Curious Expedition

The Curious Expedition is an enjoyable roguelike with a likeable 19th Century setting, humorous writing and lots of content to explore and discover

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In Curious Expedition, embark on roguelike expeditions during the late 19th century to discover new regions, famous personalities, and treasures. With massive multiplayer modes, your name and portrait can be remembered by all players. Steam Workshop support allows for endless possibilities with mods, and the free DLC "The Arctic Expanse" adds new biomes, characters, items, and events. Join the Discord server for updates and features.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Reviews

72%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,427 reviews

gameplay156 positive mentions

stability26 negative mentions

The game offers a unique blend of exploration and strategy, with engaging gameplay mechanics.
The pixel art style and soundtrack create a charming atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.
Each playthrough is different due to random map generation and various character abilities, providing high replayability.

The game can feel repetitive after a few playthroughs, as many events and encounters are similar.
Combat mechanics can be frustrating, relying heavily on RNG, which may lead to unexpected and unfair outcomes.
The lack of a save function means that players can lose significant progress due to a single mistake or bad luck.

gameplay
446 mentions
35 % positive mentions
58 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Curious Expedition" features a blend of resource management and exploration, alternating between a hexagonal map mode and text-based encounters that encourage strategic decision-making. While the game offers deep mechanics and high replayability, some players find the gameplay repetitive and reliant on luck, particularly with its dice-rolling combat system. Overall, it presents a charming atmosphere and engaging mechanics, though the learning curve can be steep and certain elements may frustrate players.
- “Gameplay alternates between map mode, where players navigate a hexagonal world while managing resources and sanity, and zone mode, which involves text-based encounters and decision-making.”
- “Ultimately this game has some splendidly complex gameplay and is ripe for emergent storytelling, even if, or because, it defies strict genre categorization.”
- “Its deep gameplay mechanics, endless replayability, charming visuals and sound design make it a must-play for any indie game enthusiast.”
- “The gameplay is repetitive and lacks variety, making it feel monotonous after a while.”
- “Ultimately, the core gameplay just isn't fun, and it feels largely shallow.”
- “Boiled down, it is full of baffling mechanics, unexplained HUD items, nonexistent tutorial, and more frustration than a grown man should be forced to stomach in an entertainment product.”
graphics
288 mentions
42 % positive mentions
56 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming pixel art style that evokes nostalgia for retro gaming, appealing to fans of 8-bit aesthetics. While some players appreciate the colorful and creative visuals, others find them basic and lacking in detail, with a few noting that the graphics can detract from the overall experience. Overall, the art style is generally well-received, contributing positively to the game's adventurous theme, though it may not satisfy those seeking modern graphical fidelity.
- “Its graphics and animations are awesome and the combat system is interesting as well.”
- “With its charming presentation, excellent pixel graphics, and very, very retro vibe, it offers a truly unique experience.”
- “The pixel graphics of the different places you visit are stunning!”
- “The graphics could be cleaner.”
- “The camps, villages, caves, temples and everything all recycle the exact same graphics.”
- “You can't actually get much of a visual sense of anything with this level of retro graphics, is that 8 pixel thing a bush or a rock?...”
story
282 mentions
18 % positive mentions
74 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The game's story is largely minimal and lacks a coherent narrative, relying heavily on player imagination and emergent storytelling from gameplay experiences. While it offers some world-building and unique character arcs, many players find the repetitive missions and limited content detract from the overall storytelling quality. Despite these shortcomings, the game allows for personal narratives to develop through each playthrough, making every expedition feel unique and engaging.
- “What makes this game so enjoyable for me is how every adventure turns into its own crazy story where you never know what is going to happen next.”
- “Every expedition, whether successful or horrifically failed, will have a unique story to tell, and you will learn valuable skills as a player that allow you to progress that much farther the next time you play, as any roguelike should.”
- “The story changes with every playthrough as the events that the explorer goes through actually make up the story itself.”
- “The game lacks a coherent story, offering only minimal narrative development.”
- “The game provides some world-building and potential for emergent storytelling, but falls short in fleshing out its narrative.”
- “The story elements that do exist are ambiguous and largely unresponsive to player actions, making it difficult to assess the game's storytelling quality.”
replayability
244 mentions
53 % positive mentions
42 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is praised for its high replayability, driven by its random map generation, diverse characters, and engaging mechanics. Many players find themselves returning for multiple playthroughs, enjoying the variety of experiences and challenges each expedition offers. However, some critiques mention that while the game is fun initially, it may lack depth and variety in encounters over time, leading to a mixed perception of its long-term replay value.
- “Its deep gameplay mechanics, endless replayability, charming visuals and sound design make it a must-play for any indie game enthusiast.”
- “The wide variety of items and characters that can be brought into your expedition helps to vastly increase replayability and makes the game more diverse.”
- “Each expedition is different than the last and that adds extreme replay value.”
- “But it suffers where it definitely should not, considering what it aims to be: so as a roguelike, it suffers from the lackluster core combat system and little replayability; and as a choose-your-own-adventure it has downright uninteresting writing.”
- “It's one of those games that makes you wish there was a 'meh' option, not because it is not fun (the first few playthroughs are pretty fun actually), but because its replayability really isn't as good as advertised.”
- “So I've played 9 hours when writing this, that is as long as it took for me to unlock all but one playable character; this game is far from 'replayable'.”
music
154 mentions
47 % positive mentions
48 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally well-received, with many praising its retro style and atmospheric quality that complements the visuals. However, several users noted issues with volume balance, repetitiveness, and some tracks being overly loud or intrusive, which can detract from the gameplay experience. Overall, while the soundtrack is enjoyable and immersive, it could benefit from more variety and better audio management.
- “Great replayability, unreal soundtrack, and a heavy recommendation if you like an immersive strategy game.”
- “The music is fantastic, and changes dynamically based on how your expedition is faring.”
- “Curious Expedition has an enchanting soundtrack that really sets the atmosphere, and with tons of characters to choose from, and procedurally generated maps, it's never the same game twice!”
- “The game is extremely loud, even at the lowest volume setting, which detracts from the overall experience, despite the music being decent.”
- “The soundtrack features low-fidelity, pixel-art-appropriate tunes, but some tracks are overly loud and intrusive, making it difficult to focus on gameplay.”
- “The soundtrack is very repetitive and I often turned it off due to a little bit of headaches every once in a while.”
humor
95 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its dark, quirky, and often absurd nature, with players enjoying the hilarious mishaps that can arise from gameplay decisions. Many reviews highlight the clever writing and comedic elements that make each playthrough feel unique and entertaining, despite some criticism about repetitive gameplay. Overall, the game successfully blends humor with exploration and survival mechanics, creating a memorable and amusing experience.
- “All in all, the Curious Expedition is a delightful game about making hard choices and then either cheering at the results or laughing because you can't believe how wrong things went.”
- “Beware, if you run out of sanity it shan't be long before your party members go mad, desert, or even begin to kill each other (this can be hilarious).”
- “Almost every run is story-worthy in its own right, and you don't have to stray too far from this review section to get a sense of how quickly and hilariously things can go wrong if you're not careful (or just unlucky).”
atmosphere
46 mentions
87 % positive mentions
11 % neutral mentions
2 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive sound effects, ambient music, and creative pixel art, which collectively enhance the overall experience. Reviewers highlight the strong sense of exploration and adventure, with many noting that the atmospheric elements contribute significantly to the gameplay, despite some criticisms of depth. Overall, the atmosphere is described as engaging, nostalgic, and well-executed, making it a standout feature of the game.
- “An atmospheric roguelike with a nice dollop of strategy and a brilliant line in emergent storytelling.”
- “The atmosphere brilliantly captures a sense of exploration, and the fear sets in when sanity gets low too.”
- “The curious expedition is well on its way to establishing a unique atmosphere of adventure which will make you feel like an Indiana Jones on a mission.”
- “But when you look past the atmosphere of the game, you'll notice it's very shallow.”
stability
28 mentions
7 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
93 % negative mentions
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing significant bugs, crashes, and performance issues, particularly during intense moments like volcanic eruptions. However, others report a smoother experience with few crashes and ongoing improvements from the developers. Overall, while the game is still in alpha and has its share of glitches, many find it enjoyable and fun despite these stability concerns.
- “Runs great on my iMac with Big Sur.”
- “I really want to recommend this game, but it's too bipolar, random, and buggy.”
- “For about a third or quarter of my games, when the game doesn’t lag, it freezes, and when it doesn’t freeze, it crashes, and occasionally combat will bug where the enemy party or your own will do no damage.”
- “Really bad optimization, runs really slow and freezes when the volcanoes erupt.”
optimization
26 mentions
15 % positive mentions
62 % neutral mentions
23 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is widely criticized, with users reporting significant performance issues such as frame rate drops, choppy music, and input lag, even on capable hardware. While some players find the gameplay enjoyable and engaging, they agree that substantial patches are necessary to improve performance and address bugs. Despite its current state, many believe the game has potential once optimization issues are resolved.
- “If you really enjoy playing roguelike games that require complex optimization through gear, decision making, crew, etc., play this one.”
- “The optimization is a little wonky with music and frame rate right even after release and refinement, but should be completely playable on basically every computer made in the past 5 years.”
- “Once you have some experience, the game, like most roguelikes, starts to devolve into an optimization problem.”
- “Really poorly optimized; it runs really slow and freezes when the volcanoes erupt.”
- “Horrible performance (huge FPS drops, choppy music, memory leak?!).”
- “The biggest issue, though, is that the game has relatively poor optimization. Considering most of the graphics look like 2D sprites, I'm running it on 16GB RAM, a G3258 at 4.4GHz, and a 960 GTX, and I still get some weird kind of input/stutter lag.”
grinding
22 mentions
0 % positive mentions
9 % neutral mentions
91 % negative mentions
Players have mixed feelings about grinding in the game; while some find it tedious and overly time-consuming, others appreciate the pacing when played as intended. The large map and challenging achievements contribute to a sense of boredom for many, although some report that grinding can become more enjoyable in new contexts. Overall, the grinding mechanics can detract from the fun, especially as they often lead to repetitive gameplay.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “The map is too large and it's not just too difficult; it's also boring and tedious.”
- “While the game is paced well if you play it the way it's 'meant' to be played, the better strategy is to play extremely slow and grindy, which is more effective but much less fun.”
emotional
6 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Players describe the emotional experience of the game as a profound roller coaster, filled with moments of frustration and heartbreak, particularly when facing the challenge of unlocking characters and navigating difficult scenarios with dwindling resources. The narrative evokes strong feelings, leading some to tears as they confront the stakes of their decisions and the fate of their crew.
- “10/10 would ride the emotional roller coaster of not unlocking someone and thinking you wasted a whole game just to realize you unlocked someone you didn't know how to get again.”
- “It also gets heartbreaking when, in the later levels, you get to the golden pyramid with half your crew left, only to find you have to go and unlock something first that is on the other side of the map!”
- “I cried.”
character development
2 mentions
0 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
50 % negative mentions
Users express a desire for deeper character development, suggesting the inclusion of a custom character designer to enhance personalization and engagement with the characters.
- “Hoping to see them build on the ideas here, and maybe allow a custom character designer.”