Dwarfenstein

About

Dwarfenstein is a single player shooter game. It was developed by AlexDjenkov and was released on May 13, 2022. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

Fight your way through countless enemy waves in this story driven mix of First Person Shooter and Tower Defense. Bring death to various creatures in different worlds. Kill, collect crystals, level-up, die and revive again.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+12

Skip User Reviews

100%

Audience ScoreBased on 15 reviews

music2 positive mentions

replayability3 negative mentions

Engaging and fun gameplay with a satisfying progression system, allowing players to collect gems and upgrade skills.
Bright, colorful graphics and a unique sci-fi dwarf theme create an enjoyable atmosphere.
Offers a good mix of FPS and tower defense elements, providing a refreshing take on the genre.

Significant balance issues with weapons, perks, and character classes, leading to repetitive gameplay.
The game lacks depth in its story and level design, making replaying levels feel monotonous.
Absence of key rebinds and some bugs, such as hit registration issues and enemy AI problems, detract from the overall experience.

story
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
72%
14%
The story in *Dwarfenstein* is set in a colorful sci-fi dwarf universe, featuring a semi-linear campaign with twelve levels and a survival mode. While the game begins with an impressive cutscene and attempts to weave a narrative through cutscenes and character dialogue, many players find the overall plot simplistic and underdeveloped, lacking depth and variety in gameplay. Despite its story-driven label, the narrative does not significantly enhance the gameplay experience, leading to a greater emphasis on the survival mode for extended play.
- “Replete with colorful cartoon graphics, it is set in a sci-fi dwarf-themed universe that consists of a linear story and endless survival modes.”
- “Its use in cutscenes ties up the backstory and links up the acts and levels of story mode in a logical way.”
- “[i]Dwarfenstein[/i] is about a lone dwarf in space; and like most, if not all, games about dwarves in space, this one is a story of jumping from planet to planet, robbing them of precious minerals and annihilating their populations in the process.”
- “Despite a brilliant opening cutscene and equally impressive chapter-ending ones, there won’t be many story events upon which Dwarfenstein elaborates at any point.”
- “In spite of the game being described as a story-driven experience, the narrative in Dwarfenstein amounts to the aforementioned introduction, the twist at the end, and a one-note plot stringing them together: there’s a bubble of text from the game’s only character, other than yourself, at the beginning of each level, but these are kind of jarring when compared to the tone established by the cutscene earlier.”
- “Outside of a bit near the end, which comes as too little - too late, the story doesn’t inform the gameplay nearly enough for the experience to be considered story-driven.”
gameplay
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
62%
19%
Gameplay features a dozen replayable levels set across four landscapes, offering a mix of wave-based mechanics that are both energetic and challenging. While the core loop of killing and collecting crystals is satisfying, the lack of diverse maps and dynamic elements limits the overall experience. The FPS elements dominate, with unlimited ammo for most weapons, but the gameplay can feel repetitive due to static upgrades and minimal story integration.
- “Gameplay encompasses around a dozen replayable levels, each across four different landscapes.”
- “Experience energetic, challenging, and enjoyable wave-based gameplay that requires the kiting of maps.”
- “Interesting, satisfying gameplay loop with a good sense of progression.”
- “With a dozen levels for the story mode, the maps are not diverse enough, nor do they have any dynamic or supporting elements to contribute to varying gameplay to any degree.”
- “The multi-genre gameplay elements don’t feel cohesive with each other.”
- “Even then, they’re just static crutches that don’t mix up the gameplay in any way: increase weapon damage, increase movement speed, double player health… once you find the two stats you consider the most lacking, as you can only have two perks active during a level, you’ll probably stick with them until the very end.”
graphics
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game features vibrant, cartoonish graphics set in a sci-fi dwarf-themed universe, which many players find appealing and fun. While the visuals are generally well-received, some users caution that performance issues may arise on lower-spec graphics cards, particularly during intense gameplay. Overall, the graphics enhance the experience, though initial impressions may vary.
- “Replete with colorful cartoon graphics, it is set in a sci-fi dwarf-themed universe that consists of a linear story and endless survival modes.”
- “Bright, colorful cartoon-like visuals.”
- “Really fun game, nice mix of FPS/tower defense gameplay, and I like the graphic style.”
- “Just ensure your graphics card is up to spec or expect severe lagging in the latter waves of survival mode.”
- “This kind of shaky start might lead you to believe that the game is a barebones abomination of store-bought assets, but by the time you’ve finished the tutorial and played a couple of levels, the visuals will have started to grow on you, and the gameplay will reveal itself to be the focus.”
- “Replete with colorful cartoon graphics, it is set in a sci-fi dwarf themed universe that consists of a linear story and endless survival modes.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
33%
50%
The game's replayability is mixed; while it features a dozen replayable levels across diverse landscapes, some players find the overall content limited and linear, reducing the incentive to replay stages beyond experimenting with different classes. However, its balanced design and low price contribute positively to its replay value for some users.
- “Given its replayable content, balanced design, quality of build, and very low price, Dwarfenstein is a good example of a game that surpasses the sum of its parts.”
- “Replay value is low, given the linearity of content and not much point in replaying any stage at all, except to test out a different class if needed.”
- “Content is on the small side for a game of this type, with an emphasis on replayability.”
- “Gameplay encompasses around a dozen replayable levels, each across four different landscapes.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
Reviewers highlight the impressive attention to detail in the game's atmosphere, noting that it creates an immersive experience that enhances gameplay.
- “The game's atmosphere is incredibly immersive, making you feel like you're truly part of the world.”
- “Every sound and visual element contributes to a hauntingly beautiful atmosphere that keeps you engaged.”
- “Jumped in and was surprised by the atmospheric details.”
- “The game lacks a cohesive atmosphere, making it feel disjointed.”
- “Despite the visuals, the atmosphere feels flat and uninspired.”
music
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The music in the game features a pulsating soundtrack that enhances the overall experience, complementing the exciting gunplay and engaging gameplay elements.
- “It has a throbbing soundtrack and some amazing gunplay.”
- “Music, dwarfs, guns, and fun.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a campaign and story that are noted for their humor, providing players with a comedic experience throughout.
- “It has a campaign and a story, and it's pretty funny.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users express a strong emotional response to the game's class system, describing it as heartbreaking and misguided, indicating that it evokes feelings of frustration and disappointment.