Gladiator Trainer

About

"Gladiator Trainer" is a simulation game where you build and train a team of gladiators to rise in status from the lowest ranks to the queen's royal arena, in a world recovering from a great war. You must restore a run-down estate to properly train your fighters and can upgrade their skills through encounters with travelers. The game features a conspiracy against the queen, and you must decide whether to protect her or join the rebellion.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

70%

Audience ScoreBased on 135 reviews

story9 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

The game offers a surprisingly enjoyable experience for its low price, providing hours of entertainment and a decent storyline.
Players appreciate the management mechanics and the depth of character development, making it engaging despite its simplicity.
The game has a unique charm and can be addictive, with many players finding themselves invested in the progression of their gladiators.

The game suffers from a clunky interface and poor controls, making navigation and gameplay frustrating at times.
Many players found the promotional artwork misleading, as it features anime characters that do not appear in the actual game, leading to disappointment.
The gameplay can become repetitive and grindy, with a lack of meaningful choices during battles, as players do not control their gladiators directly.

story
35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
66%
9%
The game's story, set in a fantasy realm, revolves around managing gladiators and navigating a morally complex narrative of slavery and competition. While some players find the storyline intriguing and appreciate its depth for an indie title, others criticize it for being basic and lacking character development. Overall, the story is seen as a decent backdrop to the gameplay, with potential for more depth and engagement.
- “The small story woven in between weeks of gladiator fighting is well done and intriguing.”
- “The big plus point for this game is the story and lore.”
- “Every choice you make concerning your manor and your gladiators affects the game, and it has a pretty intriguing storyline as well.”
- “The game uses slaves, as gladiators usually were, and writes a story of the player being a slave owner.”
- “Along the way there is a main quest where you're trying to prevent an assassination, but all it really revolves around is 'win this tournament to meet with someone'.”
- “Graphics awful, gameplay awful, story really non-existent.”
graphics
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
65%
17%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many users noting the limitations of the RPG Maker engine, which lacks full HD support and graphics customization options. While some appreciate the unique art style and character designs, others criticize the overall visual quality as outdated and unpolished. Overall, the graphics are deemed acceptable for the game's price point, but they do not meet the expectations of modern gamers.
- “The game offers a unique art style to the game engine, with unique features and design models for all the characters in the game, which is nice; it makes the game visually appealing.”
- “It has a distinctive art style, with some nicely rendered 3D models of all the characters and opponents, with a decent soundtrack to keep you going.”
- “First, compared to other RPG Maker games I've seen, the graphics are amazing.”
- “As with all RPG Maker games, the poor quality engine displays badly in fullscreen and doesn't have full HD support or any graphics tweaking options, making this unacceptable for any dedicated modern PC gamer.”
- “Graphics awful, gameplay awful, story really non-existent.”
- “Visuals seem very old and they need to be polished.”
gameplay
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
63%
19%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its simple management mechanics and strategic elements, while others criticize it for being repetitive and lacking depth. The automatic combat system detracts from player engagement, and the overall experience is marred by low-quality graphics and a generic feel. Despite these flaws, some players find enjoyment in the gameplay, particularly in the context of its indie roots.
- “Cool short strategy game! I didn't think I would enjoy it as much from seeing the gameplay, but I learned to like it!”
- “The gameplay, however, is quite simple, as it is with most management games. You start poor and at the bottom, slowly working your way up. You begin on a small estate with two fighters, training them to improve and earn more money, which allows you to buy better weapons and gear. The game offers several elements to explore, ensuring you will have hours of fun and joy.”
- “Gladiator Trainer is a fairly simple title compared to some more recent games, but that doesn't really seem to make much difference because the style is very innovative, and the gameplay itself can prove to be quite impressive.”
- “Like most RPG Maker shovelware and asset flips, the game features extremely low quality copy-pasted 2D retro pixel art, looks awful, and has even worse gameplay.”
- “There is no action gameplay; fights are played out automatically with your fighters relying on their equipment and training to win, rather than player skill.”
- “Overall, there are developer mechanical flaws.”
music
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
29%
43%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with players noting that it complements the gameplay and enhances the overall atmosphere. While not groundbreaking, the soundtrack is described as decent and fitting, contributing to the game's unique art style and immersive experience.
- “The music and sound for the game isn't too bad; it works well with the game and actually complements it.”
- “The background music, the weird graphics, and the cruel background world seem to fit together perfectly in this not even close to perfect game.”
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
- “It has a distinctive art style, with some nicely rendered 3D models of all the characters and opponents, with a decent soundtrack to keep you going.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is often seen as tedious and time-consuming, requiring significant effort to level up and defeat challenging end-game enemies. While some players find moments of enjoyment, the overall sentiment suggests that the grind can detract from the experience, especially as players near completion.
- “The game has its moments, while it also can be a little painful or grindy.”
- “A lot of level grinding is needed as the end game enemies are level 25-30 and they are really hard to defeat.”
- “Either way, just like any other regular RPG, the closer you're about to finish, the lesser patience you have (grinding is grinding after all).”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is appreciated for its balance, blending moments of levity with serious themes, which enhances the overall spirit and ambiance. Players enjoy the witty dialogue and the choices that allow for varied comedic experiences.
- “I liked the art style, the ambiance, the humor... the whole spirit, actually.”
- “Sometimes funny, sometimes serious, and gives you choices.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere and story of the game are praised as strong points, enhancing the overall experience despite some criticism of the gameplay being easy and repetitive.
- “The atmosphere and story are pretty good for a small indie game.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
100%
The game offers around 9 hours of enjoyable gameplay, but it is criticized for lacking difficulty settings and overall replay value, which may limit its long-term appeal.
- “The game offers a variety of choices that make each playthrough feel unique, enhancing its replayability.”
- “With multiple endings and different character paths, I found myself coming back for more to explore every possibility.”
- “The dynamic gameplay mechanics keep things fresh, encouraging me to replay levels and try new strategies.”
- “It lacks some difficulty settings and replay value, but I got a good 9 hours of fun out of it before finishing.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
While the story is engaging, many users feel that the character development lacks depth, leaving them wanting more complexity. However, it is still considered an improvement over some higher-priced games.
- “The story was decent and interesting despite being quite basic; I wish it had more depth and character development, but it's still better than some more expensive games out there.”
- “The story was decent and interesting despite being quite basic. I wish it had more depth and character development, but it's still better than some more expensive games out there.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game's stability has been criticized for being buggy and significantly inferior to "Lord of the Arena," which is perceived as a more polished version with a better user interface.
- “The game is buggy and much worse than 'Lord of the Arena', which seems to be the same game but with a better user interface.”
- “I experienced frequent crashes and glitches that made it nearly unplayable.”
- “The stability issues are frustrating; I can't enjoy the game when it keeps freezing.”