FIVE: Guardians of David

About

"Five: Guardians of David" is a Digital Deluxe Edition action-RPG, heavily influenced by Diablo, set in ancient Canaan. This edition includes a soundtrack by industry veterans and a concept art book in PDF format. Lead and play as five heroes, battling across exotic locales filled with rich cultures, characters, and artifacts.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

69%

Audience ScoreBased on 136 reviews

story35 positive mentions

stability9 negative mentions

The game offers a unique and engaging storyline based on Biblical scripture, providing a fresh perspective in the ARPG genre.
The artwork and comic book-style cutscenes are impressive, enhancing the storytelling experience.
The gameplay allows for switching between five characters, adding variety and depth to combat and strategy.

The game suffers from numerous bugs, including pathfinding issues and broken sequences that can disrupt gameplay.
There is a lack of character customization and progression, as players cannot influence how their characters develop beyond acquiring abilities.
Some players feel that the inclusion of a fictional character, Ariella, detracts from the authenticity of the Biblical narrative.

story
144 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
72%
3%
The game's story, centered around the biblical figure King David and his mighty men, is presented through engaging comic book-style cutscenes and voice acting, which many players found innovative and visually appealing. However, critiques arose regarding the inclusion of fabricated characters and elements that diverge from the original biblical narrative, leading to mixed feelings about its authenticity and depth. While some players appreciated the unique approach to storytelling and the integration of biblical references, others felt the gameplay and narrative coherence suffered from awkward execution and repetitive mission objectives.
- “The story is something of a mix of the Bible meets action graphic novel type.”
- “The storyline is engaging and according to the scriptures.”
- “It's a great way to cover the story of David, and brings a lot of characterization to each of the guardians.”
- “However, unfortunately, I must vote down this game because of the utterly shoddy and unprofessional development work and also for some of the story writing as well.”
- “On the less bright side, there's no real ending; the story just kind of stops after the story of Uriah the Hittite, and the gameplay can be relatively awkward, with no hub city being available for about half of the game.”
- “Too shallow and a boring, uninteresting story.”
gameplay
55 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
58%
9%
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, with some players enjoying the smooth, Diablo-like mechanics and the ability to control multiple characters, while others criticize it for being repetitive, clunky, and plagued by pathfinding issues. Despite innovative ideas and a unique biblical theme, many reviewers feel that the execution falls short due to poor design choices and a lack of challenge, leading to a less engaging experience overall. While some appreciate the combat and character switching, the overall consensus suggests that the gameplay could benefit from significant improvements to enhance enjoyment and depth.
- “The action RPG gameplay is for the most part smooth and enjoyable; the various character skills and the ability to switch between them on the fly is great. The combat feels great, and smashing through hordes of enemies is incredibly satisfying.”
- “Take away the biblical backstory, and you have a solid isometric ARPG from first-time developer Kingdom Games that is both engaging and provides innovative mechanics to a familiar genre.”
- “The gameplay is fun, and just when it starts to get a little dull, something new is thrown into the mix, like stealth missions or enemies with new abilities.”
- “Yeah... this game could have been so much better... it's so sad... it has such good ideas which are ruined with sloppy, partly bugged gameplay.”
- “On the less bright side, there's no real ending, the story just kind of stops after the story of Uriah the Hittite, and the gameplay can be relatively awkward, with no hub city being available for about half of the game, controlling five characters at once being more of a gimmick than anything, and it generally being a lower-quality Diablo-like.”
- “The gameplay generally consists of talking to someone, walking toward a destination, being accosted by enemies at which point a frenzied battle ensues, followed by more of the same.”
graphics
29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
52%
10%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the artwork and comic book-style interludes as impressive and engaging. However, some players note issues such as graphic bugs and a quality reminiscent of older titles like Diablo 2, while others find the visuals to be generally pleasing but lacking in polish. Overall, the game features a blend of good character design and smooth gameplay, though some players feel it could have benefited from better graphical execution.
- “The graphics are very well done and is hands down the best looking Christian game I have seen.”
- “Great graphics, smooth gameplay, and intuitive GUI.”
- “The graphics and environment are pleasing, the story is engaging, and the combat is satisfying.”
- “There are a few graphic bugs; the quality level is around Diablo 2 era.”
- “The first few cutscenes are quite lavish artwork with text, then later levels are capped with poorly placed comic-book style narration.”
- “The graphics of the game are a bit rough; I personally thought they could have done better in that department considering the fact it is a relatively new game.”
music
19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
21%
16%
The music in the game is widely praised for its quality, catchiness, and ability to enhance the overall experience, with many reviewers noting that it complements the environments beautifully. While the voice acting received mixed feedback, the soundtrack is consistently described as excellent and a significant highlight of the game. However, some players experienced technical issues that affected the audio, detracting from the otherwise strong musical elements.
- “The soundtrack and sound effects are well done.”
- “The music in the game is beautiful and worth listening to, and it complements quite well with the area you are in.”
- “The soundtrack is amazing and well worth the purchase.”
- “Also, in my second playthrough, a level soft broke so I later restarted, but both the music and voice overs were broken and gone.”
- “Shutting down all volume will still play the menu's repetitive music.”
- “The music/sound is okay, though the voice acting is quite poor.”
stability
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous bugs and glitches reported by users, including inconsistent AI and problematic save/load mechanics. While some players note that recent patches have improved stability, many still experience frustrating moments that disrupt gameplay. Overall, the game's stability is a major concern, detracting from the overall experience.
- “This game is horrifically buggy.”
- “Buggy, inconsistent AI.”
- “The game freezes for around thirty seconds anytime you start it before you see the intro videos.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Overall, the game's optimization is generally well-received, with most players experiencing smooth performance and maintaining 60fps, though some report minor stuttering and occasional drops below 60fps. While the performance is largely satisfactory, there is potential for improvement through future patches or optimization guides.
- “All in all, I don't see why anyone wouldn't like this title - especially if the FPS can be improved someday via another optimization patch or a guide.”
- “It could use some optimization as it does sometimes drop below 60fps and at times below 30 :(”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect somewhat tedious, particularly due to the manual equipping of party members and a lack of individual stat allocation upon leveling up. However, some appreciate the focus on farming loot for stat bonuses, which they feel has a more significant impact on character development than traditional stat point distribution.
- “Not this cyber farming torture that developers think is fun for us.”
- “It can be a little tedious as you have to manually equip your entire party.”
- “Some have complained that they don't get to put points into their individual stats on level up, which is true, but the game is more about farming loot that has the stat bonuses you want and fine-tuning your character that way, which honestly has more impact than dropping points into various stats each level up.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
Character development in the game is notably lacking, with reviewers highlighting its absence as a significant flaw. The gameplay suffers from poor itemization and a lack of strategic depth, leaving players with a sense of stagnation in character progression. Overall, the game fails to deliver meaningful character growth, contributing to a less engaging experience.
- “So as a game, what you have is a poor Titan Quest clone with bad animations, no character development, poor itemization, boring enemies, muddled textures, and it's very buggy.”
- “Such important gameplay aspects as strategic groups, tactics, and proper character development are nowhere to be found here.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a good dose of humor, primarily through the playful banter and bickering among the five warriors, who engage in lighthearted pranks. Additionally, amusing enemy animations and a notable glitch add to the comedic experience, enhancing the overall enjoyment.
- “There’s a fair amount of humor in the conversations among the five mighty warriors, as they bicker and play pranks on each other throughout the game.”
- “The enemy animations are nicely done, and I even encountered a funny glitch.”
- “It was both hilarious and taunting, as if to say the attacks weren’t powerful enough.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
While the game is highly enjoyable and offers a rich narrative experience, players note that once all missions are completed and collectibles are gathered, the replayability is limited, with many feeling that the game lacks incentives to revisit after the initial playthrough.
- “While this is perhaps my favorite game in the ARPG field, I must admit that once you have played through each mission and gotten all the relic stones to fill in the biblical background of what is happening, there is really no replay value. I went through each map fully, got all the stones, and finished the game in about 20 hours or so.”