Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar

About

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar is a party-based RPG with strategic turn-based combat. Explore a sprawling, interconnected world filled with puzzles, traps, and treasure. The game features over 600 enemies, 9 playable character classes, and a robust crafting system for creating and upgrading equipment.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Grimoire: Heralds of the Winged Exemplar screenshot

69%

Audience ScoreBased on 476 reviews

gameplay21 positive mentions

grinding21 negative mentions

Grimoire is a nostalgic throwback to classic dungeon crawlers like Wizardry 7, offering a deep and complex gameplay experience.
The game features a vast world with numerous secrets, puzzles, and a rich character creation system that allows for diverse party compositions.
The writing and atmosphere are engaging, with humorous elements that enhance the overall experience.

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

gameplay
132 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
76%
8%
The gameplay of the game is a polarizing experience, with many players finding it both challenging and rewarding, reminiscent of classic RPGs like Wizardry. However, it suffers from a poorly designed user interface, lack of clear mechanics, and numerous technical issues, leading to a steep learning curve and tedious combat. While some appreciate the depth and customization options, others criticize the game for being overly complex and frustrating, often requiring external resources to understand its mechanics.
- “Accept its rules and its broken-to-the-point-of-borderline-sentience mechanics – and fifty hours later you’ll find yourself on the furthest shore of Hyperborea, gawking at 2000-year-old relics in the salty wet sand.”
- “This is a great game, with intricate mechanics that is clearly made with love and care.”
- “The gameplay is quite deep and layered and satisfying.”
- “Extremely tedious gameplay, terribly unintuitive UI, sprites cheaply intermingle with each other (especially enemies), unbalanced encounters (random trash mobs mixed with overleveled enemies) and a lot of technical issues.”
- “The gameplay is brutal.”
- “I won't even stick one more minute for this tedious gameplay with a broken UI and boring long fights.”
graphics
102 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
61%
11%
The graphics of the game evoke a nostalgic charm reminiscent of classic 90s RPGs, featuring colorful and unique monster designs alongside hand-drawn artwork. While many players appreciate the retro aesthetic and find it fitting for the genre, others criticize the dated visuals and inconsistent art styles, noting that some elements appear poorly executed or unpolished. Overall, the graphics are a divisive aspect, appealing primarily to those who value gameplay and nostalgia over modern 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.”
- “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 are retro-nice and it's very easy and quick to get accustomed to them and enjoy them.”
- “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
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
81%
4%
The game's story is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its depth, world-building, and the effort put into the lore, reminiscent of classic RPGs. However, some players find the narrative structure loose and challenging to navigate, often feeling disconnected from the main plot due to a lack of guidance and quest markers. Overall, while the storytelling is engaging for those who enjoy exploration and piecing together narratives, it may frustrate players accustomed to more linear, hand-holding experiences.
- “The story is surprisingly great at times, since dungeon crawlers usually have passable stories at best.”
- “The story is well done and the amount of time and effort the developer put into the lore of the game is absurd.”
- “The quests, even the ones that are optional, all feel meaningful and play very well together to contribute to the story.”
- “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
64 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
73%
8%
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 tracks effectively enhance the atmosphere, but the overall sound design, including sound effects, has been criticized for being grating and poorly balanced. Despite its charm for fans of old-school RPGs, the music may not appeal to everyone, leading some players to mute it entirely.
- “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.”
- “The midi music is well made, and each track is unique, and enhances each area it is used in.”
- “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 music is terrible, but luckily it drowns out some of the god awful sound effects.”
grinding
21 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 tasks to progress. Many players find the experience rewards insufficient, leading to frustration with the clunky interface and unbalanced encounters. While some appreciate the complexity, 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.”
- “Extremely tedious gameplay, terribly unintuitive UI, sprites cheaply intermingle with each other (especially enemies), unbalanced encounters (random trash mobs mixed with overleveled enemies), and a lot of technical issues.”
- “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.”
stability
19 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 acknowledging improvements since release. While some users find the game enjoyable and see potential for future patches to address issues, others describe it as a frustrating experience plagued by inconsistencies and a lack of developer support. Overall, the game is viewed as a rough gem that requires significant stability enhancements to fully realize its potential.
- “This game should be heralded as a victory over fate itself, not only because it was finally finished and released relatively bug-free, but because of how much adversity the developer had to deal with in the process of developing it.”
- “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.”
- “It's been about 2 months since release, and the game is still buggy and vastly unbalanced.”
humor
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is a standout feature, with character designs and interfaces that range from amusingly bad to intentionally silly, reminiscent of classic comedic styles. Players appreciate the clever writing and humorous gags woven throughout the gameplay, which enhance the overall experience despite some criticisms of game mechanics. Overall, the humor is described as charming, original, and a key element that adds to the game's appeal.
- “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.”
- “There are no walls of text in this game, the writing style is measured and humorous.”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
27%
27%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive qualities, blending nostalgic RPG aesthetics with unique environmental storytelling. Reviewers highlight the effective use of music and sound effects to enhance the sense of exploration and mood, creating a captivating experience that draws players in. However, some critiques mention a lack of deeper world-building, suggesting that while the atmosphere is strong, it may not fully resonate with all players.
- “Grimoire feels to me like a mix between World of Xeen (MM4-MM5) and indeed Wizardry 7 - two other great titles - but by no means is it a clone or a mere hybrid - it has its own signature, its own atmosphere.”
- “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.”
- “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 old-school RPG aesthetics dovetail perfectly with the atavistic, left-behind small village atmosphere, completed by cranky suspicious priests and rude dudes roaming the streets.”
- “There's no 'soul' or world-building atmosphere.”
character development
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding the character creation process confusing and the leveling system random, leading to a lack of satisfaction. Conversely, 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 system is seen as engaging, it could benefit from additional depth and complexity.
- “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 exposition and your own imagination.”
- “The character development is on the lite side, like with Wizardry 7, and could use some plusing up, but other than that it is fantastic.”
- “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.”
- “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 exposition and your own imagination.”
emotional
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews highlight a growing concern that modern games often prioritize superficial emotional experiences and power fantasies over genuine struggle and catharsis. Critics argue that this shift undermines the potential for games to provide meaningful emotional engagement and reflection, instead catering to exploitative interests that promote self-destructive thoughts. The call for a return to authentic emotional experiences in gaming emphasizes the importance of true struggle as a pathway to emotional growth.
- “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).”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
Players 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, contributing to the overall fun and replayability of the experience.
- “High 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.”
- “The game is fun, and these types of games often have solid replay value.”
- “The game is fun, but it lacks the depth needed for solid replay value.”
- “Once you complete the game, there isn't much incentive to play it again.”
- “While the initial experience is enjoyable, the lack of varied content makes replaying feel tedious.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game's optimization has been criticized, with players noting that while it offers enjoyable gameplay for the first 20 hours, it ultimately suffers from poor design and performance issues.
- “There are still some redeeming qualities, and 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.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized for relying on generic elements commonly found in low-budget cash grabs, yet the developer's effective marketing and engagement with the target audience have successfully attracted players.
- “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.”
- “The monetization strategy feels exploitative, pushing players to spend money to enjoy the game fully.”
- “It's frustrating to see so many features locked behind paywalls, making it hard to progress without spending extra.”