Heroes of the Monkey Tavern

About

Embark on an unforgettable adventure in "Heroes of the Monkey Tavern" as you explore a perilous dungeon filled with riddles, dangerous enemies, and treacherous traps. With 8 distinct classes, multiple difficulty levels, and over 100 unique items to discover, each playthrough offers a fresh challenge. Engage in thrilling real-time battles against 22 different enemies, including 6 fearsome bosses, and uncover secret passages hiding legendary weapons and armor.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

73%

Audience ScoreBased on 212 reviews

gameplay14 positive mentions

story12 negative mentions

The game features decent graphics and excellent music that enhance the overall atmosphere.
It offers a straightforward dungeon crawling experience with a good balance of exploration and combat.
The auto-mapping system and the simplicity of mechanics make it accessible for newcomers to the genre.

Combat is overly simplistic, relying on a 'stand still and click' mechanic that lacks strategic depth.
There is a significant lack of information regarding skills and abilities, making character progression feel unfulfilling.
The game is quite short, with many players completing it in under 10 hours, leading to limited replay value.

gameplay
58 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
71%
5%
The gameplay of "Heroes of the Monkey Tavern" is characterized by its simplicity and minimalistic mechanics, making it accessible for casual players. However, the controversial "flee mechanic," which punishes players for moving away from enemies, reduces combat depth and turns encounters into straightforward DPS races. While the game offers rewarding progression and exploration, many players find the overall combat system lacking and unpolished compared to other dungeon crawlers.
- “If you like dungeon crawlers and want something lite and fresh, give it a go. Minimal story (par for the course), tons of secrets, rewarding progression, no fiddling with hunger management (thought I'd miss that mechanic because I'm so hardcore!!! .. but actually didn't). It can be pretty challenging on higher difficulty - but most importantly, it's fun!!!”
- “The best balanced gameplay I've ever seen in a dungeon crawler.”
- “Once you get used to the mechanics, the combat is quite satisfying.”
- “There is a 'flee' mechanic that damages the whole party if you try to side step or back up, reducing combat to nothing more than a toe-to-toe DPS race.”
- “The result of this mechanic is that combat becomes nothing more than a gear-check with no more depth than a clicker game and virtually no element of skill.”
- “Yes, you read that right: you cannot really allow yourself to move while fighting, which is probably the core gameplay element in any dungeon crawler.”
music
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
25%
6%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers highlighting its excellence, atmospheric quality, and ability to enhance the overall experience. Players appreciate the soundtrack's immersive nature, often comparing it to iconic works, and some even recommend the game solely for its music. While the graphics are noted as decent, it is the music that truly stands out, creating a captivating ambiance throughout the gameplay.
- “The high point for me was the music - it's really good.”
- “The soundtrack is amazing and immerses you into the game.”
- “A very haunting soundtrack adds to the game nicely.”
- “Unfortunately, the music gets interrupted each time you go to sleep, and you go to sleep a lot.”
- “The music made me think partly of Twin Peaks, and partly Neverwinter Nights 1!”
- “A lot of the music seems inspired by Howard Shore / The Lord of the Rings soundtrack, which is fine by me.”
graphics
39 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
28%
8%
Overall, the graphics of the game are generally well-received, described as good, crisp, and visually pleasing, though some reviewers noted a repetitiveness in the design and a lack of exceptional quality compared to similar titles like Legend of Grimrock. While the artwork and animations are appreciated, there are criticisms regarding optimization issues and generic enemy designs. In summary, the graphics are solid for an indie dungeon crawler, providing a nostalgic atmosphere, but they may not stand out in a crowded genre.
- “The graphics are nice, crisp, and clean.”
- “On the bright side, the game's production is surprisingly good with gorgeous graphics, great music, alright lighting, and fluid animations.”
- “It's got the look and atmosphere that I like in a dungeon crawler; nostalgic but with better graphics.”
- “I'm drawing my conclusions around the second simply because the cover artwork is absolutely atrocious, high school art class dropout stuff; it looks bad.”
- “All of this package of utter mediocrity - especially when compared with the obvious foil, Legend of Grimrock, which is basically this game except better in every aspect - comes with a basic but pretty lackluster graphic presentation, and some horrible optimization that managed to make even this early 2000s-looking game slow down and freeze constantly on a laptop that runs far heavier stuff smoothly.”
- “The enemies are pretty generic, and the graphics aren't that great.”
story
39 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
54%
31%
The game's story is largely criticized for being minimal and lacking depth, with many reviewers noting that it serves merely as a backdrop for dungeon crawling rather than a compelling narrative. Players encounter a basic premise with little to no character development or plot progression, often describing the storyline as laughable or non-existent. While some appreciate the straightforward approach, many feel that a richer story would enhance the overall experience.
- “Yes, the story is simple, but it set my expectations correctly with its description and price point.”
- “Anyway, dumb name, dumb story, they know it, they embrace it, great game.”
- “No actual story to talk of, but you get to be a hero - and that's a good thing, of course.”
- “No meaningful story, there's an intro to tell you where you're going and that's it.”
- “Price is cheap yet the dungeons felt empty and there wasn't any storyline or NPCs to interact with, so it was a dull experience.”
- “There is no story, no goals... just get to the next level... it gets boring after a while.”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
82%
9%
9%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised, with many reviewers highlighting the effective use of music and visuals to create a tense and immersive experience. While some note a sense of missed potential in atmospheric depth, the overall aesthetic, including graphics and sound, successfully evokes a nostalgic yet modern dungeon crawler vibe. Many players recommend the game for its strong atmospheric elements, which enhance exploration and engagement.
- “The music and artwork do a great job creating atmosphere.”
- “It's got the look and atmosphere that I like in a dungeon crawler; nostalgic but with better graphics.”
- “Visually it looks great, with cool looking monsters and the dungeon itself, also the music is very atmospheric.”
- “There is so much wasted opportunity (laziness?) to create atmosphere with these kinds of games.”
replayability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
25%
38%
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players find minimal replay value due to repetitive dungeon layouts and puzzles, others appreciate the uniqueness of different classes and the challenge of hard mode, suggesting a moderate level of replayability. The consensus indicates that while the game can be completed in about 10 hours, it may not offer significant incentives for repeated playthroughs beyond experimenting with class combinations.
- “Still, Heroes of the Monkey Tavern has replay value and beating hard mode might give you a run for your money if you don't have the 'ideal party'.”
- “Fair little game, short, sweet, and to the point; play it with different combos, it's got a mild replay value.”
- “The replay value is high.”
- “Minimal replay value aside from doing the same set of dungeon floors again with a slightly different selection of classes for the achievements you missed. Once you've learned the puzzles and where the secret rooms are, it's just repeating it again.”
- “Replay value: virtually none.”
- “About 10 hours to play through; I do not think there is much replay value though.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
17%
17%
Overall, the game is praised for its stability, with multiple users reporting a bug-free experience and a polished feel throughout. However, one player noted the presence of item duplication glitches that detracted from the enjoyment.
- “The game works 'straight out of the box' with no messing around and appears to be completely bug-free.”
- “The game felt polished the whole way through with no glitches.”
- “It is a bug-free, solid but light dungeon crawler experience which you will have fun with to the end.”
- “I found out how to duplicate items with glitches by accident seconds after starting, which removes the fun.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews indicate a significant lack of character development, with no player agency in shaping characters, resulting in a wafer-thin story and superficial character arcs. Overall, players feel that the game falls short in providing meaningful character growth and engagement.
- “Zero character development.”
- “No player choice in character development; it's done by the PC.”
- “With a wafer-thin story, even thinner character development, and overuse of the definite article, you can do better for your RPG fix.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
Reviews indicate that grinding can be a polarizing aspect of gameplay; some players find it tedious and overly punishing, while others appreciate the lack of grinding in certain games, which allows for more enjoyable exploration and combat. Overall, the presence or absence of grinding significantly influences the game's appeal, with some players favoring a straightforward experience without repetitive tasks.
- “A good basic dungeon crawl, but don't take that as a bad thing... there is a lot of fun here, no grinding, and some interesting level designs, tough battles, few potions, but unlimited sleep and no food or water requirement swing the balance.”
- “These kinds of over-punishing mechanics are better suited for games that cater to players who don't mind grinding repeatedly.”
- “Tedious and simplistic gameplay that feels more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in "Heroes of the Monkey Tavern" is minimal, with players noting a lack of story and context for the dungeon exploration, despite its amusing title. While there are occasional jokes and one unsettling level, the overall comedic elements are sparse and not a central focus of the game.
- “No real story, more a funny presentation.”
- “Here and there, there are some funny jokes.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The monetization of "Heroes of the Monkey Tavern" is criticized as a cash grab, with a price point of around $10 USD deemed unrealistic considering the game's defects and shortcomings, leading users to feel it is not worth the investment.
- “Heroes of the Monkey Tavern has a completely unrealistic cash grab price of around $10 USD. It's not worth it given the defects and shortcomings of the product.”
- “The monetization strategy feels exploitative, as it pushes players to spend more money to enjoy basic features that should be included in the game.”
- “I was disappointed to find that many essential items are locked behind a paywall, making it difficult to progress without spending extra cash.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users report that the game runs smoothly without any noticeable performance issues, even on mid-range hardware configurations like the 6700k with 32 GB RAM and an NVIDIA 1070 GTX.
- “I didn't notice any performance issues, which is the least I would expect from my rig (6700k + 32 GB RAM + NVIDIA 1070 GTX).”