Elder Sign: Omens

About

Elder Sign: Omens is a digital adaptation of the Elder Sign board game, where players work together to stop ancient horrors. They explore an eerie museum, battling monsters, and gathering resources to perform rituals and seal away eldritch abominations. With multiple difficulty levels and character classes, Elder Sign: Omens offers a challenging and immersive co-op experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

75%

Audience ScoreBased on 313 reviews

gameplay13 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

Absolutely chilling atmospherical masterpiece of solo boardgaming.
Great port of a great board game with high replay value and fun character abilities.
The game captures the essence of Lovecraftian horror with beautiful graphics and sound.

The game is heavily RNG dependent, making skill less of a factor and often leading to frustration.
Very hard to achieve success, even on easy mode, which can discourage players.
The interface can be clunky and lacks a proper tutorial, making it difficult for newcomers to understand.

gameplay
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
74%
5%
The gameplay of this title is heavily reliant on RNG mechanics, which some players find frustrating and unforgiving, leading to a sense of repetitiveness after initial playthroughs. While the mechanics are simple and accessible, they can feel overly luck-based, diminishing strategic depth and engagement for some users. However, the game does offer a variety of scenarios and bosses that can provide a different experience, particularly for fans of the original board game.
- “Great narrative with fun dice gameplay.”
- “The gameplay revolves around a pool of dice which will provide a variety of results with each throw: investigation, lore, danger, or terror.”
- “The focus of the gameplay is strategically building your team of investigators based on which elder god you're facing, selecting the adventures you'll be most likely to succeed in at that moment, and most importantly utilizing your items and investigator abilities to game the glyph rolls in your advantage.”
- “The RNG mechanics in this game feel so rigged against the player and unforgiving that they completely discourage playing it.”
- “No point doing a harder difficulty because it just makes the game take longer to win or faster to lose, but no actual gameplay difference, so hard pass on this waste of time.”
- “But as far as gameplay goes, it feels like you have little ways to use your brain to win... you roll dice and hope for the best.”
graphics
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
59%
32%
9%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful artwork and atmospheric design, effectively complementing the music to create an immersive experience. Reviewers highlight the high-quality visuals and attention to detail, which enhance the game's dark and eerie mood, although some note that the graphical fidelity could be improved in certain areas. Overall, the combination of stunning visuals and haunting sound design successfully captures the essence of the Lovecraftian theme.
- “Beautiful graphics, sound, and atmosphere.”
- “The graphics and music perfectly fit the dark mood.”
- “The backdrops and scene artwork, as well as the voice work, are very well done and sell the atmosphere along with the music.”
- “And the graphical effects could have been better than just reusing the game art assets.”
- “It uses 100% of my GPU even though the graphics aren't that good.”
- “I mean, no moving graphics, except for the cutscenes.”
story
33 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
82%
9%
The game's story is largely considered minimal and lacks coherence, with most campaigns feeling repetitive and reliant on random elements rather than a compelling narrative. While there are some atmospheric elements and interesting lore for fans of H.P. Lovecraft, the overall storytelling does not significantly enhance the gameplay experience, often leaving players frustrated by the randomness of quests and outcomes. Despite some decent artwork and short intros, many reviewers feel that the game could benefit from a more developed storyline and diverse settings.
- “The storytelling is spot-on with a few cinematics, creating a very atmospheric experience.”
- “The elder signs and the surrounding story are really interesting, especially for fans of H.P. Lovecraft.”
- “From the board game Arkham Horror - a story-rich classic, but this one simplifies it so you can play in an hour or two.”
- “While each individual challenge has some cool artwork, there's not really a coherent story for each boss save for some of the DLC expeditions. I get that's a limitation of a random change-driven board game, but it does mean most campaigns are identical save for some daily effects and some of the challenges.”
- “I get that they wanted to tell more of a story, but if I wanted a story I would read Lovecraft.”
- “However, the story is not compelling enough to carry one beyond the feeling of playing Yahtzee.”
atmosphere
29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
21%
10%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its chilling and immersive qualities, effectively capturing the essence of Lovecraftian horror through stunning graphics, evocative music, and compelling voice work. Reviewers highlight how these elements work together to create a rich, engaging experience that enhances gameplay, even when facing challenging odds. Overall, the game's atmosphere is considered a standout feature, drawing players back for more despite potential frustrations.
- “Absolutely chilling atmospherical masterpiece of solo board gaming, if such a thing can be said to exist.”
- “The backdrops and scene artwork as well as the voice work is very well done and sells the atmosphere along with the music.”
- “I cannot stress enough that the graphics, music, voice narration, and tone of the game nail the atmosphere of the source material.”
- “Aside from that, the delivery, the atmosphere, the graphical fidelity, and even the RNG absolutely ruin your team's chance at success, just reinforcing the atmosphere of a Lovecraftian adventure set out to doom the puny humanity you represent via just four measly flesh puppets with some marginal extra skills.”
- “No bells or whistles for the digital version to take advantage of the atmosphere and give the game flavor... if you're not interested in the Cthulhu mythos, the game may appear boring.”
music
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
43%
11%
The music in the game is widely praised for enhancing the atmosphere, with many reviewers noting its ability to complement the dark graphics and overall tone. While some found the soundtrack lacking in variety, others highlighted its effectiveness in creating a haunting ambiance that aligns well with the Lovecraftian themes. Overall, the music, along with the art and sound effects, significantly contributes to the immersive experience of the game.
- “Omens has a very nice atmosphere, both in graphics and music.”
- “The music, sound effects, and art are atmospheric and greatly add to the experience.”
- “With its haunting music and beautiful artwork, the game draws you into the Cthulhu mythos.”
- “The music was only at the intro screen.”
- “The soundtrack is very lacking - this is the main tool they could have used to really haunt us (with a small budget, that is).”
- “Despite adding music and spiffy sound and visual effects, this video game version still fails to convey a sense of setting in the way that the physical game does.”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
Overall, the game is praised for its high replayability, with diverse characters, bosses, and strategies that keep each playthrough fresh and engaging. Many players appreciate the unique abilities of each investigator and the variety of ancient ones, although some express a desire for additional content or expansions to further enhance replay value. However, a few users feel that the game may lack replayability in its current state, suggesting that it could benefit from new campaigns or features.
- “High replay value - a lot of different characters, bosses, and adventures.”
- “It's replayable to the max; considering my 2 hours of playtime, I've never had quite the same game twice.”
- “The game has a surprising amount of replayability.”
- “Worst example of 'replayability' I've ever seen.”
- “Still, the game in its current state would appear, to many, as lacking in replay value.”
- “Great to pick up when on sale -- hoping an expansion will be released to extend replayability.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
Players express a mix of emotions regarding grinding in the game, highlighting feelings of fulfillment and satisfaction alongside frustration due to repetitive and tedious missions. The game's difficulty is compounded by restrictions on using the gift shop, which can waste valuable turns, leading to a sense of imbalance in the grinding experience.
- “The board game is hard enough as it is, but this game reuses tedious missions that would normally be at the bottom of the deck, and won't allow any character to use the gift shop without wasting their entire turn.”
- “Grinding in this game feels like a never-ending chore, where progress is painfully slow and rewards are minimal.”
- “The repetitive nature of grinding makes it feel more like a job than a game, draining the enjoyment out of the experience.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
150%
The game's optimization has been criticized for poor screen space usage and a lack of tooltips, which affects navigation. Additionally, players have noted that the game causes increased fan activity on their desktops, suggesting overall optimization issues.
- “Worry not though, it's still easy to navigate; however, it would have been nice to see better optimization for screen space usage and to actually have tooltips.”
- “This game also starts making my desktop fans whirl, which leads me to believe that optimization, in general, isn't there.”
- “The performance issues are so severe that I can't enjoy the game; it feels like it wasn't optimized for modern hardware.”
- “I constantly experience frame drops and stuttering, indicating a lack of proper optimization.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users perceive the monetization strategy as effective, viewing it as a successful advertisement for the background elements of the game.
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is characterized by its lightheartedness and absurdity, allowing players to enjoy a carefree experience as they watch their characters descend into madness, mirroring their own moments of escapism.
- “It's fairly short and easy to learn, and every once in a while, I just don't care about what's happening in my life: throwing dice, letting fate do its job, and laughing as I watch my characters go insane just like I do.”
- “The humor in this game is absolutely delightful, with witty dialogue and absurd situations that keep me chuckling throughout my playthrough.”
- “I love how the game manages to blend humor with gameplay, making even the most mundane tasks feel entertaining and fun.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs and issues that render it unplayable, leading to feelings of frustration and disappointment regarding their investment.
- “The game is broken and buggy, making it a waste of my money.”
- “I experienced constant crashes and glitches that ruined my gameplay.”
- “The stability issues are so severe that I can't even enjoy the game.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find the emotional aspect of the game engaging, as even in defeat, the losing cinematic evokes a sense of enjoyment and satisfaction, enhancing the overall experience.
- “I lost almost about to win the Dark Pharaoh campaign, but the losing cinematic made me feel like it was fun to lose.”
- “The character development throughout the game had me emotionally invested; I felt every triumph and tragedy deeply.”
- “The soundtrack perfectly complemented the story, enhancing the emotional weight of each scene.”