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I am not a Monster

I am not a Monster Game Cover
65%Game Brain Score
story, gameplay
replayability, grinding
65% User Score Based on 458 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
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I am not a Monster Game Cover

About

I am not a Monster is a single player and multiplayer tactical role playing game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Cheerdealers and was released on September 27, 2018. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

The informed minority Vs. the uninformed majority: а turn-based tactical multiplayer in a retro sci-fi setting with randomly assigned roles and Mafia/Werewolf party game features. Check the full description for more details!

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+7
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65%
Audience ScoreBased on 458 reviews
story47 positive mentions
grinding6 negative mentions
  • Unique and original blend of turn-based tactics with social deduction mechanics, creating an engaging and fresh gameplay experience.
  • Excellent retro sci-fi aesthetic and atmosphere, with well-crafted visuals, sound, and campy 1950s style that adds charm and personality.
  • Challenging and rewarding single-player campaign with a deep story, memorable characters, and a clever combat system based on weapon and item combinations.
  • Multiplayer servers are effectively dead, making it difficult to find online matches; multiplayer is now DLC while the main game focuses on single-player.
  • Frustrating and restrictive combat mechanics, including unusual turn order (attack before move), which disadvantages melee characters and makes gameplay feel clunky and unfair.
  • Poor save and checkpoint system in single-player mode; long missions with no manual save lead to forced restarts and trial-and-error frustration.
  • story
    210 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story is a campy, retro sci-fi narrative filled with humor, memorable characters, and numerous plot twists, evoking a pulp fiction vibe reminiscent of 1950s-70s sci-fi shows and movies. While engaging and well-structured, the story can feel lengthy, sometimes dragging toward the end, and is occasionally overshadowed by the game's high difficulty and mission repetition. Overall, it provides a distinctive and enjoyable backdrop that complements the challenging tactical gameplay, though some players find it confusing or frustrating due to pacing and linear mission design.

    • “The story unfolds across more than thirty missions, each introducing new twists, characters, and tactical challenges.”
    • “The story offers more depth than its humorous tone initially suggests, and the cast of characters brings personality to the unfolding crisis.”
    • “The main story arc itself is solid and even manages to offer a few surprises.”
    • “The whole story evokes a bad Star Trek-like sitcom.”
    • “I remember playing hours without stop at the beginning and being hooked, but then lost almost all interest mostly due to how the story was written.”
    • “As it is now the characters have no real personality, the story makes little sense and the text boxes are just standard boring text.”
  • gameplay
    148 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay is centered on a simultaneous-turn tactical system with puzzle-like challenges, requiring careful planning and strategy akin to XCOM-style tactics. While innovative mechanics such as infection and overwatch add depth, many players find the pacing uneven, the difficulty frustratingly high or inconsistent, and some design choices restrictive or unbalanced. Overall, it appeals most to fans of turn-based tactics who enjoy strategic, methodical gameplay but may feel repetitive or cumbersome to others.

    • “Gameplay is built around a simultaneous-turn tactical system: players queue actions for their characters, then watch them resolve at the same time as enemy actions.”
    • “The infection mechanic adds tension by turning any encounter into a risk—characters hit by monsters have only a brief window to be cured or they’ll transform into enemies, suddenly shifting the balance mid-mission.”
    • “The design encourages experimentation with hero abilities and weapons, and the gradual introduction of new gameplay elements helps keep each mission fresh even when overall objectives repeat.”
    • “Bought for the art style, quickly dropped for the horrendous gameplay.”
    • “The lack of variety of gameplay wouldn't be so bad if the game was engaging in some way, but 30 year old animation techniques from another world, non-responsive gameplay mechanics, the intentionally slow progress until you are overwhelmed by ridiculous numbers of enemies and the absolute neglect to the value of the person "playing" (I use the term extremely loosely as it's simply not a case of playing this in favour of watching it unfold into the glorious dumpster fire it is).”
    • “Started out boring, quickly became mechanically frustrating.”
  • graphics
    121 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game’s graphics are widely praised for their charming, nostalgic 1950s and 70s sci-fi aesthetic, featuring bold colors, pulp comic-style designs, and a retro, campy vibe reminiscent of classic sci-fi movies and TV shows. While some find the visual style and artwork distinctive and highly appealing, a few note dated effects, occasional low-budget feel, or distracting flashy UI elements. Overall, the graphics strongly contribute to the game's unique atmosphere and appeal, often cited as its standout feature despite criticism of gameplay.

    • “The game leans heavily into its campy 1950s sci-fi aesthetic—bright colors, bold costumes, and pulp comic-style character designs—to create a humorous yet tense backdrop for a mission-driven adventure.”
    • “Classic retro aesthetics, sounds and music that is in more ways than one reminiscent of Flash Gordon, early 20th century sci-fi pulps and dime novels, and Star Trek episodes, as well as basic turn based strategy action akin to XCOM and multiplayer online!”
    • “This surprising little gem is nowhere near terrible - the mechanics make sense, the asymmetric teams are interesting, the style is very well done (possibly the best 50s aesthetic for any video game), the only problem is a lack of players for online matches (which is not the dev's fault).”
    • “Graphics are one of the worst I have ever seen, apart from combat, which is okay at max.”
    • “The graphics use old movie filter; the sound effects are poor quality and stereotypical. The whole future concept is from 60s movies about the distant future.”
    • “HUD is very flashy, with tons of graphics and visuals, making it hard to understand and manage.”
  • humor
    28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's humor is widely praised for its campy, retro 1950s sci-fi style, blending tongue-in-cheek jokes, clever character interactions, and playful nods to classic pulp fiction and Star Trek. While some find the humor occasionally cringe-worthy or reliant on multiplayer for full enjoyment, overall it adds personality, charm, and a refreshing lightheartedness to the tactical gameplay and story. Fans appreciate its witty dialogue, memorable characters, and amusing narrative twists that enhance the nostalgic sci-fi atmosphere.

    • “The game leans heavily into its campy 1950s sci-fi aesthetic—bright colors, bold costumes, and pulp comic-style character designs—to create a humorous yet tense backdrop for a mission-driven adventure.”
    • “Game doesn't come up with anything extra new, but the magic in this game is in its retro sci-fi stylisation, funny and enjoyable, long enough story with twists, puns, plenty of jokes and interesting characters.”
    • “The story is funny and well-realized, it has all the necessary elements of the classic sci-fi pulp fictions and movies of the '30s, '40s, '50s and 60's.”
  • music
    28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game is widely praised for its excellent retro sci-fi style, effectively complementing the atmosphere and art direction with a nostalgic, thematic soundtrack. However, several users note its repetitiveness and limited variety, which can become tedious over long play sessions. Overall, the soundtrack greatly enhances the game's charm and retro aesthetic despite its occasional monotony.

    • “Great game, even better soundtrack, with a story that's reminiscent of retro sci-fi series.”
    • “Classic retro aesthetics, sounds and music that is in more ways than one reminiscent of Flash Gordon, early 20th century sci-fi pulps and dime novels, and TOS Star Trek episodes.”
    • “The music is perfect, the visuals are amazingly timeless, funny and accurate.”
    • “The music is just one track over and over again; I usually played without the music with some random sci-fi soundtrack in the background.”
    • “The music gets really boring and annoying after a while, since it's only really one track and the 'cutscenes'... omg.”
    • “The music (mostly in the menu, I don't remember noticing it much in gameplay) has a sort of warped effect to it, to make it sound like it's on an old VHS or damaged film—really cool in theory, but in practice I found it pretty grating.”
  • atmosphere
    18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game’s retro, sci-fi atmosphere is widely praised for its charming, immersive, and nostalgic qualities, successfully blending a light, playful tone with thought-provoking themes. Its art, music, and design create a unique, warm, and memorable experience that resonates with fans of classic sci-fi and retro aesthetics. Despite minor pacing and clarity issues, the atmosphere stands out as a key strength that deeply engages players.

    • “The retro atmosphere enhances the sense of adventure, keeping the tone light even as the situation on the ship becomes more dire.”
    • “The immersive and atmospheric environments, coupled with the game's thought-provoking themes, create a unique and memorable experience that lingers with you long after the game is over.”
    • “You can feel how much care and love was put in this aspect of the game and it creates a very unique and warm atmosphere that immediately makes the game likable and scores 8/10.”
  • replayability
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers decent replayability, especially through different builds and strategic play, but its appeal is somewhat limited by a small number of maps and game modes. While the campaign provides substantial playtime, players hope for additional maps and modes to enhance long-term engagement. Overall, it delivers good value for its price despite these limitations.

    • “There is high replayability but it would be nice to have a few more maps.”
    • “Very interesting and lots of strategy to be had, but minor bugs and limited play modes; however, very replayable.”
    • “The game is cheap for the amount of fun and replayability - $13.”
    • “Not much replay value.”
    • “40 hours for the full campaign, more or less, perhaps limited replay value unless you want to try different builds or weapons.”
    • “Really hope they add more game modes or maps for the game modes as 1 map per game mode and only 3 game modes really dampens the replayability.”
  • grinding
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Grinding in the game is often described as tedious and frustrating, especially during later missions and boss encounters where repetitive attempts and precise positioning become necessary. While the core gameplay and strategy are appreciated, the grind can turn otherwise satisfying mechanics into a monotonous and chore-like experience.

    • “It's just obnoxious and makes the game a tedious loop of reloading checkpoints and even entire levels sometimes just because you didn't position or play the level the right way.”
    • “But only made shoot them up while they approach but later on the missions get super tedious and annoying.”
    • “I managed to finish the majority of missions in first try, but there were 2-3 that were very tedious and nightmarish.”
  • stability
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is generally stable with only a few bugs and glitches, and it is not considered buggy or problematic overall. However, users note a pattern of releases with some technical issues and limited post-launch support.

    • “First they get into a habit of releasing buggy games with little to no support.”
    • “Not because it's bad, or unfun, or a buggy mess... it's in fact none of those things.”
    • “A few bugs and glitches but apart from that great game!”
  • character development
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's character development is strongly influenced by its campy 1950s sci-fi aesthetic, featuring bold, colorful, and comic-style designs that enhance its humorous and tense atmosphere. While there are some flaws, the character presentation and setting are generally enjoyable and contribute positively to the overall experience.

  • monetization
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users feel the monetization is overly focused on extracting money, especially given the dead multiplayer, and that it does not align with the game's advertised experience.

    • “But from what I am seeing from people, it looks more like a cash grab since the multiplayer is dead.”
    • “It doesn't match the advertisement at all :(”
  • emotional
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game delivers a unique and heartfelt emotional experience, resonating deeply with players through its sincere and distinctive atmosphere.

  • optimization
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users generally indicate that optimization issues are likely related to their own hardware rather than the game itself, suggesting the game performs well on most systems.

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20h Median play time
15h Average play time
5-25h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

I am not a Monster is a tactical role playing game with science fiction theme.

I am not a Monster is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 15 hours playing I am not a Monster.

I am not a Monster was released on September 27, 2018.

I am not a Monster was developed by Cheerdealers.

I am not a Monster has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its replayability.

I am not a Monster is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

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