Dwerve

About

Description Dwerve is a Zelda-like action tower defense RPG about a dwarven tinkerer that uses turrets and traps to fight! Coming to Windows, Mac, and Linux in 2021. Inspired by SNES RPGs like A Link to the Past, Dwerve takes all the mechanics you know and love: dungeon crawling, questing, exploring, and storytelling; and presents it with a new style of tactical turret-based combat where strat…

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Dwerve — Tower Defense Dungeon Crawler RPG screenshot

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 232 reviews

story50 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

The game features charming pixel art and a vibrant visual style that enhances the overall experience.
Dwerve combines tower defense mechanics with RPG elements, creating a unique and engaging gameplay experience.
The story is interesting and well-paced, with a variety of characters that add depth to the narrative.

The game suffers from pacing issues, with slow movement and tedious backtracking that can detract from the overall enjoyment.
Combat can feel chaotic and unbalanced, often leading to trial-and-error gameplay rather than strategic planning.
There are several bugs and quality of life issues, such as limited tower placement and unclear mechanics, which can frustrate players.

story
115 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
50%
7%
The game's story receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its engaging characters and rich narrative, while others find it predictable and overly linear. Many appreciate the unique blend of tower defense mechanics with a fantasy storyline, though some criticize the pacing and repetitiveness of quests. Overall, while the art and gameplay are often highlighted, the story's execution varies from captivating to tedious, depending on individual preferences.
- “I really love the story so far and the art!”
- “Dwerve has a great story to tell, layered characters, and awesome music.”
- “The storyline is engaging and goes along well with the gameplay, unlike many other games I have played.”
- “Another part is the boring story; it works since it's not the main focus, but it's still not very motivating. I find myself skipping every bit of dialogue that shows up.”
- “However, it soon became boring as the story is very linear; your objective is to go to A, then it asks you to go to B, then C, and so on.”
- “The story is pretty bad... and the game focuses too much on its story.”
gameplay
99 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
51%
4%
The gameplay of "Dwerve" combines tower defense and dungeon crawling elements, offering a unique blend of strategy and action that many players find engaging. However, several reviews highlight a repetitive nature in the gameplay loop, with similar enemy encounters and objectives leading to a sense of monotony over time. While the mechanics are praised for their creativity and the game is visually appealing, some players feel that the execution could benefit from further refinement to enhance overall enjoyment.
- “The core gameplay of 'dwerve' revolves around dungeon crawling and tower defense combat.”
- “The combat mechanics are solid, offering a satisfying mix of strategy and action as players fend off increasingly challenging foes.”
- “The gameplay is interesting and fun once you get the hang of it.”
- “However, the gameplay can feel repetitive, with players facing similar enemy encounters and objectives throughout their journey.”
- “Some things are hard to interact with, sometimes the game glitches and you get stuck out of bounds, but the worst and most disappointing aspect of this game is that the core gameplay is... boring.”
- “Unfortunately, the gameplay loop hasn't gripped me like I hoped.”
graphics
33 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
61%
30%
9%
The graphics of "dwerve" are widely praised for their vibrant and detailed pixel art style, which effectively brings the game's world to life with charming visuals and a nostalgic aesthetic. Players appreciate the unique character designs and the overall artistic direction, although some note minor inconsistencies in style. Overall, the game's graphics contribute significantly to its engaging atmosphere and gameplay experience.
- “The art style is very nostalgic and has great color palettes.”
- “Absolutely love the art style.”
- “The artwork and technical detail for everything is really good.”
- “For example, the lily pads didn't fit the general art style in my opinion.”
- “Likewise, I feel like the close-up shots of the characters during dialogue went for a more realistic form of pixel art than was appropriate for the general cutesy and relaxed art style of the gameplay.”
- “Aerie burping and such felt out of place given the rest of the aesthetics of the game.”
music
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
22%
14%
The music in "Dwerve" receives mixed reviews, with many praising its ability to enhance the game's atmosphere and complement the charming pixel art. While some players find the soundtrack lovely and immersive, others feel it lacks depth and involvement. Overall, the music is generally considered a strong aspect of the game, contributing positively to the overall experience despite some varying opinions.
- “Great soundtrack, charming graphics & story, and the combat becomes really fun and chaotic once you start getting past the tutorial/beginning.”
- “The art is gorgeous, and the music and sound effects do a good job of immersing me in the world!”
- “Dwerve has a great story to tell, layered characters, and awesome music.”
- “Music and graphics are meh.”
- “No good music, just meh.”
- “The music and story are pretty forgettable.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
83%
50%
The emotional aspect of the game is mixed; while some players find the story heart-wrenching and wholesome, others feel it lacks motivation and depth, leading to skipped dialogue. Overall, the emotional engagement is present but not as impactful as in other games, with players noting a lack of significant "aha!" moments in gameplay.
- “The story is heart-wrenching at times.”
- “The game and dialog feel wholesome.”
- “The art design, voice acting, and different sounds of the game made me feel like I was in a Zelda tower defense.”
- “The story is boring and unmotivating; I find myself skipping every bit of dialogue that shows up.”
- “The emotional depth is lacking, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
- “I expected a more engaging narrative, but it fell flat and left me feeling indifferent.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, often stemming from unclear upgrade paths and slow progression. Many express frustration with the repetitive nature of gathering resources, such as breaking pots for minimal rewards, and the lengthy puzzles and dialogues that hinder gameplay flow. While the combat system shows potential, it can become monotonous due to the limited upgrade options and the necessity to focus on a few towers for efficiency.
- “Where the problem is though, is that the upgrade trees are obscured so you don't know if a particular branch is going to be worth the investment of the scrap that you tediously gathered (largely by standing still to break pots/crates and then walking into the absolutely tiny magnetism range).”
- “Sometimes felt tedious to travel around the map and autoattack pots for a single coin.”
- “Well there is a solid game here, the slow pacing from the puzzles and the lengthy dialog makes it very tedious to play the game, and with so little progression from the very limited tower upgrades and the fact you can only use 4 towers at a time, you'd be better off just choosing the 4 best towers, then just upgrading them exclusively since it takes a decent chunk of time to max out the very small tech tree for them.”
stability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
80%
The game experiences significant stability issues, including frequent bugs, glitches that can cause players to get stuck, and occasional freezes and crashes. While it runs well on the Steam Deck, the overall gameplay experience is marred by these technical problems.
- “It runs great on the Steam Deck with a 40 fps frame limit, consuming around 8 watts, and it should last 4-5 hours.”
- “It's pretty buggy.”
- “Some things are hard to interact with; sometimes the game glitches and you get stuck out of bounds. The worst and most disappointing aspect of this game is that the core gameplay is boring.”
- “The game suffers from some glitches, and the difficulty curve is a rollercoaster.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
Character development in the game is highlighted by charming designs and smooth animations, contributing to its polished presentation. While the visuals and story are well-received, some players feel that the character development does not stand out significantly, despite the overall quality of the game's graphics and mechanics.
- “The character designs are charming, and the animations are smooth, adding to the overall polish of the game's presentation.”
- “The game is great, and I love it. The story and the graphics are great, the mechanics are fun and unique, and the character designs are top-notch.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
100%
Overall, the game is criticized for its low replayability, with many players feeling it lacks depth and variety after completing the main storyline. The linear structure, minimal character development, and absence of secrets contribute to a sense of finality, leaving little incentive for players to revisit the experience. Suggestions for improvement include implementing more meaningful choices and progression systems to enhance replay value.
- “Locking players into short but meaningful progression trees where their decisions affect the mechanics of gameplay will really help replayability.”
- “I walked away feeling like it was missing something after the last battle, and there isn't a whole lot of replay value unless you want to impose artificial limits on your play.”
- “Zero replayability; it's linear with no backtracking, very little RPG or character building, and no secrets to find.”
- “Locking players into short but meaningful progression trees where their decisions affect the mechanics of gameplay would really help replayability.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by a familiar fantasy narrative enriched by interesting characters and strong writing, despite relying on common tropes. Additionally, the well-executed pixel art graphics contribute to a unique and visually appealing environment, enhancing the overall experience.
- “While the story is what you'd expect from a fantasy atmosphere, it still has interesting characters and good writing despite using the same tropes that you would expect.”
- “The pixel art graphics are really well done, from character sprites to the tilesets; everything is very clean and original, creating a very unique atmosphere.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely praised for its entertaining and enjoyable funny sayings and character personalities, complemented by engaging animation and storytelling.
- “I love the funny sayings, the personalities, etc. Very entertaining and enjoyable!”
- “Love the animation, story, and humor so far.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization strategy is viewed positively, as it is not perceived as a cash grab or a cheap attempt to exploit players.
- “The monetization system feels overly aggressive and detracts from the overall experience.”
- “I feel pressured to spend money to enjoy the game fully, which is frustrating.”
- “The in-game purchases are way too expensive for what they offer, making it hard to justify spending.”

Buy Dwerve — Tower Defense Dungeon Crawler RPG

5h Median play time

6h Average play time

4-11h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 4 analyzed playthroughs

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Dwerve — Tower Defense Dungeon Crawler RPG

About

Buy Dwerve — Tower Defense Dungeon Crawler RPG

Dwerve — Tower Defense Dungeon Crawler RPG

Dwerve — Tower Defense Dungeon Crawler RPG

Videos

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