Disciples: Liberation

Lots of games promise large worlds to explore, where your choices make a difference. Few, however, have made me ponder my actions as much as Disciples: Liberation.

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Disciples: Liberation is a dark fantasy strategy RPG with turn-based combat, set in the richly detailed world of Nevendaar. Players can explore an overworld, align with various factions, and make decisions that impact the story, while the Digital Deluxe Edition offers bonus armor, weapons, skillpoints, and resources.

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Reviews

64%

Audience ScoreBased on 760 reviews

story128 positive mentions

grinding43 negative mentions

Engaging story with meaningful choices that affect the outcome.
Beautiful graphics and well-designed environments.
Fun tactical combat with a variety of units and abilities.

Combat can become repetitive and tedious, especially with slow animations.
Lack of difficulty options makes the game too easy for experienced players.
Some bugs and glitches, including a game-breaking dialogue loop.

story
479 mentions
27 % positive mentions
68 % neutral mentions
5 % negative mentions
The story in "Disciples: Liberation" has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its depth and character interactions, while others criticize it for being convoluted and lacking coherence. Many noted that the narrative can feel formulaic and rushed, with choices that sometimes lead to unexpected or unsatisfying outcomes. Overall, while the game offers a rich world and engaging side quests, the main storyline often struggles with pacing and clarity, leaving some players feeling disconnected from the plot.
- “The story is interesting, the combat is decent, your choices change the course of the game.”
- “The story is engaging, and actually forces you to make hard choices.”
- “The story is incredibly rich and deep, the characters are fantastic and make you care about them, and the ending... blew my mind.”
- “The story is bland, uninspired dark fantasy, which would be alright, had it not been for a boring and empty-feeling world, where each area quickly resembles the next.”
- “The story is its weakest part.”
- “The story writing is mediocre. It is just ticking boxes, talking to them and triggering secondary quests all at the same time.”
gameplay
178 mentions
33 % positive mentions
60 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Disciples: Liberation" has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating its modernized mechanics and tactical turn-based battles, which draw inspiration from both the King's Bounty and Heroes of Might and Magic series. However, criticisms include a lack of depth and variety in combat, repetitive mechanics, and an overall ease that diminishes challenge. While some players enjoy the engaging story and character-building aspects, others find the gameplay tedious and marred by poorly implemented mechanics and excessive grinding.
- “A big departure from the HOMM clone the series used to be, it now emulates the King's Bounty series, just with a more user-friendly, more balanced, and less tedious gameplay.”
- “The mechanics are easy to get the hang of even though at first they look overwhelming.”
- “Great writing, voice acting, unit design, gameplay is fun if a bit on the easy side, lots of nice quality of life features like conquering weak armies or being able to teleport home from anywhere.”
- “Yup, you realize now the core gameplay loop sucks, has shallow depth, and the upgraded units you were looking forward to change nothing about how tedious the game becomes.”
- “Full game is full of boring grind and backtracking, that needlessly prolong the gameplay.”
- “Sadly, Liberation has many great ideas, but most are very poorly implemented; the game could have easily used another year of fine-tuning the gameplay mechanics and designs in development.”
graphics
111 mentions
51 % positive mentions
46 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive a generally positive reception, with many players praising the beautiful visuals, detailed character models, and impressive animations. However, some express disappointment over the departure from the darker art style of previous titles, noting that while the graphics are solid, they may not meet the expectations set by earlier entries in the series. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, contributing to an engaging atmosphere despite some inconsistencies and a desire for a return to the original aesthetic.
- “The impressive graphics, the novelty, the characters, the imagination, the richly adorned atmosphere, the music and sound effects, the visual effects, the balanced battles and AI, everything is enchanting and awesome beyond words!”
- “Graphics are amazing.”
- “Graphics are next level for this title.”
- “The graphics could be better, and the UI could be more user-friendly.”
- “I have a super awesome TV with my PS5 and a great gaming rig/monitor, but despite cranking the graphics, things still look muddy.”
- “Fun - Kings Bounty - type of game, but the graphics could certainly be improved; they are a good 10 years too old.”
grinding
43 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, with many describing the progression as slow and unexciting. While some appreciate the combat system and story, the overwhelming sentiment is that the gameplay becomes monotonous, requiring excessive time spent on easy battles to prepare for more challenging encounters. Despite some improvements in speed and balance, the grind remains a significant drawback for many reviewers.
- “I came in looking for a grindy game to waste some time on, but progression is unexciting and the bosses feel boring as all hell.”
- “Yup, you realize now the core gameplay loop sucks, has shallow depth, and the upgraded units you were looking forward to change nothing about how tedious the game becomes.”
- “This game is, unfortunately, the perfect definition of tedious and filler, despite the mostly good art and animation.”
music
43 mentions
58 % positive mentions
35 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its thematic relevance and immersive quality, while others find it repetitive and lacking in variety. Notable tracks are highlighted as enjoyable, but many users express a desire for a broader selection to prevent monotony. Overall, while the soundtrack contributes positively to the atmosphere, it may not be memorable for all players.
- “The music and the game's soundtrack are great, and the atmosphere is immersive.”
- “The music is fantastic and I really enjoyed this game.”
- “The music that they implemented is good and thematic based on the enemy faction you're fighting, but I just wish there was more variety.”
- “The music is downright annoying.”
- “I turned it off and completely played with background music from YouTube.”
- “Combat is bland and easy, story is nothing to write home about and music is repetitive.”
stability
23 mentions
17 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
83 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players reporting a significant number of bugs and crashes, particularly at launch, while others have experienced a smoother gameplay experience after updates. Many users noted that while the game has improved in stability over time, issues such as glitches, save corruption, and performance slowdowns still persist. Overall, the game's stability appears to vary widely among players, with some enjoying a bug-free experience and others facing frustrating technical problems.
- “Smooth graphics, no glitches, quick loading, calm music, and good story.”
- “The game is bug free, runs well, has good art design, the music is pretty good, and the writing and world are fairly well done too.”
- “Can't even play the game... it keeps crashing with the fight with the priest in the beginning of the game... 3 times it's done this... bug-ridden game, save your money.”
- “The game is buggy as hell.”
- “You can find glitches in almost every area, not to mention save corruption, soft locks that require replaying the whole area, sudden slowdown of the whole machine (caused by bad memory management probably), and etc.”
replayability
20 mentions
30 % positive mentions
55 % neutral mentions
15 % negative mentions
Overall, the game offers significant replayability due to its diverse unit and hero classes, multiple factions, and branching storylines influenced by player choices. Many players appreciate the variety in gameplay styles and the potential for different builds, while some note that the static map and limited features may detract from the experience. Despite mixed opinions, the consensus leans towards a strong replay value, particularly for those who enjoy exploring different strategies and narratives.
- “It should have lots of replayability as there are 4 races of units to select from for your army and 4 classes of hero ranging from melee to magic to a combination of both.”
- “Plenty of replayability with a changing story from one playthrough to the next and 3 different class trees to master or combine.”
- “The dialogues are interesting, the story changes based on your choices, the game has a good replayability due to 'liberator mode' which unlocks after you beat the game.”
- “Still, I enjoyed it for the most part, but it lacks the replayability value for me.”
- “It had near zero replayability.”
- “With 4 factions, there is a lot of replayability with mixing and matching your squad composition and using appropriate companions.”
humor
20 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as a mix of dark and cynical elements, often resulting in a tone that feels both absurd and melodramatic. While some players appreciate the comedic moments and witty dialogues, others find the humor inconsistent or overly cringeworthy, detracting from their overall engagement with the story and characters. The balance between humor and serious themes can lead to a disjointed experience, with opinions varying widely on its effectiveness.
- “The story and characters are hilariously silly, to the point of parody.”
- “Humans are evil, demons and undead are funny, elves are pricks, nobody is a good guy, but somehow everything is played slightly for laughs.”
- “It all started when I downloaded the demo... it caught my eye as something a little different to what I'm used to. The dark humor made me want more!”
atmosphere
16 mentions
38 % positive mentions
44 % neutral mentions
19 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its impressive graphics, immersive music, and diverse environments, ranging from undead realms to elven lands, which contribute to a richly adorned experience. While some players note a loss of the darker, gritty aesthetic from previous installments, the overall ambiance remains engaging and enhances the gameplay. The combination of visual effects, sound design, and character interactions creates a captivating atmosphere that many find enchanting.
- “The impressive graphics, the novelty, the characters, the imagination, the richly adorned atmosphere, the music and sound effects, the visual effects, the balanced battles and AI, everything is enchanting and awesome beyond words!”
- “There are several distant lands to go and explore, all with differing atmospheres ranging from the undead to elves.”
- “The story is interesting for now, and there are real decision points which affect the flow of your story in the game. The game's soundtrack is great, and the atmosphere is immersive.”
- “The atmosphere wasn't there.”
- “Loss of grim decadence atmosphere.”
- “Even though I do miss the dark and gritty art style and atmosphere of Disciples 2, this game stands on its own.”
optimization
11 mentions
27 % positive mentions
45 % neutral mentions
27 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is inconsistent, with reports of predictable AI behavior and performance issues on PC, particularly during zone transitions. While graphics and animations are praised, they suffer when sped up, indicating a need for further refinement. Despite these concerns, some players experience smooth performance on specific hardware configurations, suggesting that optimization may vary across platforms.
- “Animations are stellar, but when sped up they lose some of their coolness, so instead implement the aforementioned optimizations, so it won't be necessary.”
- “Solid graphics and performance (on a Nvidia 1060 Ti).”
- “No real bugs to speak of yet, and runs smoothly.”
- “The AI is highly predictable and lacks optimization; for example, enemies with AoE buffs will always use it before moving, regardless of who's around them.”
- “It's not in an optimized state.”
- “Poor performance when switching zones, especially with NVMe and 16GB memory, combined with the bad map implementation - you'll get 'don't want to return to the old zone.'”
character development
10 mentions
50 % positive mentions
20 % neutral mentions
30 % negative mentions
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with many users expressing disappointment over the lack of depth and engagement, particularly with companions who have minimal upgrade options and no unique traits. While some appreciate the character designs and animations, others feel that the characters lack relatability and depth, making it difficult to form attachments. However, a few reviewers noted that the story and dialogue options do contribute positively to character development, allowing for some emotional investment.
- “The characters are great, both in terms of design and character development.”
- “I actually feel bad giving this a 'no' as the story and character development is good - plenty of dialogue options and you actually grow attached to the characters - they're not just some overpowered grunt.”
- “Some of the character designs are top notch.”
- “The character development is weak; the 'companions' can only be upgraded with the weapon slot and a single 'shard' slot; no names, abilities, or classes.”
- “There's no character development.”
- “There isn't any character development; there are just people who throw random lines at each other and it's hard to relate to them because I don't know them.”
monetization
4 mentions
25 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
75 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game is heavily criticized for its intrusive launcher that primarily serves to display ads for other titles and collect user data. Players feel that the reliance on microtransactions detracts from the gameplay experience, suggesting that these mechanics are implemented solely to extract money from users rather than enhance the game.
- “Now I'm not saying that D:L should've had microtransactions, but without them, these mechanics serve literally no purpose.”
- “The launcher spams advertisements for their other games.”
- “First of all, the game has an obligatory launcher that does nothing except spy on players and show ads, but the game cannot be run without it.”
- “No, they exist to milk players for microtransactions.”
emotional
3 mentions
67 % positive mentions
-67 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highly inconsistent, with players experiencing a mix of wholesome moments and jarring, questionable content. Many reviewers criticize the lack of engaging storytelling and meaningful choices, leading to a sense of detachment from the game's emotional impact. Overall, the emotional experience is marred by poor writing and voice acting, resulting in a lack of investment in the narrative.
- “One quest is wholesome fun of gathering bones for a golem who acts like a puppy, the next one you're having an orgy on top of a throne made of living flesh and it's, uh... questionable at best.”
- “The story fails to evoke any real emotions, leaving the characters feeling flat and unengaging.”
- “The writing is so poor that it undermines any potential emotional impact the game could have had.”
- “The voice acting is terrible, which detracts from the emotional depth of the narrative.”