Crawl Tactics

About

Crawl Tactics is a single player casual role playing game. It was developed by icefill and was released on December 8, 2022. It received very positive reviews from players.

Crawl Tactics combines classic turn-based tactics with roguelike progression. In Dungeon Mode, face challenging, ever-changing encounters as you explore procedurally generated maps. In Quest Mode, develop your village, train your mercenaries, and defend against growing enemy invasions. More of a fully fledged Tactical RPG battle than a puzzle game! Crawl Tactics is not a puzzle-…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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92%

Audience ScoreBased on 130 reviews

story4 positive mentions

music4 negative mentions

Deep and engaging tactical RPG combat with a variety of classes, subclasses, and unique build possibilities providing extensive customization and strategic depth.
Procedurally generated dungeons and multiple game modes (including a town-building quest mode) offer high replayability and varied gameplay experiences.
Developer is highly responsive and active with frequent updates, bug fixes, and community engagement which significantly improves the game over time.

User interface and overall game polish can be clunky and unintuitive, making it difficult especially for new players to fully grasp progression and tactical options.
Difficulty can be harsh and sometimes feel unfair due to RNG elements, unbalanced encounters, and punishing bosses, which can lead to frustrating gameplay experiences.
Lack of story or meaningful lore and some repetitive or underdeveloped aspects in the quest mode and dungeon variety leave the game feeling somewhat shallow beyond combat.

story
36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
81%
8%
The game features minimal story elements, focusing largely on tactical combat rather than narrative depth or lore, which may disappoint players seeking rich storytelling. It offers two main modes: an action-focused roguelike dungeon crawl and a quest mode that introduces village-building, missions, and a light storyline reminiscent of Darkest Dungeon but still prioritizing gameplay over story. Overall, the story is sparse and basic, serving as a simple backdrop rather than a core aspect of the experience.
- “There are two major game modes: the first being dungeon crawling, and the second being more akin to Darkest Dungeon, where you build a village, accept missions, build a roster of heroes and go on missions to defeat the big evil.”
- “After going through the default choose-your-own-path-adventure game mode, the game really opens up with several new classes, more skills to learn, and a new quest mode that's just icing on the cake.”
- “Standard quests provide random loot and resources, and security to the village. Exploration quests increase difficulty and progress the storyline. Event quests provide special loot and the opportunity to acquire a significant roster of cool special characters. Once all regions have been explored, a final boss is unlocked, and once that's defeated players can begin a new game of quest mode at a higher difficulty while retaining their village and units.”
- “Tl;dr - you'd likely enjoy this if you're a fan of tactic games for tactical's sake, since it has no lore or story whatsoever, just a simple premise.”
- “No story for my lore addiction.”
- “There is a very minimal story but the star is the gameplay.”
gameplay
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
64%
18%
The gameplay is highly praised for its solid and rewarding tactical RPG mechanics that blend dungeon exploration and roguelite elements, offering deep class variety, strategic resource management, and strong replayability. While the story is minimal, players appreciate the challenging, satisfying core gameplay loop and the unique combination of Final Fantasy Tactics-style strategy with roguelike progression. Overall, it’s regarded as the standout aspect that drives player engagement and enjoyment.
- “The chain reactions with what you can use, the environments, the class lineup, and the overall general gameplay is very solid!”
- “Successfully merges RPG tactics and roguelike gameplay with the understanding that the challenge of a real roguelike is resource management, not just procedural generation and permadeath.”
- “The game is entirely gameplay focused and player driven.”
- “Didn't unlock all the classes before the gameplay loop got dull.”
- “Will remind myself to write a more in depth review later, but I have no complaints about the core gameplay other than complaining at myself for making a mistake at later levels and losing a unit I liked.”
- “[b] gameplay suggestions: [/b]”
music
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
46%
31%
The game's music is generally regarded as its weakest aspect, with many users finding the soundtrack dull, repetitive, and lacking variety, especially the battle music, which fails to enhance the combat experience or create excitement. Some suggest adding more dynamic and engaging music to improve the atmosphere.
- “The battle music is the most important music in any game that's mostly combat, like this one is.”
- “The battle music is the most important music in any game that's mostly combat, like this one is.”
- “The game has functional music, but maybe down the line we could see a bit more variety to it.”
- “Combat music sucks.”
- “But much of what was chosen is just bad, especially battle music, which puts me to sleep instead of getting me in the mood to fight.”
- “Dull gameplay and a boring soundtrack.”
graphics
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
39%
23%
The graphics feature a charming, unique art style with well-done pixel art and detailed hand-drawn animations that blend nostalgic and modern elements. While visually appealing and enhancing gameplay immersion, some users feel the design can be cluttered with unnecessary ornaments, potentially obscuring clarity. Overall, the graphics receive praise for their quality and contribution to the game's tactical roguelike atmosphere.
- “The graphics are fun, nostalgic yet modernized in all the right ways, and the developer is very nice and listens intently to feedback.”
- “The art style is unique and the environmental items and battle animations add a great spin along with the roguelike feel.”
- “I wonder if he would have made this game with a story and characters if it would have got more popular, the gameplay itself and the artwork is solid hand drawn and nicely animated.”
- “It appears that a disproportionate part of the budget went into the graphics department while the design branch was heavily underfunded.”
- “Simple pixel graphics.”
- “Don't be misled by the simple graphics; this game is quite deep and highly playable.”
replayability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
57%
The game offers high replayability, praised for its solid core mechanics, procedural generation, and character variability, making each playthrough unique. Recent updates like the rebalanced unlockable "quest" mode have further enhanced the replay value, solidifying it as a standout tactics game with lasting appeal.
- “An absolute hidden gem of a tactics game with endless replayability.”
- “I'm gonna keep playing it, because the core mechanics are so solid, and I haven't seen any other game do what this game is doing with this replayability.”
- “With v2.5, the unlockable 'quest' mode has been rebalanced and fleshed out, adding a ton of replay value and fun.”
grinding
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding in the game can feel tedious and unrewarding, with low XP rewards leading to unnecessary farming and stat checks that disrupt progression. However, players who enjoy deep character customization and extensive creature recruitment may find the grinding aspect rewarding and engaging.
- “You do not have the feeling of accomplishment and progress, only a feeling of grinding for crap.”
- “Ended up hitting the wall where the tedious stat checks start showing up.”
- “Unnecessary grinding to catch other units up to main level because XP rewards are too low.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The optimization aspect is praised for its balanced complexity, allowing players to enhance character performance through class ranking and sub-classes. The strategic team building and character optimization add depth without being overly complicated, making the gameplay engaging and rewarding.
- “What I loved about it is the character and team optimization.”
- “It's not very complicated but the strategy and team building/optimization keeps me coming back.”
- “I like the art style and the way you can rank up your classes and also have sub-classes that enhance the overall performance of your characters.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game demonstrates strong stability, with the developer consistently providing updates that keep bugs minimal and immersion intact. While occasional minor glitches persist, they are not disruptive and are being addressed regularly.
- “The developer knows what he's doing when it comes to developing a tactical RPG and regularly keeps the game updated and bug-free.”
- “Unfortunately still a little buggy, but gets regular updates, so that can change pretty quickly.”
- “Minor glitches but nothing to be concerned with; it doesn't break immersion.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is noted as amusing but limited, with little impact on gameplay variety. Additionally, ongoing development and improvements, including potential enhancements to humor or UI, appear unlikely as the game’s development is winding down.