Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey

A brilliantly written story and outstanding voice acting. Perfect for a casual weekend play on the XBOX One

Starting at €15.99Buy now

In Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey, players enter a supernatural Victorian London, where they must solve a series of grisly murders. As Arthurian legends Du Lac and Fey, they'll uncover a dark conspiracy involving the city's forgotten fey creatures. The game combines adventure gameplay with rhythm-based combat, testing both wits and coordination.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

81%

Audience ScoreBased on 80 reviews

story55 positive mentions

gameplay6 negative mentions

The game features a compelling and unique story that intertwines the Jack the Ripper murders with Arthurian legends, providing an engaging narrative experience.
Voice acting and character development are top-notch, with well-written dialogues that enhance the immersion and emotional connection to the characters.
The art style is beautiful, combining 3D models with 2D backgrounds, creating a visually appealing atmosphere that complements the storytelling.

The controls are clunky and movement is painfully slow, making navigation tedious and frustrating, which detracts from the overall experience.
There is no manual save option, leading to potential loss of progress due to bugs or crashes, which can be a significant issue for players.
The gameplay lacks depth, with minimal puzzles and a linear structure that may leave players wanting more interactivity and meaningful choices.

story
136 mentions
40 % positive mentions
57 % neutral mentions
3 % negative mentions
The game's story is a unique blend of the Jack the Ripper legend and Arthurian lore, featuring engaging characters and strong voice acting that enhance the atmospheric experience. While the narrative is compelling and beautifully crafted, it suffers from linearity and a lack of impactful choices, leading to some confusion and pacing issues. Overall, players who appreciate rich storytelling will find the game enjoyable, despite its gameplay flaws.
- “I'm fascinated with the Jack the Ripper legend and I'm always happy to see any new takes on the story, and this one has a very different take on the whole affair.”
- “The story is well written, bringing threads of Jack the Ripper and the King Arthur legend together in an interesting way that keeps you guessing.”
- “A Jack the Ripper novel with well-crafted scenarios, good animation, top-notch voice acting, and a really engaging story.”
- “However, as the game goes on, the story increasingly loses its quality and focus.”
- “The big 'reveal' is lost in a convoluted mix of unexplored backstory, loose ends, and poor dialogue cohesion.”
- “The story is linear and the illusion of choice is there - the 'choices' you make do not significantly matter in a way that could affect the story or ending.”
graphics
28 mentions
54 % positive mentions
36 % neutral mentions
11 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game feature a blend of 3D models and hand-drawn 2D art, which some players find aesthetically pleasing, while others note inconsistencies and a lack of polish that detracts from the overall experience. Despite these issues, many reviewers appreciate the beautiful art style and how it complements the engaging story and voice acting. Overall, while the visuals may not be flawless, they contribute positively to the game's atmosphere and narrative.
- “Beautifully crafted, amazing characters (and voice acting!), plot and visuals (very pretty).”
- “The art style was beautiful, from the 3D models to the 2D models, the backgrounds, the voices, the sounds.”
- “Visuals are a beautiful blend of 2D backgrounds and 3D characters and objects.”
- “The graphics are a mix of 3D models and hand-drawn 2D graphics; it doesn't really detract from the game, but it shows that they didn't have the time or budget to fully commit to 3D.”
- “It doesn't detract from the game too much, and graphics aren't what I look for in adventure games, but it does look a little out of place at times.”
- “A fantastic premise which is hugely let down by a hastily put together and confusing structure, unpolished graphics, and poorly implemented mechanics.”
gameplay
25 mentions
12 % positive mentions
64 % neutral mentions
24 % negative mentions
The gameplay has been criticized for being stiff, cumbersome, and plagued by clunky controls, which detracts from the overall experience. Many players noted issues with movement mechanics, unresponsive interactions, and a lack of engaging puzzles, leading to a frustrating and linear gameplay experience. Despite these shortcomings, some appreciated the story and animations, suggesting that the game could have been great with better execution of its mechanics.
- “The gameplay isn't difficult and it's not a classic point and click game with puzzles, but the story and quality of the animations make it really worth it.”
- “The gameplay is simple, but complements the story well, and allows the setting and plot to keep center stage.”
- “What kind of ruins this game is the movement in the point-and-click that doesn't feel natural: many times I wanted the character to walk to a specific place, but if the hound or a person was close, they would just drag them along.”
- “The gameplay is stiff and cumbersome both on the PS5 and Steam, with everything moving very slowly even on a high-end desktop. Some hotspots do not activate properly, and the potion brewing minigame is unpleasant.”
- “Whatever brilliance is to be found here got lost in a myriad of poor game design and frustrating mechanics.”
- “A fantastic premise which is hugely let down by a hastily put together and confusing structure, unpolished graphics, and poorly implemented mechanics.”
music
13 mentions
46 % positive mentions
31 % neutral mentions
23 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its beautiful and atmospheric quality, enhancing the overall experience with a well-composed soundtrack and excellent voice acting. While some find the background music somewhat generic, many appreciate the emotional depth it adds to the narrative and character interactions. The inclusion of a soundtrack and art book as free additions further enriches the game's appeal.
- “Loving the music and the dialogue is fun as well.”
- “The visuals, music, and voice work are all well done.”
- “The soundtrack and voice overs are a delight to listen to, and I did not mind waiting for conversations to finish (instead of clicking through, which is my usual style).”
- “The music in the game is quite generic - soft background music that sometimes rouses up depending on the circumstance.”
- “There are still some occasional glitches, but so much care has gone into the music, the art, the period vernacular, the dialogue writing, the arc of the narrative.”
- “Imagine, I went up to the ballad seller to help her collect her scattered sheets, and she not only sent me to hell, but also made some offensive song about me.”
atmosphere
7 mentions
43 % positive mentions
29 % neutral mentions
29 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its engaging story, convincing characters, and exceptional voice acting, all of which contribute to a realistic and immersive setting, particularly in the context of the Jack the Ripper narrative. Reviewers highlight the remarkable design, detailed backgrounds, and the overall sense of intrigue that enhances the experience, making it a standout feature of the game.
- “Engaging story; convincing characters and voice acting; great atmosphere; the Jack the Ripper context is very realistic.”
- “The developers have done their homework and for the most part have captured the atmosphere and intrigue of the autumn of terror.”
- “Again, all that solely for the atmosphere since, along with the journals containing character background and thoughts, they are not crucial to the story or progress.”
- “The backgrounds are beautifully drawn, the 3D characters are detailed and beautiful, and although there is a combination of 2D and 3D characters on the streets, the atmosphere is lively with a sense for details.”
stability
7 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
The game exhibits frequent auto-saves, which can inadvertently lead to missed side content and collectibles due to plot advancement. While users report occasional glitches and wonky controls, many have experienced minimal game-breaking issues, with some enjoying the narrative enough to overlook these stability concerns. Overall, the game is considered buggy but not unplayable, with players appreciating the effort put into its artistic and narrative elements.
- “Auto-saves are very frequent, but this results in the possibility of completely missing side content or collectibles (which the game misspells in the buggy interface, by the way...) because certain actions advance the plot and cut off avenues of exploration.”
- “There are some glitches and gameplay issues and I had to restart my game at one point, but the ability to skip dialogue definitely helped getting back quickly.”
- “Yes, the game is quite buggy.”
grinding
4 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often feeling that it detracts from the overall experience. Despite some positive elements like voice acting and writing, the slow movement and cumbersome controls contribute to a sense of monotony.
- “These are tedious and add absolutely nothing to the experience.”
- “This is so tedious, since you are the world's slowest walker.”
- “While the voice acting is magnificent and the writing well above normal video game standards, the controls are extremely cumbersome and make the game slow and tedious.”
optimization
3 mentions
100 % positive mentions
-67 % neutral mentions
67 % negative mentions
The game is criticized for being poorly optimized, with slow loading times and crashes reported on the PS5 during dialogues. While it offers a compelling theatrical experience, the technical issues detract from the overall enjoyment.
- “The optimization in this game is impressive, allowing for smooth gameplay and a seamless experience.”
- “I appreciate how the developers focused on optimization, making sure that even on lower-end systems, the game runs beautifully.”
- “The attention to detail in optimization really enhances the overall experience, ensuring that every aspect of the game feels polished.”
- “Badly optimized; the loading times can be slow, and it even crashed on a PS5 during a dialogue.”
- “The optimization issues really detract from the overall experience, making it frustrating to play.”
humor
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highly praised, with players finding the dialogue options particularly funny and the character interactions entertaining. Overall, the comedic elements contribute significantly to the enjoyment of the story.
- “I really enjoyed this game; the story was very good, and the dialogue options were very funny.”
- “She is hilarious.”
character development
2 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The game features a well-crafted storyline complemented by impressive character development and design, enhancing the overall narrative experience.
- “This has a fabulously developed storyline and wonderful character development.”
- “Character design is amazing.”
emotional
1 mentions
300 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Players highlight the game's ability to foster deep emotional connections with its characters, significantly enhancing their overall experience and engagement with the story.
- “What really sets a game apart for me is if I form an emotional bond with the characters I interact with... and I very much did with this game.”
- “The story and character development made me feel a deep connection, leaving a lasting impact long after I finished playing.”
- “I was genuinely moved by the emotional depth of the narrative; it resonated with my own experiences and feelings.”
monetization
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Users express frustration with the monetization strategy, highlighting that excessive ads on mobile devices hinder the reading experience by cluttering the screen and forcing constant scrolling.
- “The monetization strategy feels like a cash grab, with essential features locked behind paywalls.”
- “It's frustrating to see that progress in the game is heavily gated by microtransactions.”
- “The constant barrage of ads and prompts to spend money detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game.”
replayability
1 mentions
300 % positive mentions
-500 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
Players note that the need to complete multiple playthroughs to unlock all achievements significantly enhances the game's replayability.
- “To unlock all the achievements, you'll need to play the game multiple times, which adds significant replay value.”
- “The variety of choices and outcomes encourages players to experience the game again and again.”
- “Each playthrough offers new challenges and surprises, making it hard to put down.”
- “To get all the achievements, you will need to play the game multiple times; this adds replay value.”
- “The game lacks meaningful choices, making subsequent playthroughs feel repetitive and dull.”
- “Once you've completed the main story, there's little incentive to return, as side quests feel uninspired.”