Dark Egg
- August 28, 2022
- Transcend Pixels
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io StoreA surrealist text-based RPG. You will explore an island, solve puzzles, and fight enemies, all in your attempt to get the Dark Egg.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The Dark Egg offers a captivating atmosphere with excellent music and sound design that enhances the immersive experience.
- The writing is engaging and well-crafted, providing a compelling narrative that keeps players invested in the story.
- The game features unique mechanics, including a skill tree and interactive puzzles, which add depth to the gameplay.
- The demo has several bugs, including issues with combat mechanics and occasional spelling errors that detract from the experience.
- Some players found the combat system to be simplistic and lacking in depth, which may affect long-term enjoyment.
- The demo ends abruptly, leaving players wanting more content and feeling unsatisfied with the limited gameplay available.
- story66 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 48 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story in the game is described as captivating and immersive, featuring a blend of eerie atmosphere, compelling writing, and engaging RPG elements. While many players appreciate the intriguing plot and the depth of choices that affect gameplay, some express concerns about the story's incompleteness and occasional confusion regarding objectives. Overall, the combination of strong storytelling, atmospheric sound design, and unique combat mechanics creates a rich narrative experience that leaves players eager for more.
“The ambience feels great and is never out of place, the story is just incredible and well-written, the combat is enjoyable and the sounds are so good.”
“The writing is an absolute joy to read as well, always leaving you in the dark about some parts and never fully giving you context about what's going on, along with always keeping me interested in the story.”
“Unfortunately in its current state, the story is incomplete and it's kind of short, but the dev says he will add more.”
“Another problem, for me at least, was that I seemingly lost track of the story and what I was supposed to do after an hour or so.”
“The worldbuilding in this game is also incredibly well put together, the game gives you little hints about the overall picture behind the story, but never truly enough to grasp it firmly; leaving you wanting to know more and more.”
- music45 mentions
- 51 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its ability to enhance the atmosphere and immerse players in the experience, with many noting its dynamic nature and how it complements the storytelling and gameplay. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a key feature that evokes a range of emotions, from adventure to melancholy, and contributes significantly to the overall engagement with the game. Some users also express a desire for the soundtrack to be available for purchase, reflecting its high quality and appeal.
“The soundtrack and story really make you feel the atmosphere and get more and more immersive as you go through the island.”
“The music felt shaped by the environment and the turn-based combat is so tough to stand out until this game was invented.”
“Beautiful music really adds to the experience as you make your way through a well-developed world.”
“Background music settings reset when the song changes, running into the same event twice, or the occasional spelling issues.”
“Another thing of note is the sound effects and music when needed; the music is eerie and mystical... other times it brings out a feeling of sorrowful melancholy.”
“As opposed to the graphics, music as well as general ambience are more sophisticated and their presence - or lack thereof - does pretty well at carrying the atmosphere of this weird place, sometimes layered or dynamic in well-fitting ways.”
- gameplay31 mentions
- 48 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this dark fantasy text-based game combines engaging storytelling with a mix of traditional RPG mechanics and modern interactive elements, creating an immersive experience. While combat and dialogue mechanics are generally solid, some players feel they lack depth, and navigation can be clumsy at times. Overall, the game excels in exploration, puzzles, and a unique combat system, making it a captivating experience, especially for a demo.
“The demo itself is full of atmosphere, exciting storytelling, and action gameplay and unique combat.”
“Combine those two, strong narrative and strong gameplay and you get a masterful experience I really recommend!”
“The gameplay is incredibly simple yet satisfying, following standard old text adventure RPG formats with a mix of modern mechanics, such as incorporation of a turn-based combat system, along with interactive puzzles as well.”
“Both combat and dialogue mechanics are fine, but feel a bit lacking.”
“The mechanics side of it is still very bare bones; let's not exaggerate here - the weapons, for example, all do the same thing (for now) - but it makes up for this with how much they included on the skill tree.”
“Navigation can be clumsy at times, but the precise writing and great audio-driven atmosphere more than recovers anything lost in gameplay execution.”
- atmosphere26 mentions
- 54 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive qualities, driven by a compelling soundtrack, engaging storytelling, and intriguing visual presentation. While some reviewers noted that simplistic graphics detract from the overall experience, the combination of sound, writing, and world-building effectively creates a mysterious and exploratory environment that captivates players. Overall, the atmosphere is described as chilling, dynamic, and deeply engaging, making it a standout feature of the game.
“From the outset, Dark Egg presented me with an intriguing visual presentation, map screen, stat bar, and text box. Through this, the game crafted an immersive atmosphere that allowed me to really dive into the story.”
“The atmosphere of this game is mysterious and exploratory throughout, without giving up the feeling of accomplishment and overcoming obstacles, with solving mysteries leading to deeper beckoning questions.”
“Great game! I was very immersed in the story; the atmosphere the game creates with the sound effects and music really makes the game feel alive.”
“The atmosphere conveyed in the text is betrayed by the simplistic graphics, which makes the former harder to enjoy.”
“As opposed to the graphics, music as well as general ambience are more sophisticated and their presence - or lack thereof - does pretty well at carrying the atmosphere of this weird place, sometimes layered or dynamic in well-fitting ways.”
“Played quite a bit and am loving the chilling atmosphere of the music and story and depth of concern I have on any choice I make unnerves me.”
- graphics17 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally described as simplistic and minimalistic, typical for a text-based format, yet they effectively complement the atmosphere and storytelling. While some players appreciate the pixel art style and find it charming, others feel that additional visual elements could enhance clarity and engagement. Overall, the graphics do not detract from the gameplay experience, allowing the narrative and ambiance to shine through.
“I do not mind pixel graphics, and for example, Roadwarden has shown that a narrative pixel art game can be beautiful and excellent in many ways.”
“This game brings it all together: the beautiful pixel art style, the charm of a book, and the longing for a great adventure.”
“It takes a lot of skill to pull off an unsettling atmosphere with only text and pixel style graphics, but this game pulls it off beautifully.”
“First of all, graphically, the design is quite a challenge to enjoy.”
“Moving pieces around in a puzzle is needlessly tedious and targeting in combat doesn't actually correspond with what you see on screen; furthermore, there are very few animations and actual artwork. Not that a text-based game needs to rely on this, but more of it wouldn't hurt.”
“-I love the art style of the game, but there could be a little more flair to it regarding either environment, items, enemies, stat gauges, etc. in order to have more indication or general clarity between different things in the game; enemies could have a sort of color grading to them, special items, or even (I would imagine red seems fitting) the cryptic shaking text, etc.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players express that "Dark Egg" evokes a strong emotional thrill, enhancing their overall experience. However, some users find the sensitivity of the movement controls to be overly finicky, which may detract from the emotional immersion during gameplay.
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users report that the game suffers from significant bugs, impacting its overall stability.
“The game is riddled with bugs that disrupt gameplay.”
“I frequently experience crashes that make it unplayable.”
“There are constant glitches that ruin the overall experience.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to cumbersome puzzle mechanics and unresponsive combat targeting. Additionally, the lack of animations and artwork contributes to a monotonous experience, detracting from overall engagement.
“Grinding feels like a never-ending chore, with repetitive tasks that offer little reward or excitement.”
“The combat system is frustratingly unresponsive, making it difficult to enjoy the gameplay.”
“The lack of variety in animations and artwork makes the grinding experience feel even more tedious.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization of the game is perceived positively, with users expressing a strong willingness to promote it, indicating satisfaction with its value and pricing structure.
