Dungeon No Dungeon
- November 19, 2021
- 302 Studio
- 16h median play time
Get on Steam"Dungeon No Dungeon" is a turn-based roguelike game with a unique hand-drawn art style and a strategy system based around body parts. It features roguelike elements, random encounters, and Lovecraftian themes, and was originally conceived as a board game. The game emphasizes strategy and offers a challenging experience.
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a unique limb-targeting combat system that adds a strategic layer to battles.
- The art style and graphics are visually appealing, creating an engaging atmosphere.
- The developers are responsive to feedback and are actively working on updates to improve the game.
- The gameplay is repetitive and lacks depth, leading to a stale experience after a short time.
- There are numerous bugs and technical issues, including game-breaking glitches that can erase progress.
- The difficulty spikes are harsh, with some bosses being overwhelmingly powerful, making it frustrating for players.
- gameplay37 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 68 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many players criticizing it for being shallow, clunky, and repetitive, despite some innovative mechanics like the limb targeting system. While the boss fights offer a different experience, they highlight the inconsistency in gameplay quality. Additionally, mechanics such as the "dice roll" have been deemed frustrating and unimpactful, detracting from the overall experience.
“From a gameplay point of view, everything was done at the highest level; the very idea of inflicting damage on various points of the enemy is delightful.”
“In terms of gameplay, the concept is pretty innovative to begin with, but it gets stale quickly except when fighting bosses, which just feels like a completely different game and lacks consistency.”
“The art style is fantastic, and it combines elements of Darkest Dungeon and targeting mechanics of Fallout nicely.”
“The gameplay is terrible.”
“Clunky, slow gameplay.”
“Clearly there are some balance and core gameplay issues at work here.”
- graphics16 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the art style and smooth animations, likening it to a blend of "Darkest Dungeon" and a more cartoonish aesthetic. While some players appreciate the well-rendered visuals and character designs, others feel the graphics are simplistic and the game appears unfinished, citing bugs and translation issues. Overall, the visuals are generally seen as appealing, but there are concerns about optimization and depth in graphical variety.
“The visuals and the way the characters, monsters, and locations are drawn are brilliant.”
“The graphics are superbly rendered; every little detail is thought out, and the appearance of the hero changes as you progress.”
“The hand-drawn graphics of each figure and area in this game are really well done, and you can see how much love the team put into this game.”
“Like it has all the aspects of a dungeon crawling game, mobs, items, random events, etc., but it kinda feels like an unfinished product. There's bugs, but not game-breaking, language translation issues, and poor graphics in my opinion, but not to the point that it's unplayable.”
“The graphics in the game are simple, but the game is optimized well.”
“There isn't really any strategy other than picking who and what limb to target first, and the combat is so boring. There isn't really any musical variation or graphical styles, so you just watch your characters mash the same move over and over.”
- story10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as having varying depth, with some players appreciating the plot and dungeon elements, while others find it lacking or non-existent. The mechanics related to character status effects and enemy interactions are criticized for being poorly explained, leading to confusion and a lack of strategic planning. Overall, the narrative experience seems inconsistent, with some players enjoying it and others feeling it detracts from the gameplay.
“The plot, various notes, and of course the dungeons add depth to the game.”
“The game is excellent and justifies its price by 100%. The plot is not bad, the game is optimized, and the textures are top-notch.”
“Randomly when on a quest, your heroes/characters will have mental status effects, either swinging into the red as 'madness' or green as 'positivity'.”
“No story whatsoever, I don't mind, that's okay.”
“Randomly when on a quest, your heroes/characters will have mental status effects, either swinging into the red as 'madness' or green as 'positivity', but neither are ever explained what they do.”
“There's this enemy that starts chasing you once you are on your way on the quest and it seems to correlate with the 'madness' status, but since neither mechanics are explained, it makes no sense whatsoever and you can't really anticipate nor plan ahead.”
- stability6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability has received mixed feedback, with many users noting significant bugs and random freezes that hinder gameplay. While some players still find the game enjoyable and worth the price despite these issues, the overall consensus highlights a need for improvements in stability to enhance the experience.
“This game looks lovely and I like the idea, but it's so buggy you cannot play it.”
“Good idea, buggy as hell.”
“After this animation it freezes.”
- music6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the soundtrack for enhancing the atmosphere, others find it generic and unmemorable, lacking in tension and variation. Overall, the quality of the music seems to be a point of contention, with some enjoying it and others feeling it detracts from the gameplay experience.
“A good soundtrack creates a cool atmosphere; I advise you to purchase it.”
“I liked both the soundtrack and the quality of the visuals.”
“In general, not bad; the gameplay, soundtracks, and atmosphere are enjoyable for an amateur.”
“The soundtrack is lackluster and fails to enhance the gaming experience.”
“There isn't really any musical variation, so you just watch your characters perform the same moves over and over.”
- atmosphere5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is characterized by a gothic and gloomy ambiance, enhanced by a compelling soundtrack that evokes feelings of hopelessness and despair. While some users find it appealing, others consider it more suited for niche audiences or amateurs. Overall, the sound and audio elements significantly contribute to the game's atmospheric experience.
“Lovely gothic and depressing atmosphere.”
“Sound and audio complement and fully reveal the atmosphere of hopelessness and despair.”
“Gloomy atmosphere.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, citing the cumbersome menu navigation for checking buffs and ailments, as well as the frequent need to farm crystals for skill upgrades. Additionally, the occasional puzzles instead of fights contribute to a sense of monotony, making the overall experience feel overly grindy.
“It's tedious to check buffs and ailments on allies and enemies.”
“Navigating from menu to menu is tedious.”
“This feels so grindy, and due to the crystals you have to farm to upgrade your skills, you have to grind even more.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, the game is well-optimized, featuring simple graphics and high-quality textures that justify its price. However, some users have reported performance issues on certain PC setups.
“The graphics in the game are simple, but the game is optimized well.”
“The game is excellent and justifies its price by 100%. The plot is not bad, the game is optimized, and the textures are top-notch.”
“I have some problems with performance on my PC.”
“The game runs poorly even on high-end hardware.”
“There are frequent frame drops that make the experience frustrating.”
- monetization3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has drawn criticism for charging a premium price on Steam while incorporating mechanics reminiscent of free-to-play titles, such as in-game purchases for gold coins. Players express confusion over the gold coin system, noting that they deplete quickly and are essential for purchasing in-game characters, raising concerns about the potential for pay-to-win elements.
“I'm also not too sure how gold coins work. I know I ran out extremely quick, and that's how you buy adventurers. I didn't see any in-game purchases, but I'm not sure how else you would get gold coins without beating a mission. If it is an in-game purchase mechanic, though, that's extremely wack.”
“They're charging money for it on Steam and then treating it like it's a free app with in-app purchases.”
“I'm also not too sure how gold coins work. I know I ran out extremely quick and that's how you buy adventurers. I didn't see any in-game purchases, but I'm not sure how else you would get gold coins without beating a mission. If it is an in-game purchase mechanic, though, that's extremely wack.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users note that while the game has become more playable due to balance improvements, ongoing inventory bugs hinder its overall replayability.
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers appreciate the character design, noting it as a standout feature that enhances their connection to the game, with some even contemplating purchasing figurines based on the characters.
“I was particularly drawn to the character design and even considered briefly going for the figurines.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is perceived as decent, though it is overshadowed by issues with the user interface that detract from the overall experience.
