Gladiator Trainer

About

Gladiator Trainer is a single player casual role playing game. It was developed by Pilgrim Adventures and was released on November 25, 2016. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"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

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69%

Audience ScoreBased on 140 reviews

story9 positive mentions

graphics4 negative mentions

The game offers a surprising amount of depth for a low-budget fighting simulator, with engaging management elements and a rewarding progression system.
Despite its simplistic graphics and controls, many players found the game strangely addictive and enjoyable, especially for its low price.
The storyline and character interactions provide an interesting backdrop to the gameplay, making it more engaging than expected.

The combat system is entirely automated, leading to a lack of player control and making battles feel repetitive and reliant on RNG.
The game suffers from a clunky interface and numerous bugs, which can detract from the overall experience and frustrate players.
The promotional artwork is misleading, as it features anime characters that do not appear in the game, leading to disappointment among players.

story
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
65%
9%
The game's story is generally considered basic and lacking depth, revolving around managing gladiators in a fantasy realm where players buy and train slaves for combat. While some reviewers found the narrative intriguing and appreciated its integration with gameplay, many noted that it could benefit from more character development and complexity. Overall, the story is seen as a decent backdrop to the entertaining game loop, especially given the low price point.
- “The small story woven in between weeks of gladiator fighting is well done and intriguing.”
- “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.”
- “Every choice you make concerning your manor and your gladiators affects the game, and it has a pretty intriguing storyline as well.”
- “The story is very plain.”
- “Not much of a story or main quest to do.”
- “Graphics awful, gameplay awful, story really non-existent.”
graphics
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
68%
18%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many users noting the limitations of the RPG Maker engine, such as lack of full HD support and poor fullscreen display. While some appreciate the unique art style and character designs, others criticize the overall visual quality, describing it as outdated and in need of improvement. Overall, the graphics are seen as acceptable for the game's low price, 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
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
60%
20%
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 player skill involvement, as battles are automated. Despite its low-quality visuals and generic gameplay, some users found enjoyment in the atmosphere and story, suggesting that it can provide several hours of fun for those willing to overlook its flaws. Overall, the gameplay is described as straightforward and innovative in concept, but may not appeal to everyone due to its simplicity and execution.
- “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, and as you work and train them to fight better, you earn more money, allowing you to increase the number of fighters you have and buy better weapons and gear. The game offers a few other elements, but that can be left for you to explore as you play. All in all, you are sure to obtain several hours of fun and joy from this game.”
- “Gladiator Trainer is a fairly simple title compared to some other 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
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with players noting that it complements the gameplay effectively and enhances the overall atmosphere. The soundtrack is described as decent and fitting, contributing to the game's distinctive art style and immersive experience.
- “The music and sound for the game aren't too bad; they work well with the game and actually complement it.”
- “It has a distinctive art style, with some nicely rendered 3D models of all the characters and opponents, along with a decent soundtrack to keep you going.”
- “The background music, the weird graphics, and the cruel background world seem to fit all 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.”
- “[0.1] sound & music”
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 is a cheap +1 to your game count as a collector, and as a perfect game, it isn't that difficult either; a few hours of grinding and playing gets you another +1.”
- “The game has its moments, but it can also 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.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as a mix of funny and serious moments, contributing to its overall spirit and ambiance. While some players found the humor enjoyable, others felt let down by the lack of a combat system, which they believed could have added to the comedic potential. Overall, the humor is appreciated but not consistently integrated into gameplay.
- “I liked the art style, the ambiance, the humor... the whole spirit actually.”
- “Sometimes funny, sometimes serious and gives you choices.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is 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.”
- “Frequent crashes make it nearly unplayable, ruining the overall experience.”
- “I encountered numerous glitches that disrupted gameplay and made it frustrating.”
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
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.
- “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 titles.
- “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.”