Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn

Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn is an action-RPG that delivers on most of its promises, along with some solid side content that is well worth indulging in – even if the full game isn't anything particularly remarkable.

79%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

character development, stability

79% User Score Based on 462 reviews

Critic Score 61%Based on 4 reviews

Platforms

Buy Nowfrom $15.06

Buy NowGet on Steam$39.99

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About

"Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn" is a Souls-lite action game from A44, where you play as Nor Vanek, a Coalition army member, seeking vengeance against the Gods who have opened the Door to the Great Below and unleashed their army of the Dead. Joined by a mysterious fox-like companion, Enki, you must fight back, using gunpowder and magic, to close the door and retake the world. The Digital Deluxe Edition includes three customization packs for Nor's outfits. Your battle against the Gods begins now.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

79%

Audience ScoreBased on 462 reviews

story84 positive mentions

stability9 negative mentions

The combat system is engaging and rewards an aggressive playstyle, making battles feel dynamic and satisfying.
The game features beautiful graphics and a unique world design that encourages exploration.
The relationship between the main characters, Nor and Enki, adds depth to the story and enhances the overall experience.

The story is shallow and lacks depth, with minimal character development and a rushed narrative.
The game suffers from technical issues, including crashes and unresponsive controls, which can detract from the gameplay experience.
Enemy variety is limited, leading to repetitive encounters and a lack of challenge in later stages of the game.

story
224 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
54%
8%
The story in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it enjoyable yet lacking depth and complexity. While some appreciate the interesting world and character dynamics, others criticize the narrative for being shallow, rushed, or generic, often overshadowed by the gameplay. Overall, the story is seen as a secondary element, with many players feeling it could have been more fleshed out to enhance the overall experience.
- “Honestly a good game, fun, with good mechanics, a compelling story, a cute little fox companion, and a charismatic main character, with funny and helpful side characters. 9/10 for me.”
- “The story is interesting and the world itself is fascinating, and Enki, your sidekick, adds depth to the narrative.”
- “The bones of the plot are nothing special, but the world and the character dialogue are both extremely strong, and the arcs of the two central characters, as well as the quality voice acting and the consistently strong exchanges between them, left me surprised and impressed.”
- “The story is pretty dull, the characters lack any depth and the connection between the protagonist and Enki is as shallow as a puddle.”
- “The story is rushed and crudely executed, the dialogue could be better.”
- “All in all, the story and the protagonist made it not interesting and killed all the joy I had for this game.”
gameplay
183 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
56%
6%
The gameplay of *Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn* is characterized by a blend of fast-paced combat mechanics, including parries, dodges, and a unique reputation system that encourages aggressive play. While many players appreciate the fluidity and depth of the combat, some have noted issues with floaty movement, technical bugs, and a lack of polish that can detract from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, the game offers an engaging and enjoyable gameplay loop that combines elements from both souls-like and action-adventure genres, making it accessible for newcomers while still providing challenges for veterans.
- “The gameplay is fluid, intuitive, and engaging, making it a joy to play.”
- “Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn offers a thrilling experience with its fast-paced movement mechanics and challenging difficulty options.”
- “The combat mechanics are well-designed, providing a satisfying mix of melee and ranged attacks that require strategic thinking.”
- “The game crashes regularly, and combat mechanics are buggy and don't always work.”
- “Floaty-ass moving mechanics and combat make for a poor experience.”
- “Very unoptimized, no real graphics settings, clunky gameplay mechanics, linear gameplay, no story worth hearing, gets boring and repetitive quickly.”
graphics
76 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
45%
5%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the aesthetic design and visual style, often likening it to a late renaissance or early industrial period. While some praise the stunning visuals and immersive environments, others note technical issues such as optimization problems, graphical pop-ins, and an overall lack of polish. Overall, the graphics are generally considered good but not groundbreaking, with a few standout moments that elevate the experience.
- “The graphics are very attractive and the game runs really well.”
- “Built on Unreal Engine 4, the game delivers intense and immersive graphics that keep you on the edge of your seat.”
- “The visuals and sound design are top-notch, fully immersing you in the fantasy world.”
- “Few bugs, but some graphical issues for me, and the biggest problem was the camera.”
- “Unstable and disappointing graphics.”
- “Looks bad technically and dull aesthetically.”
optimization
53 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
55%
21%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing significant stuttering and frame drops, particularly on PC, while others report smooth performance, especially on the Steam Deck. Many users noted that the game benefits from DLSS and recent patches have improved performance, but overall, it appears that optimization issues persist for various hardware configurations. While some players enjoyed stable frame rates, others found the game poorly optimized, suggesting it may require further polishing.
- “After completing the story mode (because I just wanted to enjoy story mode, combat is not my strong side), I can admit that this game is really nice. I enjoyed the graphics and the performance.”
- “Good performance is a rare thing these days (looking at you, Jedi Survivor), and A44 Games deserve praise for delivering such a good-looking game in a well-optimized state.”
- “The game is also well optimized; I haven't seen any pop-in or glitches, and it even runs well on Steam Deck at medium-high settings at around 30-45 fps.”
- “If you have a console, I'd recommend looking into how it performs on that, as I experienced a lot of intermittent stuttering and frame drops on my PC, even after turning the graphics settings down.”
- “From a technical standpoint, the game feels incomplete and poorly optimized.”
- “So poorly optimized it's literally unplayable.”
music
37 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
49%
8%
The music in the game has received a mixed but generally positive reception, with many praising the soundtrack as beautiful and atmospheric, particularly during boss fights and key moments. While standout pieces and the overall composition are highlighted as exceptional, some players noted issues with volume levels and sound mixing that detracted from the experience. Overall, the music enhances immersion and complements the game's world, with a strong desire among players for a soundtrack release.
- “The soundtrack is rarely at the forefront, but a few standout pieces are absolutely exceptional.”
- “Music is incredible; especially the boss themes.”
- “The soundtrack and sound effects enhance the overall immersion, pulling you deeper into the game's world.”
- “Music keeps being too loud.”
- “Even after turning the music slider down to half, it's way too loud during boss fights.”
- “The un-skippable story cutscenes, boss fight music, NPC dialogue, and the earsplitting opening splash art when you boot the game all play at max volume, no matter what you have the master volume at.”
character development
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
38%
31%
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with some praising the engaging banter and design of characters like Nor and Enki, while others criticize the lack of depth and off-screen development. Many players feel that the story detracts from character growth, leading to a superficial experience despite the intriguing worldbuilding. Overall, while the character design is often highlighted, the narrative and character arcs leave much to be desired.
- “The character design for Nor, the player character, and Enki, your soon-to-be companion for this adventure, along with their banter and conversations along the way, is the highlight of Flintlock.”
- “I enjoyed the theme, the character development, and some of the more thought-provoking and philosophical conversations between your character and Enki as you wander around.”
- “I've only played on normal difficulty, and in the beginning, there are a few moments where the game seems harsh and unforgiving, but roughly halfway through, you will just cross the threshold with your character development, and even bosses will only make you sweat a bit.”
- “Bad story and character development.”
- “And a disappointing amount of the character development happens off-screen.”
- “The characters were alright but no depth to them and no character development either.”
stability
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
82%
The game's stability is a mixed bag; while some players report smooth gameplay and no significant issues, others experience frequent crashes, quest-ending glitches, and combat bugs. Overall, the game is praised for its graphics and optimization, but the presence of various glitches and audio problems detracts from the experience for some users.
- “It looks great and runs great.”
- “It's overall a great game with no glitches or bugs. It features a faster-paced souls-type combat with its own spin on it, great graphics, and the price is definitely acceptable for its size.”
- “The game crashes regularly, and combat mechanics are buggy and don't always work.”
- “There are aspects to the combat, gameplay, and world-building that should be commended, but quest-ending glitches and some graphical pop-ins do diminish the overall experience.”
- “The game likes to crash often, audio is a little buggy at the starting phase, and some of the combat feels more annoying than hard.”
humor
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is well-received, with players appreciating the witty dialogue, funny character interactions, and engaging comedic elements throughout the gameplay. The charismatic main character and charming side characters contribute to the lighthearted tone, while moments like the janky sniper bullet camera add to the overall hilarity. Despite some flaws, the humor enhances the experience, making it enjoyable and memorable for players.
- “Honestly a good game, fun, with good mechanics, a compelling story, a cute little fox companion, and a charismatic main character, with funny and helpful side characters, 9/10 for me.”
- “They even implemented a sniper elite-like bullet camera for the sniper headshots (it's a bit janky, but hilarious).”
- “Characters were likable, funny banter, and I enjoyed my playthrough immensely once I got over the early game hump.”
grinding
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience; while the early game is enjoyable, the later stages, particularly after the dukmar boss, can feel tedious due to high hitpoints and repetitive tasks. Farming is not strictly necessary on normal difficulty, but it can enhance the experience on harder settings, providing a fun risk/reward dynamic. Overall, while some players appreciate the challenge, others view the grinding as a chore that detracts from the enjoyment of the game.
- “This game has fun combat but grindy, boring achievements.”
- “I really liked the first 3/4 of the game, but starting with the Dukmar boss, the end feels kind of rushed and therefore the later bosses are very grindy (lots of hit points) and not fun for me.”
- “For reference, I completed Elden Ring and found it thoroughly enjoyable, but this game felt more like a tedious chore rather than having fun.”
atmosphere
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
44%
33%
Flintlock's atmosphere is a blend of engaging combat and vibrant, eerie environments, reminiscent of titles like Atlas Fallen and Souls-like games. While it sacrifices some of the darker, dungeon-crawling elements, the dynamic music and unique character designs contribute to a haunting yet beautiful setting that enhances the narrative of a civilization under siege. Overall, the graphics and sound design effectively create an immersive atmosphere that complements the game's themes.
- “The music is dynamic and atmospheric, and the sound effects are also good.”
- “The graphics are great and give it a really nice atmosphere and feeling.”
- “Flintlock offers way more engaging combat with the axe and guns combo, verticality and platforming centered around in-air maneuvering, and world interactions, at the expense of some of the pure, drippingly dark atmosphere of Ashen's dungeon crawling.”
- “Souls-like principles inevitably create a timeless artificiality to their environments, which can make for a weird, haunting atmosphere, but that requires a particular type of liminal narrative (like in a FromSoftware game), and Flintlock is trying to tell a story more upfront, about a civilization desperately trying to hold off against a divine onslaught.”
- “Characters are uniquely designed, each one contributing to the game’s vibrant and often eerie atmosphere.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a strong emotional connection to the game, with some feeling empowered and likening their experience to being a "one woman army." The gameplay evokes a range of emotions, from laughter at the character's movements to moments of deep engagement during exploration. However, there are mixed feelings about certain mechanics, which can detract from the overall emotional experience.
- “I cried from the first seconds of gameplay; the movements of the main character are hilarious.”
- “Made me feel like a one-woman army.”
- “Touching grass.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The game offers limited replayability, with around 13 hours of gameplay and minimal incentives for players to return after completion. Reviewers suggest waiting for a sale, as the lack of additional content or challenges diminishes its long-term appeal.
- “The game offers a variety of choices that significantly change the outcome, making each playthrough feel fresh and engaging.”
- “With multiple endings and diverse character paths, the replayability factor is high, encouraging players to explore every possibility.”
- “The dynamic world and evolving storylines ensure that no two playthroughs are the same, keeping players coming back for more.”
- “No replayability, so I would recommend waiting for a sale.”
- “As I said, the game is not bad, but I wish the developers had put more effort into making it more playable and longer.”
- “All in all, about 13 hours of gameplay to complete, and an exceptionally low degree of replayability due to the lack of incentive beyond pure completionism for completionism's sake.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
100%
Flintlock features a solid single-player campaign with no microtransactions or predatory monetization practices, contradicting misleading advertising claims.
- “Flintlock is a really solid single-player campaign with zero microtransactions or predatory content.”
- “The advertising is lying to you.”
- “Flintlock is a really solid single player campaign with zero microtransactions or predatory content.”