Geneforge 5: Overthrow

About

Geneforge 5: Overthrow is the final chapter in the Geneforge Saga, offering a vast world with over 80 areas to explore and nine character classes. As a Shaper, create and mold your own army of powerful monsters, and choose among five factions to help lead to final victory. Your choices will shape the world, with multiple endings determined by your actions.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

96%

Audience ScoreBased on 162 reviews

story38 positive mentions

grinding4 negative mentions

Geneforge 5 offers a rich and complex storytelling experience with meaningful choices that impact the game's outcome.
The game features a robust combat system and a variety of factions to align with, enhancing replayability and player engagement.
Despite its dated graphics, the game provides a large world to explore, filled with secrets and diverse gameplay mechanics.

The user interface is poorly designed, making navigation and interaction frustrating at times.
There is a lack of music, which detracts from the overall atmosphere of the game.
Some players have reported game-breaking glitches that can significantly hinder progress.

story
104 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
60%
4%
The game's story is praised for its deep, rich, and complex narrative that evolves based on player choices, offering a compelling experience filled with moral dilemmas and multiple endings. While it is largely self-contained, connections to previous entries exist, making it accessible for newcomers despite some convoluted elements. Overall, the storytelling is immersive and engaging, with a strong focus on character interactions and the impact of decisions within a war-torn world.
- “It has very deep, rich, complex storytelling.”
- “The game is a 'choices matter' game and the story changes and evolves with each choice.”
- “The story is 1000/10, giving you the chance to experience life through the eyes of the shapers or the rebels in their desperation of trying to win the ongoing war.”
- “All the storytelling's very dry and setting-based - but it's compelling regardless.”
- “I'm a big fan of this series but after the first, the game kind of railroads the story into having the rebels win.”
- “Overly complex mechanics, verbosity, bad pacing, and obscure quest solutions.”
gameplay
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
63%
6%
The gameplay in the Geneforge series is characterized by refined mechanics and a strong emphasis on story and world-building, offering a classic isometric RPG experience. Players appreciate the depth of gameplay, which includes unique mechanics, fun combat, and the importance of choices that affect faction relationships and outcomes. While some find the mechanics overly complex, the game provides a well-handled tutorial and encourages diverse playstyles, including stealth and non-combat approaches, contributing to its replay value and overall enjoyment.
- “I highly recommend these games for their unique mechanics, fun combat, and interesting world building.”
- “The gameplay, plot, and writing are all top notch, but its biggest success is how it handles choice and consequences.”
- “Fantastic setting, good gameplay, interesting story with lots of endings and choices, as well as unique philosophical points brought up.”
- “Nothing is dramatically different from previous games in terms of gameplay or art style.”
- “Overly complex mechanics, verbosity, bad pacing, and obscure quest solutions.”
- “This game doesn't get rid of old mechanics; it just refines them further.”
graphics
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
59%
18%
The graphics in the game show only slight improvements over previous entries in the series, remaining basic and somewhat dated, which may not appeal to those seeking modern visuals. However, many players feel that the graphics do not detract from the overall enjoyment, as the game's strong storytelling and gameplay mechanics compensate for the visual shortcomings. While some appreciate the retro aesthetic, others note that the graphics are subpar, yet still fitting for the game's style.
- “A strong conclusion to the Geneforge series, benefiting from the most refined graphics and mechanics of any game in the series.”
- “This game has improved the graphics from the older games quite a bit.”
- “Great graphics, new monsters, new creatures to shape, a wide amount of areas to explore, many different paths to choose.”
- “Worth a play if you can read, despite the horrendous graphics and UI.”
- “Con's: the graphics are subpar at best; must be able to use your imagination.”
- “It has certain setbacks though, the general quality of graphics is noticeably not great, but the game makes up for this in the quality of the story.”
replayability
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
36%
21%
The game boasts high replayability due to its faction system, multiple story endings, and a variety of choices that allow for different gameplay experiences. Players can explore numerous paths and strategies, enhancing the overall value for hours of entertainment. The complexity of character building and the potential for treachery further contribute to its significant replay value.
- “Not only does the faction system in this game provide great replayability, it's a world of opportunity for treason and double crossing.”
- “The story has many different endings, offering many hours of potential gameplay and massive replay value.”
- “Great ending to the saga, very replayable because of all the paths you can choose, providing great value for entertainment per hour.”
- “Replayability: somewhat high.”
- “Story has many different endings, many, many hours of potential gameplay and massive replay value.”
- “Difficulty in torment is legit and with 5 main factions and a myriad of choices, lots of replay value.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often leading to long waits between turns. While it may build anticipation for future content, the overall experience is described as irritating.
- “This can be tedious and takes a very long time until your next turn.”
- “The 4th could care less if I was unable to play; it's good and leads you up to the 5th, but it's tedious and irritating at best.”
music
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has been criticized for lacking any music, which detracts from the overall experience, alongside complaints about a poorly designed user interface.
- “The problem with this game is there is no music, and the UI is really bad.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has been reported to have several game-breaking glitches, which can significantly impact the experience; however, many users still consider it worth purchasing despite these issues.
- “Unfortunately, there are a few game-breaking glitches, but even still, I'd say it's worth the purchase.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
150%
The game exhibits some optimization issues typical of older titles; however, it still runs adequately and does not require high performance to enjoy.
- “The game has some optimization issues due to being quite an old title, but it still runs well enough, and it's not a game that requires particularly high performance.”
- “The game has some optimization issues due to being quite an old title, but it still runs well enough and doesn't require particularly high performance.”
- “There are noticeable optimization problems, which can detract from the overall experience, especially on newer hardware.”
- “While the game is enjoyable, the optimization leaves much to be desired, leading to occasional frame drops and stuttering.”