Indies' Lies
- February 25, 2022
- ErabitStudios
- 24h median play time
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io StoreIndies' Lies is a roguelike deck-building game where you craft a deck, spark talents, discover runes, and assemble your team with partners' cards! Play unique stories for every character and explore a world caught in the clash of gods. Fun for Beginners, Depth for the Experienced With the hope to introduce fun of the deck building strategy to more players, we have adjusted and optimized traditio…
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a diverse set of characters, each with unique story modes and abilities, providing a lot of content and replayability.
- The art style is beautiful, and the game mechanics, such as the card replacement system and team-based combat, add depth to the gameplay.
- For fans of roguelike deckbuilders, this game offers a solid experience with engaging strategies and a variety of maps and events.
- The game suffers from significant translation issues, making it difficult to understand card effects and gameplay mechanics.
- Many players find the game too easy, lacking the challenge that is expected in the roguelike genre, especially compared to similar titles like Slay the Spire.
- The user interface is often criticized for being non-intuitive, with several design choices that hinder the overall gameplay experience.
- gameplay100 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some praising its depth, strategic elements, and unique mechanics, while others criticize it for being overly complex and derivative of other titles like "Slay the Spire." Many players find the core mechanics enjoyable, but issues such as poor translation, lack of clarity in tutorials, and a confusing array of mechanics detract from the overall experience. Additionally, the presence of a turn timer and the removal of fun mechanics at higher difficulties have been noted as significant drawbacks.
“This game is spectacular, and very well thought out mechanically.”
“Solid gameplay hours, varied strategies, maps, and events.”
“The core gameplay is pretty fun, and I enjoyed the character designs and general aesthetic.”
“Feels like the devs are afraid to do something unique, making the gameplay boring.”
“At higher difficulties, enemies stop dropping items (this game's version of STS potions), which again diminishes replayability as now you have a core mechanic of the game turned off.”
“While the game has a very defined art direction, it does nothing in service of clarity of gameplay as every element on screen has the same level of visual amplitude, meaning it's very hard to differentiate between all the elements on screen; stuff just gets lost in the visuals.”
- story96 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 79 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The game features a unique story mode for each of its numerous characters, which players unlock by completing runs, adding depth and customization to the gameplay. However, many reviews highlight issues with poor translation, spelling errors, and a lack of coherence in the narrative, detracting from the overall experience. While some players appreciate the character backstories and the additional content, others find the story mode to be a tedious addition that disrupts the core roguelike mechanics.
“It has tons of characters, and when you beat the normal game with a character, you unlock their story mode, which means you get a unique story for each of the 20 or so characters.”
“Fantastic game, the story mode adds so much depth to the characters in addition to adding customization to each one.”
“By playing each individual character, you'll unlock not only more cards for them, but be able to unlock a whole other game mode that delves into the character's backstory and also provides a bit of world-building as well.”
“There’s a story mode, which is hard to read and follow because the translation isn’t great, and it takes away from the main appeal of the roguelike.”
“In theory, the idea of a roguelike deckbuilder that focuses on character stories rather than a vague, moody setting is interesting, but in practice, I mostly just found myself rapidly skimming text trying to get back to the combat, because the story feels like the 'standard' deck building mode but with extra, less interesting steps.”
“Expect the story to make very little sense, with pronouns being incorrect or missing, and some card descriptions being near unintelligible.”
- graphics32 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their vibrant and cute anime aesthetics, with enjoyable character designs that contribute to a fun atmosphere. However, some reviewers note that the art lacks originality compared to similar titles like "Slay the Spire," and the visual clarity suffers due to elements blending together on screen. Additionally, the transition between the 2D art style and the 3D map layout feels awkward, detracting from the overall experience.
“The graphics and animations are very nice, and the difficulty scales in yet another customizable way.”
“Enjoyable deckbuilder with cute anime aesthetics.”
“Really fun game with a great art style and a diverse set of characters that change up the game.”
“While the game has a very defined art direction, it does nothing in service of clarity of gameplay as every element on screen has the same level of visual amplitude, meaning it's very hard to differentiate between all the elements on screen; stuff just gets lost in the visuals.”
“At the moment, the map layout seems somewhat out of place for the art style, transitioning from animated 2D art to a 3D polygon map with 3D icons and symbols.”
“The problem isn't necessarily in the quality of either (granted the 2D art is better, in my opinion), but more of the fact that the transition between the two art styles leaves an awkward taste in my mouth.”
- replayability22 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 23 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is enhanced by a new difficulty system that allows for tailored experiences, featuring a talent tree and customizable card effects, which keeps each run fresh and engaging. However, some players feel that the abundance of playable characters can lead to less unique runs, and higher difficulty levels may limit item drops, reducing overall replay value. Despite these concerns, many reviewers find the game offers significant depth and fun, contributing to its replayability.
“The difficulty system, which is now similar to the heat system in Hades, offers much more replayability and better scaling for your specific needs.”
“Each run gives you different talents, party members, and options to make it extremely replayable and full of life many hours in.”
“The classic card unlocks are also there, but it's not the only type of progression, which adds more replayability to the game.”
“At higher difficulties, enemies stop dropping items (this game's version of STS potions), which again diminishes replayability as now you have a core mechanic of the game turned off.”
“The classic STS card unlocks are also there, but it's not the only type of progression, which adds more replayability to the game.”
“There's a talent tree and you can put runes on your cards to add different effects, and there's a ton of replayability.”
- music12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally considered mediocre and repetitive, lacking diversity, which detracts from the overall experience. While some players find the soundtrack fitting and enjoyable, others suggest muting the game and listening to alternative music for a better experience. Overall, the music is seen as one of the weaker aspects of the game, despite its initial appeal.
“Cute characters, understandable mechanics, music - what could go wrong?”
“- lovely soundtrack”
“- lovely soundtrack”
“Gameplay is okay but the music is mediocre; play this game on mute with another game's OST if you want to enjoy yourself.”
“The weakest point is probably the lack of music diversity, but that doesn't mean the music itself isn't fitting or unenjoyable to listen to.”
“Many mechanics are copy-pasted, some enemies have an uncanny valley level of similarity, and even the music is reminiscent of STS.”
- grinding8 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Players note that grinding is a fundamental aspect of the game, aligning with the roguelike genre's core mechanics of repeated attempts to progress. While some express frustration over the grind required to unlock harder content, others argue that this repetitive gameplay is an inherent and expected feature of roguelikes.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“The game is designed to be grindy and repetitive, and to judge it based on the components that make a roguelike a roguelike is utterly ridiculous.”
“When it comes to the gameplay loop, I've been noticing people complaining about the grinding required to progress and get to harder content/more stuff, but for some reason, people keep forgetting that's literally the roguelike genre; 'do a little bit, die, and get a little bit deeper, run after run.'”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game experiences several stability issues, including soft freezes and errors, particularly in story mode, which detracts from the overall experience. Users have noted that the game feels somewhat unpolished and buggy, drawing unfavorable comparisons to other titles.
“There are a number of bugs, from soft freezes to errors. This has been mostly limited to the story mode, which is not that great.”
“Slightly crooked and slightly buggy, obviously imitating Slay the Spire.”
“There are a number of bugs, from soft freezes to errors. This has been mostly limited to the story mode, which is not that great.”
- character development4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
While players appreciate the character designs and overall aesthetic, there is little mention of character development in terms of growth or narrative depth, suggesting that the focus may be more on visual appeal and gameplay mechanics rather than on evolving characters.
“The character design is incredible, and the play style is addicting!”
“The core gameplay is pretty fun, and I enjoyed the character designs and general aesthetic.”
