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Hand of Doom

Hand of Doom Game Cover
92%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:gameplay, humor
Most mentioned negative aspects:grinding, stability
92% User Score Based on 330 reviews

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PCWindows
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Hand of Doom Game Cover

About Hand of Doom

Hand of Doom is a single player open world role playing game with horror, fantasy and dark fantasy themes. It was developed by TorpleDook and was released on May 16, 2023. It received very positive reviews from players.

This is the original Dread X Collection version! There is a fully realized version of Hand of Doom available now! Click here for the Steam page!              "Trapped in an arcane realm by the dark sorcery of the ubiquitous Master, can you learn the correct rituals and incantations needed to escape?" Hand of Doom is a short game inspired by PC RPGs of the 90's and 2000's. …

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Reviews

92%Audience ScoreBased on 330 reviews
gameplay24 positive mentions
grinding14 negative mentions
  • Hand of Doom is filled with charm and humor, showcasing the developer's passion for the project.
  • The spellcasting mechanic is unique and engaging, allowing players to combine runes to create spells.
  • The game successfully captures the nostalgic feel of 90s FMV games, with entertaining writing and a fun atmosphere.
  • The game is plagued by bugs, including issues with save files and soft-locks that can hinder progress.
  • Navigation can be tedious, with large areas that feel empty and require excessive backtracking.
  • Combat is simplistic and often feels unnecessary, detracting from the overall experience.

  • gameplay

    68 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    35% positive mentions, 53% neutral mentions, 12% negative mentions

    The gameplay of "Hand of Doom" is characterized by its campy charm and engaging spellcasting mechanics, though it leans heavily on puzzle-solving rather than challenging combat. Players appreciate the nostalgic feel of the game, reminiscent of 90s FMV titles, but note that the combat is simplistic and the overall pace can be slow, leading to moments of frustration with navigation and level design. Despite these drawbacks, the unique interactions and humor keep the experience enjoyable for many.

    • “Hand of Doom has an incredibly charming look and an engaging spellcasting mechanic.”
    • “One of the most enjoyable experiences I've had in a long time. I suggest anyone, whether they play video games or not, to play this game. The jokes and voice acting, with those funny but stylized elements, are great. The gameplay, while not difficult, is engaging and unexpectedly quite varied.”
    • “The puzzles are interesting and draw on your knowledge of the game's mechanics, and you will often find yourself chaining multiple spells in a row to complete them.”
    • “A campy, out of control FMV romp featuring corny voice acting, absurd quests, and needlessly obscure spell mechanics.”
    • “The gameplay is a little boring, to be honest.”
    • “And then the game failing to also store and load player's binding settings, 25 fps limit and overall issues with level design and gameplay, where you just end up walking really slowly through all of the levels trying to find small pieces you've missed, which - in the end - you might have not missed at all and might just not be present because of the game's buggy save files.”

  • humor

    58 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The humor in the game is widely praised for its quirky, nostalgic charm, blending self-aware writing with goofy characters and darkly comedic elements reminiscent of 90s CD-ROM games. Players report frequent laughter, engaging spell mechanics, and a fun narrative, although some found certain jokes less effective. Overall, the humor significantly enhances the game's appeal, making it a delightful experience for those who appreciate its campy style.

    • “The game is both funny and charming.”
    • “Most of all, the writing is very funny and goofy in a self-aware way.”
    • “One of the most enjoyable experiences I've had in a long time; I suggest anyone, whether they play video games or not, to play this game. The jokes and voice acting, with those funny but stylized elements in their own weird way, are great.”

  • graphics

    48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    46% positive mentions, 48% neutral mentions, 6% negative mentions

    The graphics of the game are praised for their retro aesthetic, blending old-school 90s RPG sprites with charming full-motion video elements, creating a unique visual experience. While the low-resolution visuals evoke nostalgia, some players feel that the cutscenes could benefit from further degradation to better match the intended era. Overall, the game's graphics contribute significantly to its atmosphere, despite some critiques regarding choppiness and the need for more customization options.

    • “This is an amazing game; I loved the style, the music, the voices, the aesthetic, and the humorous elements they included.”
    • “Let me just start off by saying there's a lot to like - the aesthetics are a great mix of crunchy FMV and old-school 90s WRPG sprites and backgrounds, and the sound design is fantastic with doom metal riffs and wonderfully hammy voice acting.”
    • “This game was a magnificent blend of old-school gaming graphics, meta-jokes, and game mechanics that make it enjoyable in the modern gaming era.”
    • “The graphics are 'retro' for a small slither of time when 3D was weak, CDs were a thing, and FMV could hide your game's limitations (see Lands of Lore 3, a favorite of mine).”
    • “I think, aesthetically, they maybe didn't degrade their quality enough to fully evoke the era they're going for.”
    • “The only thing I'd ask is if they could update this game with more options to adjust things like the controls and mouse sensitivity, as well as some ways to make the visuals a little less choppy at times.”

  • story

    48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    29% positive mentions, 65% neutral mentions, 6% negative mentions

    The game's story is described as fun and engaging, with a humorous tone that pays homage to classic FMV games, though it sometimes struggles with consistency in tone and quest mechanics. Players appreciate the lighthearted narrative and the nostalgic style, but some encountered issues with quest tracking and dialogue that detracted from the experience. Overall, while the story has its flaws, it is seen as a delightful aspect of the game that adds to its charm.

    • “The story is fun and the game's style and humor are so amazing; I love it.”
    • “The story and writing were a delight.”
    • “The story is told in part by cutscenes and dialogue, while some extra worldbuilding can be found through lore notes.”
    • “It's an intentionally silly game using a lot of 90s FMV tropes, intentionally all over the place voice acting, some very dumb story, and all lovingly wrapped up in a game with a border as big as the devs' love for FMV cheese.”
    • “Everything resets except your story progression when you reload, so the doors that you unlocked on the levels are suddenly closed again, the opponents you killed are revived, and you can pick up items you already grabbed. That's badly made.”
    • “The only true negative point I saw is that you can, in some states of the game, simply travel and complete quests without even having been given such quests, and it's going to update your diary for you without finding the right NPC.”

  • music

    42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    52% positive mentions, 41% neutral mentions, 7% negative mentions

    The music in "Hand of Doom" has received widespread acclaim for its stellar soundtrack, blending elements of doom metal with a unique dark fantasy aesthetic. Reviewers appreciate the atmospheric quality and artistic execution of the music, which enhances the game's overall experience, despite some noting that the quests can become repetitive. The involvement of Hexenkraft in the soundtrack is particularly highlighted as a standout feature, contributing to the game's charm and nostalgic feel.

    • “⭐ Stellar soundtrack.”
    • “Starting up Hand of Doom, I noticed right away all the care that went into the FMV animations/cutscenes, the UI, the music, the lore, etc. The result is a neat little experience that nails the old school arcane/occultpunk vibe with lots of unexpected surprises.”
    • “It has a great atmosphere that is just added to with some great music as well.”
    • “The style, the music, the gameplay, everything is fine except the checkpoint system and the save system.”
    • “One relating to placing items on a particular puzzle which did not stop progression, and one that would cause the music to stop until I reached a checkpoint on the final level.”
    • “I love the style and soundtrack of this game but the quests get repetitive sometimes.”

  • atmosphere

    24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    92% positive mentions, 8% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its blend of dark and whimsical elements, enhanced by well-decorated environments and engaging music. Players appreciate the balance between busy visuals and clear objectives, creating an immersive experience that is both artsy and enjoyable. While some areas may lack excitement, the overall atmosphere is described as charming, funny, and filled with unique twists across various realms.

    • “The environments so far look well decorated, atmospheric and even busy at times but not overwhelming and I knew what I was supposed to be doing at all times in a deliberate but not handheld way.”
    • “This game has an atmosphere that is both dark and whimsical.”
    • “It has a great atmosphere that is just added to with some great music as well.”

  • grinding

    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The grinding aspect of the game has been widely criticized for being tedious and frustrating, particularly due to excessive backtracking and slow spell-casting mechanics. Players noted that while some may find enjoyment in the experience, many felt it became boring and overly grindy, especially in later levels where navigation and puzzles dominate the gameplay. Overall, the lack of engaging content and the repetitive nature of the tasks detracted from the overall enjoyment.

    • “A very patient adventurer can probably get something out of this experience, but I found it mildly unpleasant and tedious.”
    • “Lvl 2 and beyond just gets frustrating and tedious at times.”
    • “Lots of empty space with no enemies, lots of tedious backtracking (weirdly enough there's a spell to make backtracking not so tedious but you get it towards the end of the game so it's practically useless), and a severe lack of characters to enjoy.”

  • stability

    12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game is reported to be quite buggy, with numerous glitches that can be game-breaking, and there are concerns about the lack of updates from the publisher to address these issues. While some players experienced minimal glitches and found the game functionally stable, others faced significant problems, including issues with save files and level design that hindered gameplay. Overall, stability remains a major concern for many users.

    • “The bad: the game is somewhat buggy, and there's been no indication that the publisher is working or interested in any further updates.”
    • “And then the game failing to also store and load player's binding settings, 25 fps limit and overall issues with level design and gameplay, where you just end up walking really slowly through all of the levels trying to find small pieces you've missed, which - in the end - you might have not missed at all and might just not be present because of the game's buggy save files.”
    • “Are there glitches, some of which are more game-breaking than others?”
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Play Times

10h Median play time
10h Average play time
10-10h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Hand of Doom is a open world role playing game with horror, fantasy and dark fantasy themes. Common tags for Hand of Doom include first-person, indie, magic, exploration, retro and others.

Hand of Doom is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 10 hours playing Hand of Doom.

Hand of Doom was released on May 16, 2023.

Hand of Doom was developed by TorpleDook.

Hand of Doom has received very positive reviews from players. Most players liked Hand of Doom for its gameplay but disliked it for its grinding.

Hand of Doom is a single player game.

Similar games include Dread X Collection, Undiscovered, Dread X Collection 2, Lust from Beyond, Dread X Collection 5 and others.