Goblin Stone
- March 12, 2024
- Orc Chop Games
- 15h median play time
Get on Steam"Goblin Stone" is a turn-based roguelite where you lead a party of goblins in their quest for survival against human adventurers. Customize your party with different classes, abilities, and genetics, and experience a unique combat system where positioning determines the order of actions. Manage a thriving goblin colony, build your lair, and breed your goblins to create the perfect party. The game features nostalgic storybook-inspired visuals and an epic soundtrack composed by Peter McConnell.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Charming art style and engaging narration that enhances the overall experience.
- Unique gameplay mechanics that combine turn-based combat with base building and goblin breeding.
- Fun and addictive gameplay loop that encourages experimentation with different goblin classes and strategies.
- Numerous bugs and glitches that can lead to game-breaking issues, such as soft locks and lost progress.
- Clunky user interface that makes navigation and management tedious, especially when dealing with goblin stats and inventory.
- Repetitive gameplay with limited enemy variety and temporary rewards that diminish the sense of progression.
- story161 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 73 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The game's story is characterized by its charming, hand-drawn aesthetic and engaging narrative that offers a unique perspective on classic fantasy tropes, particularly through the lens of goblin characters. While many players appreciate the entertaining and heartwarming elements of the storyline, some criticize its execution, noting issues with pacing, repetitiveness, and a lack of depth in character development and mission variety. Overall, the story is seen as enjoyable but could benefit from more complexity and less grindy gameplay mechanics.
“The story is very good and the narration is great.”
“Art, story, and voice acting is stellar - this is a story that is funny, heartwarming, and totally unexpected!”
“The game has a charming hand-drawn storybook aesthetic that fits the game well.”
“There's no rich story to explore here.”
“The overall lore/story is quite minimal and I think would benefit from being sped up or introduced in other ways, for example, item/place descriptions that can be explored in the player's own time.”
“All the fun stuff in Goblin Stone is undone by the undercooked economy and bloated number of quests required to progress through the chapters.”
- gameplay121 mentions
- 37 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is characterized by its charming art style and engaging mechanics, blending familiar elements from titles like Darkest Dungeon with unique features such as breeding and turn order dynamics. However, many players note issues with repetitiveness, shallow mechanics, and bugs that detract from the overall experience, leading to a mixed reception regarding long-term enjoyment. While the core gameplay loop is enjoyable and offers potential for fun, it often feels hindered by a lack of depth and variety, particularly in the late game.
“Endearing graphics, a story that challenges norms, and familiar-yet-novel gameplay.”
“The gameplay loop is fun, fights provide a good challenge, it has some good humor and pokes fun at RPG tropes.”
“A really good game with a beautiful concept and gameplay mechanics.”
“When the player uncovers the last classes, soon thereafter maxes out their base, the gameplay becomes entirely redundant.”
“The gameplay, however, is a bit frustrating.”
“The mechanics in this game aren't really deep enough for it to be fun for long.”
- graphics79 mentions
- 58 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming, hand-drawn art style and beautiful aesthetics, which enhance the overall gameplay experience. Players appreciate the cute visuals and engaging narrative, noting that the artwork is a standout feature that captivates and immerses them in the game world. However, some users have reported technical issues, such as memory leaks and a messy UI, which detract from the otherwise enchanting visual experience.
“Endearing graphics, a story that challenges norms, and familiar-yet-novel gameplay.”
“The game has a charming hand-drawn storybook aesthetic that fits the game well.”
“Absolutely beautiful game, great art style and narrative additions.”
“There is a memory leak in the game; the only thing I can think of, as this game will max out my 2090 ti - even though this game isn't some graphically intensive game.”
“The UI is messy and unintuitive, the graphics are underwhelming, and the music is lackluster.”
“The stages are also filled with an odd walking simulator mechanic, I guess in order to see the pretty graphics somebody did, but it's annoying after a while.”
- grinding47 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being excessively tedious and unbalanced, with players spending a significant amount of time on repetitive tasks that yield minimal progress. Many reviews highlight the slow pace of advancement, the lack of meaningful rewards, and the frustration caused by bugs and resource scarcity, making the overall experience feel like a chore rather than an engaging gameplay loop. While some players find enjoyment in the aesthetic and story, the overwhelming consensus is that the grinding detracts from the game's potential.
“The game is slow, grindy, and lacks any feeling of progress.”
“This game has a lot to offer aesthetically, but otherwise, it is a letdown due to the ridiculous amount of grinding that must be done to accomplish anything.”
“There is little content and progression is very slow and grindy.”
- stability29 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game has been widely criticized for its instability, with numerous reports of bugs, glitches, and performance issues such as freezing and lagging. While some players find the gameplay enjoyable and express hope for future patches, many have experienced significant frustrations, including lost progress and a clunky user interface. Overall, the consensus is that the game is currently too buggy for a satisfactory experience.
“Dev's released a buggy and unfinished game.”
“There are several game freezes and game-breaking bugs.”
“From cutscenes that don't trigger at the start of the game to it occasionally showing a black screen, to soft locks where something is stuck on the screen and you have to end task, to random slowdowns where it seems like it freezes for 10-15 seconds.”
- music20 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally described as relaxing and charming, enhancing the overall atmosphere and complementing the art style. While many players appreciate the chill vibe and quality of the soundtrack, some find it less memorable and repetitive over time. Overall, the music contributes positively to the experience, though it is occasionally overshadowed by other gameplay issues.
“The music and art style is very relaxing, and it saves along the way so you can jump in and play for a while without stressful 'make-it-to-x-to-save' mechanics like Stardew's day-end mechanic.”
“The music is very good, the graphics charming and breeding fun, although quite limited and level gated.”
“The art is nice to look at, the music however isn't that memorable and the narrator has a good voice but gets repetitive after a while.”
“The UI is messy and unintuitive, the graphics are underwhelming, and the music is lackluster.”
“The music is often matching my mood for encounters and general exploration.”
- optimization11 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 45 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received significant criticism, with users reporting poor performance, numerous bugs, and clunky mechanics that detract from the overall experience. While some players appreciate the small download size and smooth operation in certain aspects, the overarching sentiment is that the game's potential is hindered by its optimization issues, leading to frustration rather than enjoyment.
“Runs smoothly, small download size.”
“They tend to also be very optimized.”
“Bugs and performance issues aside, which will be hotfixed eventually.”
“Normally I would love spending time on a breeding system like this as a sort of management style optimization, but it’s so clunkily done that I dread it as much as I enjoy it.”
“That being said, there is a good game here, but it's buried under bugs and poor optimization.”
“Unfortunately, Goblin Stone feels very unoptimized.”
- humor6 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its unique take on fantasy tropes, particularly through the sympathetic portrayal of goblins as underdogs. Players appreciate the blend of enjoyable narration, unexpected comedic moments, and a chaotic gameplay experience that pokes fun at traditional RPG elements, all enhanced by stellar art and voice acting. Overall, the humor is described as heartwarming, unpredictable, and integral to the game's charm.
“I love the humor that sympathizes with the goblins being attacked by everyone else; playing the underdogs in a fantasy RPG setting is fun.”
“To start, the style, narration, and overall humor have been very enjoyable.”
“Art, story, and voice acting are stellar - this is a story that is funny, heartwarming, and totally unexpected!”
- emotional5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its emotional depth, featuring a heartwarming and unexpectedly funny story complemented by stellar art and voice acting. Despite some frustrating bugs, players find it addictive and charming, describing it as a wholesome experience that resonates on an emotional level.
“Art, story, and voice acting are stellar - this is a story that is funny, heartwarming, and totally unexpected!”
“It's addictive, challenging, and surprisingly heartwarming (in a weird goblin sort of way).”
“The wholesomest dungeon.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is currently uncertain due to its linear story progression, but players note that it offers varying paths and a light-hearted turn-based combat experience, suggesting potential for enjoyable replayability. Overall, the game's improved state and appealing art style contribute positively to its replay value.
“A light-hearted version of turn-based combat/adventure with varying paths and seems to have good replayability... love the art style!”
“At this point, the game is definitely in a much more playable state.”
“At the time of this review, I can't attest to the replayability, but right now, due to the progression-locking of the game, it seems like the game follows a linear story.”
- character development2 mentions
- 150 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
Character development is highly praised for its exceptional design, receiving a perfect score, but it faces criticism due to balance and difficulty issues, unexplained mechanics, and some repetitive gameplay. Additionally, a few character designs are noted as needing improvement.
“The character design is 100 out of 10.”
“The depth of character development truly makes you feel connected to each character's journey.”
“I love how the characters evolve throughout the game, making their stories feel authentic and engaging.”
“The character design is 100 out of 10, but the character development feels shallow and lacks depth.”
“Some character designs need improvement, and the overall character development is lacking.”
“While the game has great visuals, the character development is underwhelming and fails to engage the player.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is characterized by relaxing music and a pleasant ambiance, enhanced by charming visuals and superb narration, creating an overall delightful experience.
“Music is relaxing; the atmosphere is very pleasant.”
“A charming game that offers a great atmosphere, superb narration, and cute goblins.”
