Hero of Aethric | Classic RPG | Game Brain

Hero of Aethric | Classic RPG Game Cover

About

"Hero of Aethric" is a single-player, turn-based classic RPG with a good story, featuring nostalgic gameplay and spectacular visuals. The game offers compelling music, but be prepared for lots of grinding and some bugs. Immerse yourself in this nostalgic RPG adventure and become the Hero of Aethric.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

Hero of Aethric | Classic RPG screenshot

76%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,100 reviews

story34 positive mentions

grinding81 negative mentions

Great old-school RPG experience with a vast world to explore and many classes to choose from.
No ads and fair monetization model, allowing players to enjoy the game without feeling pressured to spend money.
Engaging gameplay with a good balance of grinding and progression, making it fun to level up and customize characters.

Movement controls are clunky and slow, making navigation tedious and frustrating.
Quests often lack clear directions, leading to confusion about where to find specific monsters or NPCs.
Some game mechanics, like the RNG for monster spawns and item drops, can make progression feel overly grindy and frustrating.

story
233 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
82%
3%
The game's story and quest system receive mixed reviews, with many players expressing frustration over the difficulty in locating quest-related monsters and items, often leading to prolonged periods of aimless searching. While some appreciate the nostalgic RPG elements and the variety of quests, others find the quest design repetitive and lacking in guidance, making it challenging to progress through the main storyline. Overall, the narrative feels underdeveloped, with players desiring clearer objectives and better tracking systems for quests.
- “I really love the story and progression of the game and the variety of classes and abilities you can get.”
- “The theme and atmosphere of the game is really good, visually appealing and music is great, quest design however is very bland and feels like a chore.”
- “Epic RPG free to play, no paywall, epic story, great character development and design. 10/10 love the game, keep up the great work!”
- “Finding monsters to progress the main quest is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.”
- “You can walk past multiple of the same monster all day (hours of play) find a quest to kill those specific monsters, once you accept the quest they all disappear and you won't find a single one until the quest expires.”
- “I have been stuck on the same story quest for two weeks because the enemies carrying fogstones almost never spawn and don't show up in shops either.”
grinding
84 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
96%
The reviews highlight that the game is heavily grind-focused, with many players finding the grinding aspect both tedious and time-consuming, especially at higher levels. While some enjoy the nostalgic grind reminiscent of old-school RPGs, others express frustration over repetitive mechanics, slow progression, and the lack of engaging content, particularly in late-game scenarios. Overall, the grinding is a defining feature of the game, appealing to dedicated players but potentially deterring those seeking a more balanced experience.
- “Gameplay is a classic turn-based RPG with multiple classes to choose from, allowing you to keep your learned skills as you progress. Experience and money are abundant, making grinding feel rewarding and enjoyable.”
- “Very fun and not too grindy.”
- “Not farming tirelessly and still managing to gain a level each month.”
- “Tedious fights and terrible movement - there is no option to skip fight animations so you end up spamming the same button (e.g. volley) all the time but have to wait 2-4 seconds between each press to watch animations you don't care about.”
- “It's fun until you reach endgame content, at which point everything becomes ridiculously tedious and difficult.”
- “The grinding required is insane.”
gameplay
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
65%
5%
The gameplay is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its simplicity, depth, and nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic RPGs. However, issues such as lag, repetitive missions, and frustrating mechanics like movement and equipment upgrades detract from the experience. While the game offers a variety of classes and customization options, some players feel it lacks engaging lore and suffers from pay-to-win elements.
- “The gameplay loop is simple, intuitive, and entertaining.”
- “Gameplay is simple yet deep, and the community is friendly and inviting.”
- “With the amount of classes and specialization combos, combined with the tons of gear, gems you can socket, and sheer volume of skills you can use, as well as the follower mechanic, there's lots of customization depending on your playstyle and what you want out of your character.”
- “It's Orna minus the GPS aspect, but it does not do much to improve over the core gameplay.”
- “Repetitive gameplay, moving around is a chore (what's wrong with a control pad?), base enemies have more than one immunity and you have no option to change your equipment in battle (basically, you're screwed), story quests depend on random monsters appearing, store equipment are either useless or above your tier, so you rely on what the game decides to drop, ridiculous equipment upgrade times.”
- “It's just copy and paste of doing a mission killing some new thing with the same boring combat mechanics.”
monetization
66 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
17%
39%
The monetization model of the game is largely praised for being non-intrusive, with no ads and primarily cosmetic in-app purchases that do not detract from gameplay. Players appreciate the absence of pay-to-win mechanics and the ability to enjoy the game fully without constant prompts to spend money. Overall, the monetization is seen as fair and supportive of the developers, enhancing the gaming experience rather than hindering it.
- “It has a lot to offer and has no ads or play restrictions.”
- “Monetization is essentially cosmetics only, which is excellent.”
- “The fairest monetization system on a free mobile game I have ever seen.”
- “Infested with microtransactions.”
- “Not a fan at all.. you spend more time walking from one spot to another spot than doing anything else besides it's just a cash grab right now with everybody spending money on luck shines and wisdom shines.”
- “Too much grind needed to advance in game and there are microtransactions for features that other games offer for free.”
music
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
44%
9%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with many players praising its charm and ability to enhance the atmosphere. However, there are frequent complaints about the repetitiveness of the soundtrack, with requests for more variety and additional background music. Some users also reported technical issues, such as music cutting out or becoming choppy, which detracted from the overall experience.
- “It's truly a charming game with great pixel art, great music, great turn-based combat, and great class progression.”
- “Rewards are lucrative, mechanics are simple yet satisfying, and the music provides such good atmosphere.”
- “The music is very enjoyable and plays well at appropriate times.”
- “My one complaint is that the music never changes.”
- “Sound and music extremely choppy and buggy.”
- “A very entertaining classic RPG, the combat is kinda fun and the world is really great, the only bad thing about this is the repetitive music.”
graphics
29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
38%
10%
The graphics of the game are primarily described as charming and nostalgic, featuring pixelated art that appeals to fans of retro aesthetics. While some users appreciate the simplicity and classic style reminiscent of old-school RPGs, others note inconsistencies in sprite animations and sizes. Overall, the graphics are considered a strong point, enhancing the gameplay experience despite some minor technical issues.
- “The pixel graphics are a nice retro touch.”
- “It's an overall great game and I absolutely love it; the fighting mechanics are good and the art style pulls the whole thing together with great pixelated art.”
- “The pixel graphics tickle me right in the nostalgia.”
- “As for the aesthetics: the player sprites on the overworld are not even animated and the sprite sizes aren't consistent.”
- “Some tight areas that seem like you can pass by are blocked by edgy graphics.”
- “But when I run in low graphic settings, I can't see berserk or arisen aura of the mobs.”
stability
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
95%
The game is plagued by numerous bugs and stability issues, including frequent freezes during gameplay, particularly in PvP and dungeon scenarios, which can lead to lost progress and resources. While developers are actively addressing these problems, players still report a frustrating experience with glitches affecting menus, quests, and overall performance. Despite these challenges, many users express enjoyment of the game, indicating potential for improvement as updates are rolled out.
- “The game runs smoothly without any major crashes, making for a seamless experience.”
- “I've encountered very few bugs, and the overall stability enhances my enjoyment of the game.”
- “The performance is impressive, with consistent frame rates and minimal glitches.”
- “This game is buggy.”
- “The game often stalls while navigating the menu, and then Android will forever pop up with 'this app is failing to respond.' It also freezes quite often in PvP, dungeons, and kingdom raids, causing you to lose your entry.”
- “Super broken, continuously freezes or simply doesn't recognize icons being selected.”
optimization
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while it boasts impressive performance and regular updates aimed at stability, players have reported issues such as camera lag, scaling problems on certain devices, and a lack of offline play options. Many users express hope for further enhancements to improve performance management and overall gameplay experience, especially given its early access status.
- “One thing that would be great in addition to this game's already impressive performance would be offline play, allowing players with poor Wi-Fi or those without a service plan to join in on the fun, which would help expand the game's player base.”
- “Stability improvements and higher expectations for performance management in co-op provide fixable feature enhancements, including adjustable settings throughout gameplay, more cosmetics, better weapons, updated accessibility, and improved maps and character selection.”
- “It is still early access, so there are regular bug-squashing updates and performance improvements.”
- “Good game but with very poor optimization.”
- “I want to try the game but it looks like my device resolution isn't supported. My Vivo T1 Pro 5G is zoomed and stretched. Edited: the game still has scaling issues after I disabled Vivo game optimization. Any other solution?”
- “But there is something with the camera movement; when I double select the direction to walk, the camera starts lagging or stuttering. This is the only con I found; it's an amazing game. ❤️ Keep up...”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a strong character development concept with engaging design and an epic story, earning high praise from players. However, some skills, such as dual wielding abilities, are criticized for being underwhelming and less effective than standard attacks. Overall, it is recommended for those seeking a nostalgic RPG experience.
- “Epic RPG free to play, no paywall, epic story, great character development and design. 10/10! Love the game, keep up the great work! Can't wait to see what the future holds for this game. If you're looking for an old school RPG that ticks all the boxes, pick this game up.”
- “Fun game! Love the leveling and character development.”
- “The game has an amazing character development concept.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
Players appreciate the game's solid replay value, noting its lack of intrusive ads and microtransactions. Many express hope for future updates, including additional playable characters and maps, which could further enhance its replayability. Overall, the game shows promise for continued improvement as it evolves in early access.
- “Great game with good replay value, and it does not try to sell me anything or make me watch ads.”
- “Good game; hopefully it can add more playable characters as well as more maps. I hope to see more future updates soon. Recommended game.”
- “The game lacks significant content updates, making it hard to find reasons to replay it after the initial playthrough.”
- “Once you complete the main story, there’s little incentive to dive back in; the side quests feel repetitive and uninspired.”
- “The limited choices and outcomes in gameplay mean that replaying the game feels more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is praised for its visually appealing design and excellent music, which enhance the overall experience. However, some players find the quest design lacking and repetitive, detracting from the immersive quality of the atmosphere. While the mechanics are simple and rewarding, certain aspects like class progression and combat can feel monotonous.
- “Rewards are lucrative, mechanics are simple yet satisfying, and the music provides such a good atmosphere.”
- “The theme and atmosphere of the game are really good, visually appealing, and the music is great.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is subjective; while some players find it amusing, particularly in the portrayal of American users exploring remote areas, others do not share the same sentiment.
- “The fact that the top users who were American had apparently visited every part of the UK, Croatia, Italy, and France when the place I live is remote even to natives was hilarious.”