Ephemeral Tale

About

"Ephemeral Tale" is a dungeon crawler/looter game with hand-crafted environments, JRPG-style combat, and a loot-driven progression system. Collect over 80 unique pieces of gear and build your own playstyle, while exploring diverse dungeons and fighting exciting enemies. The game offers various accessibility options, including customizable control schemes.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

69%

Audience ScoreBased on 42 reviews

gameplay8 positive mentions

grinding7 negative mentions

The game features a deep customization system with over 80 unique loot items, allowing for strategic gameplay and varied character builds.
The nostalgic graphics and catchy soundtrack evoke a classic JRPG feel, enhancing the overall charm of the game.
Players appreciate the exploration aspect and the ability to adjust difficulty settings, making the game accessible to a wider audience.

The game suffers from a lack of meaningful story and world-building, leading to a repetitive and uninspired gameplay experience.
The scaling enemy difficulty can make progression feel meaningless, as players do not experience a sense of accomplishment from leveling up.
The combat system is criticized for being overly simplistic and dull, with many battles devolving into repetitive auto-attacks.

gameplay
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
63%
10%
The gameplay is characterized by a simplistic and repetitive combat system, often relying on normal attacks and gear management, which some players find lacking in depth. While it draws inspiration from classic RPGs and features interesting loot mechanics, many reviews highlight a lack of engaging story and mechanical variety, leading to a sense of monotony. However, some players appreciate the nostalgic elements and the blend of retro and modern gameplay styles, noting that the game offers enjoyable combat and progression despite its flaws.
- “After the first 2 hours of gameplay, you have a good grasp on how the game world is set up.”
- “Gameplay is reminiscent of nostalgic turn-based RPGs from the Game Boy era.”
- “Ephemeral Tale is an exceptional non-linear RPG that features solid combat, neat vibes, and an emphasis on gameplay.”
- “The gameplay is simple and you’ll be normal attacking 90% of the time.”
- “Overall gameplay just gets extremely boring and repetitive despite the RNG loot.”
- “Imo it costs too much for the lack of mechanical depth.”
story
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
75%
13%
The story in the game is largely criticized for being minimal and unremarkable, with many reviewers noting a lack of depth and world-building. While some appreciate the nostalgic homage to classic RPGs, the narrative is often described as simple and typical, serving primarily as a backdrop to the gameplay rather than a compelling element. Overall, players seeking a rich story may find the game's narrative lacking, as it focuses more on combat and mechanics than on engaging storytelling.
- “It's just a turn-based RPG with a pretty decent story revolving around you with small side quests and optional support characters.”
- “It’s a rather simple story, but when taken as a whole package, the game is a definite homage to old-school RPGs.”
- “Classic, nostalgic story.”
- “As the story and world-building are nigh non-existent, there isn't much left in the game to enjoy.”
- “The story is basically nonexistent, the battles are boring and painful, and the graphics are unremarkable.”
- “In ephemeral tale, you take control of a hero with no backstory and adventure around to complete objectives because an NPC told you to.”
music
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
50%
19%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its catchy and nostalgic qualities, particularly the retro tunes and emotional resonance during scenes. However, others find it repetitive and occasionally abrasive, especially in the chiptune style. Overall, while the soundtrack enhances the experience for many, it may not appeal to all players.
- “The soundtrack is also catchy and makes me nostalgic.”
- “The pixel art is well made and the music is effective at conveying the emotions of the scene.”
- “Some solid retro tunes--battle music is a very nice track.”
- “I cannot remember anything really specific about the music other than how repetitive it got as I wandered lost around zones.”
- “I'm not the biggest fan of chiptunes (some of the songs in this game definitely have abrasive highs) - but some of the music in the game is great (I'm looking at you, Corrupted Castle).”
- “[h1] [b] audio (sound effects/music/voice acting/ambient) – [3/10] [/b] [/h1]”
graphics
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
46%
23%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with some players finding them unimpressive and unremarkable, particularly in comparison to older RPGs. However, others appreciate the pixel art style, noting that it is charming and well-matched with the game's music and overall aesthetic. Overall, while the graphics may not stand out, they contribute positively to the game's unique atmosphere for some players.
- “The visuals, audio, and unique game style will take hold of you, leaving you wanting more!”
- “I really enjoyed the graphical style, the music, and the entire package.”
- “Music is fitting, graphics and art are cute, UI is functional and minimalistic.”
- “The story is basically nonexistent, the battles are boring and painful, and the graphics are unremarkable.”
- “[h1] [b] Graphics (quality/art style/animations/ui/performance) – [2/10] [/b] [/h1]”
- “[h1] [b] Graphics (quality/art style/animations/ui/performance) – [2/10] [/b] [/h1]”
grinding
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessive and tedious, particularly when it comes to obtaining rare orange gear and managing the cumbersome loot transformation interface. While the game offers replayability through new game plus modes, the low drop rates and tedious attribute distribution process contribute to a sense of frustration over time.
- “Basically, the game becomes too grindy.”
- “The chances of getting an orange sassy is pretty low, so eventually it's just grinding.”
- “It's a good game to play for a while, but after two playthroughs and still having no way to reliably farm orange, it gets tedious.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
150%
The optimization of the game is generally well-received, with users reporting no performance issues despite a low score for graphics quality and art style.
- “I experienced no performance issues running this game.”
- “The game runs smoothly on my system, even at high settings.”
- “I appreciate how well-optimized the game is for various hardware configurations.”
- “The graphics quality is subpar, and the animations feel clunky, leading to a frustrating experience.”
- “The user interface is poorly designed, making navigation cumbersome and unintuitive.”
- “Performance issues are rampant, with frequent frame drops and long loading times.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is consistently described as funny, indicating that players find it entertaining and enjoyable.
- “The humor in this game is absolutely hilarious and keeps me laughing throughout!”
- “I love how the witty dialogue and clever puns add so much charm to the gameplay.”
- “The comedic timing of the characters is spot on, making every interaction a joy to experience.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the game is highly regarded, with players appreciating its immersive qualities that enhance the experience of uncovering secrets and discovering loot.
- “I didn’t mind though, the game is about the secrets, loot, and atmosphere.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users report significant stability issues, particularly noting that opening chests can cause the game to freeze entirely.
- “Sometimes the chest itself freezes your game just by opening it.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
- “I experience constant lag and stuttering, which ruins the overall experience.”