanics. In this roguelite, players can choose from various crafters and artisans to create unique builds, from roasting foes as a Chef to crushing enemies with statues as a Sculptor. Upgrading your village with gathered materials enhances your characters and unlocks new content, but beware of the game's grindy nature.
Mac OS
PC
Steam Deck
Windows
Reviews
- Crafty Survivors features unique characters with distinct playstyles, making each run feel fresh and engaging.
- The game has a charming art style and smooth animations, enhancing the overall experience.
- The meta-progression system allows players to upgrade their town, providing a sense of accomplishment and long-term goals.
- The game can feel grindy, requiring players to replay levels multiple times to gather necessary resources for upgrades.
- Some players have reported issues with character movement 'sticking', leading to frustrating moments during gameplay.
- The variety of builds and skills for each character may feel limited, leading to repetitive gameplay over time.
- gameplay107 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by a diverse range of characters, each with unique mechanics and skill trees that encourage experimentation and replayability. While many players appreciate the innovative mechanics and polished design, some find the gameplay loop repetitive and frustrating, particularly in the early stages. Overall, the game offers a fresh take on the survivor-like genre, blending survival elements with engaging character abilities and a rewarding progression system.
“The gameplay loop in the early game is about picking one of two builds and connecting them in a specific order to build up a combo that is devastating and has a chance to heal you.”
“The characters, skills, and their gameplay make this game really unique in this genre.”
“Each character has its own themed abilities and unique mechanics that make them feel extremely distinct from one another.”
“The game wants to be a proper survivor-like so badly but it misses the mark on the subtleties of positioning and clever weapon use, allowing victory in favor of overcomplicated mechanics that just don't work right.”
“The gameplay seems like it's intentionally trying to be frustrating.”
“Right now, to me, the gameplay loop feels repetitive and grindy, and the hitboxes of floor area-of-effect attacks feel delayed.”
- grinding41 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's grinding aspect is frequently noted as excessive, with many players finding the resource gathering and meta-progression tedious and repetitive. While some appreciate the unique mechanics and character diversity that keep the gameplay engaging, others criticize the grind as a detriment to enjoyment, especially as it often requires replaying similar maps for upgrades. Overall, the grind is seen as a defining feature of the genre, but opinions vary on whether it enhances or detracts from the overall experience.
“However, the game is grindy; a lot of the maps feel similar, and to do some upgrades, you are required to replay boss maps and optionally revisit maps with certain characters.”
“I don't understand why the developers want to torture us, but even with the added 'easy' mode, which cuts the tedium by reducing enemies, this game is still too much grind. At this point, there is no reason to buy this; they had a good concept but ruined it with needless grind. There are so many survivor games that respect your time or have a fun grind; this isn't that—it's just a tedious, soul-rending grind for lackluster rewards.”
“It was fun for a bit, but became repetitive and rather grindy, with boring square levels.”
- graphics40 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming and playful pixel art aesthetic that enhances its lighthearted yet tense atmosphere. While many players appreciate the unique character designs and engaging visuals, some note that the screen can become cluttered, impacting visibility during gameplay. Overall, the art style is well-received, with a mix of cute visuals and solid animations, though there are calls for further polish and variety in future updates.
“The graphics are endearing, with a playful art style that complements the game's lighthearted yet tense atmosphere.”
“From the moment I began playing, I was struck by the colorful and dynamic visuals that brought the game's various environments to life.”
“Crafty survivors is a promising survivors game with highly ambitious gameplay and the comfy pixel aesthetics of homesteading games.”
“Doesn't seem above average based on graphics and half-minute gameplay, but it has a lot to offer compared to other similar games.”
“The similar visuals, small maps, and enemy types get old quickly.”
“Again, I understand that the variety in visuals is minimal.”
- music14 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 21 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for being catchy, upbeat, and immersive, enhancing the overall gameplay experience. While many players appreciate the engaging soundtrack and its nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic NES games, some express a desire for more variety and additional tracks. Overall, the sound design complements the visuals well, contributing to the game's polished presentation.
“The music is catchy, the characters and skills are thoughtfully created, and the combat is downright fun!”
“The game features stunning graphics and an engaging soundtrack that immediately draws players into the game's world.”
“The soundtrack also adds an extra layer of immersion, with its fast-paced beats and energetic melodies perfectly complementing the game's action-packed gameplay.”
“Music was an instant turn off for me; menu sounds are rather obnoxious and in-game sounds lack some variety, because you'll hear them a lot.”
“I like the pixel art aesthetics (subjective of course), and the music is okay.”
“Interesting take, reminds me of old NES games, even the music.”
- story7 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 57 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The story is largely considered unengaging, revolving around heroes corrupted by purple slimes, leaving only common people to fight back. Players note a lack of depth and content, with minimal narrative and few stages, leading to a sense of disinterest in the overall plot.
“The 'story' text is just not something to care about.”
“First of all, the basic story of this game is that all of the heroes have been corrupted by the purple slimes, so all that's left to fight back are the common men and women.”
“Not much real content yet (no story, only a few stages).”
- stability5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game currently suffers from significant stability issues, including glitches that affect gameplay mechanics like the dash counter and overall buggy performance. While there is potential for improvement, many users find the experience clunky and reminiscent of lower-quality titles, particularly in its early access state.
“Leveling up often glitches the dash counter to display 0 even though it is most likely full.”
“There's a real solid foundation here and I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes, but at the time of this review, the game is buggy (yes, I know, early access, etc.).”
“Most of them feel a bit clunky, 'floaty' or flat out buggy, at which point they just start feeling like cheap knockoffs.”
- replayability5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
Overall, while some players appreciate the unique gameplay and character options, many feel that the limited number of active skills and lack of significant build variation restrict replayability. Once players have cleared all available maps, the incentive to replay diminishes.
“Creative character, unique & addictive gameplay, high replayability!”
“It's a nice idea to have different characters, but having only 10 active skills, of which you can pick 5 per run, doesn't offer a lot of replayability per character, in my opinion.”
“Build variation might not be that great, so replayability without anything to work towards is limited.”
“I cleared all maps that are playable.”
- character development5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- -20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is highly praised for its unique and visually appealing designs, which enhance gameplay through strategic ability usage and progression. Players appreciate the depth of character customization and the ability to adjust difficulty based on their proactive choices, alongside the added feature of upgrading a home base to improve skills and reduce cooldowns. Overall, the character development system is seen as a standout element that enriches the gaming experience.
“Really unique character designs and good progression feel.”
“Its unique character design rewards pre-planning and smart positioning of abilities, as well as a mix of active-skill usage on top of the now 'traditional' auto-fire abilities.”
“The depth of the character designs also allows for adjusting difficulty based on pro-activity.”
“The character development feels shallow and lacks meaningful progression, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
“I found the character arcs to be predictable and uninspired, which detracted from my overall enjoyment of the game.”
“There is a lack of diversity in character abilities, leading to repetitive gameplay and a feeling of stagnation in development.”
- optimization4 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The game exhibits occasional bugs and performance issues typical of early access titles, though developers are responsive to feedback. While some players report no stuttering or slowdown, others note that optimization needs improvement, suggesting that future updates could enhance the overall experience.
“Occasional bugs and performance issues are present, but the developers are usually quick to respond to them, which is promising for an early access game.”
“This game seems to have some optimization issues.”
“Occasional bugs and performance issues; usually the devs are fast to respond to them, but it is still an early access game.”
“This means I barely play specific characters, but if the game is given more time to update and address optimization, then it is something I can wholeheartedly recommend.”
- humor3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by its charming and cute art style, complemented by upbeat music and clever skill names that resonate with players. Many find the abundance of similar games in the genre to be amusing, adding to the overall lighthearted experience.
“The art is charming, funny, and cute.”
“I think the overabundance of vs-like games is pretty humorous.”
“The visuals are adorable, the music is upbeat and catchy, and the skill names appeal to my sense of humor.”
- atmosphere1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is characterized by endearing graphics and a playful art style that effectively balance lightheartedness with moments of tension, creating an engaging experience for players.
“The graphics are endearing, with a playful art style that complements the game's lighthearted yet tense atmosphere.”
“The sound design immerses you completely, creating an eerie yet captivating atmosphere that keeps you on edge.”
“The world feels alive, with dynamic weather and ambient sounds that enhance the overall atmosphere and draw you into the experience.”
