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Darkest Dungeon

"Darkest Dungeon will push even the most hardcore gamers to their breaking points, but those who are brave enough to take it on are in for a dastardly roguelike rivaled by few others."
Darkest Dungeon Game Cover
84%Game Brain Score
gameplay, story
grinding, stability
91% User Score Based on 62,868 reviews
Critic Score 75%Based on 9 reviews

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Darkest Dungeon Game Cover

About

Darkest Dungeon is a single player tactical role playing game with horror, fantasy, mystery and historical themes. It was developed by Red Hook Studios and was released on February 28, 2018. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

Darkest Dungeon is a gothic roguelike RPG that explores the psychological stresses of adventuring. Players must recruit, train, and lead a team of flawed heroes through turn-based combat against horrifying monsters, while managing their stress, disease, and sanity in the face of the ever-encroaching dark. The game features permanent death for heroes, adding to the challenge and urgency of each expedition.

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Darkest Dungeon screenshot
Darkest Dungeon screenshot
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Darkest Dungeon screenshot
Darkest Dungeon screenshot
Darkest Dungeon screenshot
Darkest Dungeon screenshot
Darkest Dungeon screenshot
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91%
Audience ScoreBased on 62,868 reviews
gameplay3.5k positive mentions
grinding2.7k negative mentions
  • The hand-drawn, gothic art style and haunting sound design create an immersive atmosphere that enhances the gameplay experience.
  • The gameplay is challenging and engaging, with a unique stress mechanic that adds depth and emotional weight to each decision.
  • The game offers exceptional replayability through procedural generation, diverse character builds, and a robust modding community.
  • The game can feel grindy and repetitive, particularly in the late game, leading to frustration for some players.
  • Performance issues, especially with AMD drivers, can lead to crashes and stuttering, detracting from the overall experience.
  • Character development feels limited, and the narrative depth is overshadowed by repetitive gameplay and grinding.
  • gameplay
    10,024 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of *Darkest Dungeon* is characterized by its challenging and punishing mechanics, particularly the unique stress system that adds a layer of psychological depth to the experience. Players often find the turn-based combat engaging, but the reliance on RNG can lead to frustrating moments, especially when characters face permadeath or unexpected afflictions. While the game offers a rich atmosphere and intricate mechanics, it requires a significant investment of time to master, making it a rewarding yet demanding experience for those who enjoy high-stakes strategy and roguelike elements.

    • “The gameplay is really challenging and completely unpredictable.”
    • “The gameplay loop is great, the different character type combos are so much fun to experiment with, and the vibes are so perfectly spooky.”
    • “The stress mechanic adds a wonderful dimension to the gameplay, making every decision feel impactful and meaningful.”
    • “The game's mechanics are meticulously designed, but the permadeath loop becomes unbearable when hours of progress vanish in seconds.”
    • “The stress mechanic is an integral part of the gameplay, but it can feel overwhelming to manage on top of everything else.”
    • “The gameplay loop is very monotonous, forcing you to see the same animations and hear the same sound effects dozens of times.”
  • story
    6,689 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story of "Darkest Dungeon" is steeped in a dark, Lovecraftian atmosphere, where players inherit a cursed estate and must confront the horrors unleashed by their ancestor's reckless ambition. While the narrative unfolds through journal entries and the haunting narration of the ancestor, it primarily serves as a backdrop to the game's challenging mechanics, emphasizing themes of loss, madness, and the expendability of heroes. Players often find themselves emotionally invested in their characters, as the permadeath mechanic and stress system create a sense of urgency and consequence in every mission.

    • “The story, the artwork, the mechanics, it all came from a place of the creators and devs really loving the concept of what they wanted to make and they executed it perfectly.”
    • “The art, music, voice-work, and story are dark, grungy, and desolate but are so enrapturing and sometimes even motivational.”
    • “The continuous, mocking commentary of your deceased ancestor is a real joy, making it feel like you are characters in a story, bringing the world to life.”
    • “There's no story or fun crazy overpowered builds like in the other roguelikes, it's just endlessly grinding turn-based combat until you beat the game.”
    • “The grind was the story.”
    • “The game cuts down on storytelling aspects (even though it does have a Lovecraftian atmosphere) and emphasizes more on tactics and preparedness for each dungeon you explore.”
  • graphics
    5,641 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of *Darkest Dungeon* are widely praised for their unique hand-drawn, gothic art style that effectively conveys the game's dark and oppressive atmosphere. Players appreciate the striking visuals, which are complemented by haunting sound design and exceptional narration, creating an immersive experience that enhances the gameplay. While some critiques mention the simplicity of the graphics, many agree that the aesthetic contributes significantly to the game's overall charm and thematic depth.

    • “The hand-drawn, gothic art style is incredible and creates a mood that perfectly matches the gameplay, while the iconic narration is essential to the oppressive atmosphere.”
    • “The art style is stunning, with hand-drawn characters and environments that ooze gothic horror.”
    • “The art style, inspired by gothic horror, is hauntingly beautiful, with dark, hand-drawn visuals and atmospheric sound design that build a foreboding mood throughout.”
    • “The graphics are pretty horrible and the character artwork in the base game is extremely ugly and unattractive.”
    • “The graphics are simple, clean and effective; they paint the picture in broad strokes rather than perfect realism.”
    • “The graphics are adequate, but eye candy it is not.”
  • atmosphere
    3,620 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of "Darkest Dungeon" is widely praised for its oppressive and immersive qualities, characterized by stunning hand-drawn gothic art, haunting narration by Wayne June, and a dark, Lovecraftian tone. Players appreciate how the game's visuals, sound design, and mechanics work together to create a sense of dread and tension, making every decision feel impactful. Despite its punishing difficulty and RNG elements, the atmosphere remains a significant draw, enhancing the overall experience and engagement with the game.

    • “The game's oppressive atmosphere, stunning hand-drawn gothic art, and the relentless pressure of the stress mechanic create a uniquely captivating experience.”
    • “The hand-drawn, gothic art style is incredible and creates a mood that perfectly matches the gameplay, while the iconic narration is essential to the oppressive atmosphere.”
    • “The atmosphere of hopelessness, dungeon crawling, and descent into madness — an excellent game.”
    • “The atmosphere is dark and unwelcoming, even the neighboring hamlet that's now decrepit is devoid of any colors.”
    • “The atmosphere is thick like yogurt!”
  • grinding
    2,796 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The grinding aspect of "Darkest Dungeon" is a significant point of contention among players, with many reviews highlighting it as both a core mechanic and a source of frustration. While some players appreciate the challenge and depth that grinding adds to character development and resource management, others find it tedious and repetitive, particularly in the late game where the need to level up new heroes after losses can feel overwhelming. Overall, the game is described as heavily reliant on grinding, with a mix of RNG elements that can lead to frustrating setbacks, making it a polarizing experience for gamers.

    • “The upgrade system of the village is grindy but not too grindy.”
    • “Quests are categorized by level so you'll always be playing at your party's skill level; no farming experience on under-leveled quests for you!”
    • “No grinding, quick leveling but still requires skill, and even with an RNG element; it is very downplayed and rare that one turn will make you lose the game.”
    • “There's no story or fun crazy overpowered builds like in the other roguelikes, it's just endlessly grinding turn-based combat until you beat the game.”
    • “Like I slogged through 20-30 hours of grinding through the mid-game that by the time I reached the difficulty spike of the end game killed what remaining interest I had in the game.”
    • “I forgot how grindy and unforgiving the game is, dozens of hours down the drain when you meet an RNG boss on what is supposed to be a casual mission and wipes your entire squad.”
  • music
    2,422 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in "Darkest Dungeon" has been widely praised for its atmospheric and immersive qualities, effectively enhancing the game's dark, gothic aesthetic. Composed by Stuart Chatwood, the soundtrack dynamically shifts in intensity based on gameplay elements, such as the light level, which adds to the tension and emotional weight of encounters. Players appreciate the haunting melodies and the impactful narration by Wayne June, which together create a uniquely engaging experience that complements the game's themes of despair and struggle. However, some reviewers noted that the music can become repetitive over extended play sessions, suggesting a desire for more variety in the soundtrack.

    • “The soundtrack, composed by Stuart Chatwood, complements the game perfectly, ebbing and flowing with dread, melancholy, and occasional triumph.”
    • “The music and atmosphere are on a whole other level of game development, creating a uniquely immersive experience.”
    • “The art style, music, voice acting, and story are dark, grungy, and desolate but are so enrapturing and sometimes even motivational.”
    • “The music is bad and full of annoying flourishes!”
    • “The music and narration is sometimes gives me shivers.”
    • “The soundtrack is kind of forgettable imo but it manages to get its job done by adding to the already stressful atmosphere of the game.”
  • replayability
    793 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is widely praised for its exceptional replayability, largely attributed to its procedural generation, permadeath mechanics, and a robust modding community that continually enhances the experience. Players appreciate the variety of character builds, challenges, and the dynamic nature of each run, ensuring that no two playthroughs are the same. While some note that the game can become grindy or repetitive, the overall consensus is that it offers immense replay value, making it a compelling choice for fans of the genre.

    • “The game also boasts excellent support for a robust Steam Workshop modding scene, which provides years of replayability and quality-of-life adjustments.”
    • “Endlessly replayable: the procedural generation of dungeons, combined with different character builds and challenges, ensures that every run feels fresh and keeps players coming back for more.”
    • “The variety of heroes, vast enemies, complex and simple strategies alike, random events, quirks, secrets, trinkets, and areas opens up nigh-unlimited opportunities for replayability and customization, especially with any of the DLCs.”
    • “After having completed Stygian game mode, I have found that there is no real payoff for beginning another playthrough as the replayability is nonexistent and essentially restricts the player's options so much so that they have to conform to generic team compositions.”
    • “The gameplay is only replayable because there is a level cap system preventing you from using high-level characters when you've built a few full teams.”
    • “However, once fully completed, it doesn't really have much replay value in my opinion; when you've done everything and mastered all the classes and dungeons.”
  • emotional
    547 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The emotional aspect of "Darkest Dungeon" is a central theme that resonates deeply with players, often leading to intense feelings of attachment and loss. Many reviews highlight the game's ability to evoke a wide range of emotions, from heart-wrenching grief over the death of beloved characters to exhilarating triumphs against overwhelming odds. The mechanics of stress and permadeath create a unique emotional rollercoaster, making victories feel rewarding while losses can be devastating, resulting in a profound and sometimes painful connection to the game's characters.

    • “The emotional highs only work because of the crushing lows.”
    • “Darkest Dungeon is an emotional rollercoaster, with dizzying highs when you succeed against all odds and terrifying lows when you fail miserably despite your best efforts.”
    • “You will become emotionally invested in your characters and watch in horror as they perish.”
    • “Can't customize party members, can't find new armor that looks cooler or weapons, boring story, heroes are disposable pawns with no connection to the player.”
    • “The same map and boring story.”
    • “You are a masochist, enjoying suffering from endless failures, unfair RNG, and a boring story.”
  • humor
    511 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in "Darkest Dungeon" is characterized by its dark, morbid wit, often juxtaposed against the game's grim atmosphere and punishing gameplay. Players find amusement in the absurdity of their characters' misfortunes, such as gaining phobias or experiencing comically disastrous outcomes, which can lead to both laughter and frustration. The clever narration and quirky character interactions enhance the experience, making the game a unique blend of challenge and humor that resonates with those who appreciate a darker comedic tone.

    • “Despite the gloomy setting, this game is pretty funny and dare I say inspiring.”
    • “The art is awesome and the narrator's voice is funny as hell to me, and there are some funny moments here and there.”
    • “It's funny seeing characters react in their most desperate moments.”
    • “Sadly, the gameplay did not click at all for me: at first interesting, it quickly became very repetitive and not funny at all.”
    • “It's not funny, it's a game for masochists.”
    • “There's so many mechanics stacked on top of each other to make your gaming experience unpleasant; it's not funny.”
  • character development
    185 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Character development in the game is a mixed bag, with many players praising the unique and striking character designs, as well as the atmospheric art style and voice acting. However, there are frequent criticisms regarding the depth and impact of character progression, with some noting that while characters can level up and gain traits, the overall development feels limited and often overshadowed by repetitive gameplay and grinding. Despite these issues, the game's aesthetic and thematic elements contribute to a strong emotional attachment to the characters, even if their development lacks significant narrative depth.

    • “The gothic, grimy aesthetic reflects the world’s bleakness, and the character designs are strikingly detailed, with each class having unique visual traits.”
    • “The character designs are amazing, all with their own unique ways of fighting/buffing and healing the team.”
    • “The atmosphere and character design are outstanding.”
    • “The lack of character development combined with how little you are actually supposed to care about them makes the game less interesting over time.”
    • “There is no character development, almost no setting advancement, and barely any plot.”
    • “At the moment, combat is a dull slog, dungeons are shockingly undifferentiated, and character development offers few rewards married to many punishments.”
  • optimization
    177 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The optimization of *Darkest Dungeon* is generally well-received, with many players reporting smooth performance even on older hardware, thanks to its 2D art style. However, some users have experienced significant performance issues, particularly with AMD drivers, leading to stuttering and crashes. Overall, while the game runs well for most, it requires careful management of character stress and optimization of party builds to succeed, which can be a double-edged sword in terms of gameplay enjoyment.

    • “As a mature title, the PC port of Darkest Dungeon is highly stable and well-optimized.”
    • “Performance issues are virtually non-existent, and the hand-drawn 2D art style ensures quick load times and a smooth experience, even on older hardware.”
    • “You have to monitor your characters' stress levels, which affects their performance in and out of combat, the light level in the dungeon, which has several different mechanics it changes depending on more/less light, their hunger which also factors into their stress levels, their health (obviously), and their status conditions.”
    • “It's just not optimized well.”
    • “Great game but unfortunately has horrible performance if you have an AMD card and intend on using AMD drivers past 22.6.1.”
    • “This game is still plagued by performance issues when using AMD drivers, and for that I cannot recommend you play this game.”
  • stability
    134 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting significant bugs and glitches, including crashes, visual issues, and save file losses. While some users have experienced smooth gameplay with minimal problems, a substantial number have encountered frustrating technical difficulties that detract from the overall experience. Overall, the game appears to be a mix of solid performance for some and a buggy mess for others, indicating a need for further polish and updates.

    • “Its a great game, it's stable with no glitches or bugs; it has a steep learning curve but it can be easily conquered with determination.”
    • “The game feels well thought out, solidly coded, and bug free so far.”
    • “This game already feels extremely polished and bug free.”
    • “I played on and off for a while, I started a new playthrough and had a lot of fun, then it crashed and I couldn't open that save anymore as it would crash every time I went into it. I tried to fix it but it didn't work. Then when I backed up my files and uninstalled the game, my save just disappeared. The game is great and super fun, just buggy as hell.”
    • “I've experienced visual glitches and regular crashes in just over 2 hours of playtime.”
    • “The game is so buggy that most people are unable to play it at all, and the other half have to disable large amounts of content just to run the bare minimum.”
  • monetization
    38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The monetization aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players expressing frustration over intrusive in-game advertisements and microtransactions that detract from the overall experience. While some appreciate the lack of pay-to-win mechanics, others feel that the presence of ads, particularly for DLC, undermines the game's integrity and immersion. Overall, the monetization strategy appears to be a significant point of contention, with calls for a more player-friendly approach.

    • “This game is basically a more feature-filled version of labyrinth-mode Epic 7, but reworked in such a way that it doesn't have or need microtransactions.”
    • “It's like a well-executed mobile game, but without waiting and microtransactions to skip the grind.”
    • “Add in microtransactions to manage the stress, and it feels a lot like a mobile game.”
    • “The annoying thing are the DLC advertisements baked into the game.”
    • “Darkest Dungeon seems like a great game, but in-game advertisements make me so angry.”
    • “The Darkest Dungeon franchise has put such an emphasis on pay-to-win microtransactions that its most popular game mode, the online myestate, feels horribly discouraging from the outset due to the disadvantage you’ll face unless you’re willing to throw down extra cash.”
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75%Critics’ scoreBased on 9 critic reviews
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38h Median play time
76h Average play time
58h Main story
125h Completionist
10-100h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 422 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Darkest Dungeon is a tactical role playing game with horror, fantasy, mystery and historical themes.

Darkest Dungeon is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Steam Deck, iPhone and others.

The main story can be completed in around 58 hours, while the entire game is estimated to take about 125 hours to finish. On average players spend around 76 hours playing Darkest Dungeon.

Darkest Dungeon was released on February 28, 2018.

Darkest Dungeon was developed by Red Hook Studios.

Darkest Dungeon has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its grinding.

Darkest Dungeon is a single player game.

Similar games include Darkest Dungeon II, For The King, Battle Brothers, FTL: Faster Than Light, Othercide and others.