Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar

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Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is a single player role playing game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by cleveblakemore and was released on August 4, 2017. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar" is a turn-based fantasy RPG, inspired by classics such as Wizardry and Might & Magic. The game features 14 races and 15 professions, with over 144 magic spells and 244 maps to explore. With lush hand-drawn artwork and a runtime of up to 600 hours, it offers a massive and immersive RPG experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar screenshot

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70%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,050 reviews

gameplay46 positive mentions

grinding46 negative mentions

Grimoire captures the essence of classic dungeon crawlers like Wizardry 7, offering a nostalgic experience for fans of the genre.
The game features a vast world with numerous secrets, puzzles, and a deep character creation system that allows for diverse party compositions.
The writing and humor in the game are engaging, adding depth to the exploration and interactions with NPCs.

The user interface is clunky and unintuitive, making navigation and inventory management frustrating.
There is a lack of documentation and a manual, leaving players to figure out complex mechanics and stats on their own.
The game can be extremely punishing, with difficult encounters that may lead to frequent deaths and the need for save scumming.

gameplay
294 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
77%
7%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it challenging yet frustrating due to its clunky mechanics, poor user interface, and lack of clear instructions. While some appreciate the depth and nostalgia reminiscent of classic RPGs like Wizardry, others criticize the tedious grind, unbalanced encounters, and broken mechanics that detract from the overall experience. Overall, the game offers a complex and engaging experience for those willing to navigate its difficulties, but it may alienate players seeking a more polished and intuitive gameplay experience.
- “The gameplay is quite deep and layered and satisfying.”
- “This game boasts a charming retro style, challenging gameplay which will push your wit to its limits and incredibly deep character building.”
- “Now that I've figured out the mechanics, I love this game.”
- “Extremely tedious gameplay, terribly unintuitive UI, sprites cheaply intermingle each other (especially enemies), unbalanced encounters (random trash mobs mixed with overleveled enemies) and a lot of technical issues.”
- “I won't even stick one more minute for this tedious gameplay with a broken UI and boring long fights.”
- “The mechanics of the stats and characters are not working (extremely unbalanced or just do nothing).”
graphics
214 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
61%
10%
The graphics of the game are a polarizing aspect, with many players appreciating the nostalgic, retro style reminiscent of 90s RPGs, while others criticize the dated visuals and clunky user interface. Some find the hand-drawn artwork and unique monster designs charming, while others argue that the graphics are poorly executed and inconsistent, detracting from the overall experience. Overall, the visuals are seen as a mixed bag, appealing primarily to those who value gameplay over graphical fidelity.
- “The graphics are wonderfully nostalgic, with many colorful monsters that are very unique, painting-like previews for many of the dungeons, and portrait artwork.”
- “This game has some fun things you don't often find in modern games, such as: non-humanoid races (special mention goes to the eyeball snakes), the ability to choose the location where you want to start the game, and nice stylized graphics (a breath of fresh air when compared with the current realism-obsessed game industry).”
- “Graphics are very well done for this style of game, it hearkens back to the early 90's CRPG era and if it was released in that time, would easily sit atop the stack as a lustrous bejeweled crown.”
- “The graphics would have been bad 20 years ago.”
- “Extremely dated graphics, poor user interface and a pretty lame sense of humour really took it away from me.”
- “I can't speak to the difficulty; I only got 40 minutes and one fight into the game before the jarring, color-clashing graphics, terrible character art, clunky interface, and nonstop enemy chanting made me pretty certain that Grimoire is a hot disaster.”
story
148 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
79%
3%
The game's story is noted for its depth and complexity, with many players appreciating the effort put into world-building and lore. While some find the narrative engaging and well-crafted, others criticize the lack of direction and clarity, leading to confusion about quest objectives. Overall, the storytelling is seen as a strong point, though it may not appeal to those who prefer more guided, linear experiences.
- “The story is surprisingly great at times, since dungeon crawlers usually have passable stories at best.”
- “The quests, even the ones that are optional, all feel meaningful and play very well together to attribute to the story.”
- “The worldbuilding is also really high quality, and quests feel connected and important.”
- “While there is a story, that’s not really the point of the game.”
- “I didn't have time to experience much of the story, if there is any.”
- “On top of that the main plot is missing.”
music
134 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
75%
7%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising its nostalgic midi soundtrack that fits the retro dungeon crawler theme, while others find it repetitive and annoying, particularly during inventory management and combat. Some players appreciate the atmospheric changes in music that enhance the gameplay experience, but frequent tracks can become grating over time. Overall, while the music evokes a sense of nostalgia for some, it may not appeal to everyone, especially those who dislike midi compositions.
- “Grimoire's soundtrack is fantastic.”
- “The songs also change to suit the atmosphere, with the glorious dominion exemplar song representing a grand mountain range while the ominous tomb of doom song played during a creepy dungeon crawl.”
- “It's a classic midi style soundtrack that fits very well in the game.”
- “I had to turn down the music and game sounds because they were annoying.”
- “The music and sound effects are so awful and repetitive you will want to rip your ears off.”
- “The same with the character creator screen, the music is much too loud and boisterous for the character creator; perhaps a softer keyboard melody would be better.”
grinding
46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being excessively tedious and time-consuming, often requiring hours of repetitive battles to gain experience and progress. Many players find the experience rewards insufficient, leading to frustration with the game's clunky interface and unbalanced encounters. While some appreciate the complexity and depth, the overall sentiment leans towards the grinding being a major detractor from the enjoyment of the game.
- “Playing the game without extensive grinding will not let you reach the highest levels, so there was no way for me to learn the most powerful spells.”
- “By the endgame, actually gaining a level is more dream than reality unless you're willing to spend hours grinding the one enemy that actually gives semi-worthwhile XP (about 4k a piece when a bard needs roughly 1.1 million XP to get from level 9 to 10). Endgame just increases enemy difficulty without actually giving you new tools to deal with them.”
- “The game is insanely grindy and has many things that could be changed to make the game so much better for the player, but it is also so complex and fascinating.”
humor
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as uneven, with some moments being genuinely funny while others fall flat or feel forced. Players appreciate the quirky writing and absurd gags, which add charm to the exploration and combat, despite some criticisms of the game's overall quality. Overall, the humor is a highlight, offering a mix of cleverness and silliness that resonates with fans of the genre.
- “First the character portraits you can pick from range from fine to hilariously bad.”
- “It's got a serious skeleton of adventure and exploration through a fantasy-medieval world but it never shies away from a silly gag to dispense some humor.”
- “They're very humorous and original and just like one would expect from such a work of love, it is full of small hidden details and surprises.”
stability
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting persistent bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay, despite some improvements noted in recent patches. While some users find the game to be a rough gem with potential, others describe it as a frustrating and unbalanced experience, highlighting issues like non-functional features and poor graphics. Overall, the game is still considered quite buggy, but there is hope for future fixes and enhancements.
- “This game should be heralded as a victory over fate itself, not only because it was finally finished and released relatively bug-free, but also because of how much adversity the developer had to overcome in the process.”
- “It's been years since the game was officially released and it's still a buggy, irritating mess to play.”
- “Besides being a buggy, inconsistent game with obtuse rules, the developer has refused to answer basic questions on the forums and instead engages with trolls and sycophants - often within threads requesting help or clarification.”
- “Numerous glitches (like a completely non-functional windowed mode), nearly indecipherable graphics and text, a turn animation that is truly something awful and was done better in Lands of Lore 24 years ago.”
atmosphere
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
45%
13%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive qualities, blending nostalgic RPG aesthetics with a strong sense of exploration and character. Reviewers highlight the effective use of music to enhance the mood, as well as the detailed environments that contribute to a rich, engaging experience. However, some critiques mention a lack of deeper world-building, suggesting that while the atmosphere is captivating, it may not fully resonate with all players.
- “Nigh unparalleled in terms of atmosphere, sense of exploration, and in-depth stat progression.”
- “The songs also change to suit the atmosphere, with the glorious dominion exemplar song representing a grand mountain range while the ominous tomb of doom song played during a creepy dungeon crawl.”
- “I loved the village of Crowl, where the ye olde school RPG aesthetics dovetail perfectly with the atavistic, left-behind small village atmosphere of the village itself - completed by cranky suspicious priests and rude dudes roaming the streets.”
- “There's no "soul" or world building atmosphere.”
- “Its story, its atmosphere, and its enormous length make it more reverie than video game.”
- “Oozes atmosphere and style and charm.”
character development
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
40%
30%
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding the character creation process unsatisfying and the leveling system random, leading to a lack of control over character progression. However, others appreciate the hybrid system that allows skills to increase through usage while also permitting manual point allocation, reminiscent of classic CRPGs. Overall, while the character development is seen as somewhat simplistic and in need of enhancement, it still evokes nostalgia for the depth of earlier role-playing games.
- “The character development system is an interesting hybrid of skills that increase on usage (such as in the Elder Scrolls games), but one can also manually allocate points to available skills on level up, thereby accelerating the progress in those skills you deem vital.”
- “But this game hearkens back to the CRPG days of yore, and plays very much like some of the greatest games of those bygone days - when gameplay was more important than graphics and didn't hold your hand... the days when character development and world building took the front seat and left most of the ambient details to narrative expose and your own imagination.”
- “Apart from Wizardry 7, the only others are the early Might & Magics, Fate and Dragon Wars, and some of the Gold Box games, yet none of them had the system complexity of Wizardry (combat, spell system, NPC interaction, character development, etc).”
- “Character creation is unsatisfying and confusing, and the leveling system is completely random, which removes the satisfaction from leveling up, as there is no real control with character development, outside of multi-classing.”
- “The character development is on the lite side, like with Wizardry 7, and could use some improvement, but other than that it is fantastic.”
- “Apart from Wizardry 7, the only others are the early Might & Magics, Fate, and Dragon Wars, and some of the Gold Box games, yet none of them had the system complexity of Wizardry (combat, spell system, NPC interaction, character development, etc).”
emotional
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews highlight a growing concern that modern games often prioritize superficial emotional experiences over genuine struggle and catharsis, which are essential for meaningful engagement. Critics argue that the industry has shifted towards exploitative narratives that favor power fantasies and emotional pandering, undermining the potential for true emotional depth and sociological reflection in gaming.
- “Learning to appreciate true struggle is the sociological goal of a game, just like emotional catharsis is the goal of a narrative in drama.”
- “Both games and drama have been largely hijacked by exploitative interests peddling self-destructive thoughts, and now mostly replace the concepts of struggle and catharsis for cheap power fantasies (simulating the exertion of power without the requisite struggle) and emotional pandering (which gives feelings of reassurance to the morally corrupt instead of catharsis).”
- “Learning to appreciate true struggle is the sociological goal of a game, just like emotional catharsis is the goal of a narrative in drama.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
Players consistently highlight the game's high replay value, noting that numerous patches have enhanced its playability and enjoyment. Many hours of gameplay have led to significant character progression, reinforcing the game's fun and engaging nature.
- “High replay value.”
- “The game is fun, and these sorts of games often have solid replay value.”
- “Tons of patches have made this game a lot more playable and enjoyable - and my characters are at level 5 after many hours of playing.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game's optimization is notably lacking, with players enjoying the initial 20 hours before becoming increasingly aware of its poor design and performance issues. Despite some redeeming qualities, the overall experience is marred by these optimization flaws.
- “There is still some redeeming qualities there, the game is fun for about the first 20 hours, but then you realize how poorly designed and optimized it is.”
- “Hopefully that gives you an idea of how poorly optimized the game is.”
- “One part performance art.”
monetization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized for relying on generic elements commonly found in low-budget cash grab titles, yet the developer's effective marketing tactics have successfully attracted players. Overall, while the monetization approach may feel uninspired, it has proven effective in reaching its target audience.
- “That aside, you can also see the terribly generic ones that have been used in other low-budget cash grab games at the title screen in Grimoire.”

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23h Median play time

207h Average play time

9-600h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 26 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is a role playing game with fantasy theme.

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 207 hours playing Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar.

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar was released on August 4, 2017.

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar was developed by cleveblakemore.

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its grinding.

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is a single player game.

Similar games include Wizardry 8, Ultimate ADOM: Caverns of Chaos, Might & Magic X: Legacy, The Bard's Tale IV, The Bard's Tale IV and others.

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar

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