Kromaia

About

"Kromaia is a 360° shoot-'em-up game that combines classic arcade action with modern technology, allowing players to explore and battle in three-dimensional space. The game features adaptive AI, with enemies getting tougher as the player improves, and true 360° movement and shooting that tests high-speed flying and sharpshooting skills."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

+17

78%

Audience ScoreBased on 85 reviews

gameplay9 positive mentions

replayability2 negative mentions

The game features a unique blend of 6DOF movement and on-rails combat, providing an engaging and challenging experience.
Visually stunning with a psychedelic art style and a captivating soundtrack that enhances the gameplay atmosphere.
Offers a variety of ships and weapons, encouraging exploration and replayability through different playstyles.

Controls can feel unresponsive and clunky, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences, especially with mouse input.
Repetitive level design requiring players to replay the same stages multiple times with different ships can lead to boredom.
The tutorial and in-game instructions are lacking, making it difficult for players to understand mechanics and objectives.

gameplay
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
60%
10%
The gameplay of Kromaia is a mixed bag, featuring enjoyable mechanics and a visually stunning presentation that appeals to arcade enthusiasts. While some players find it relaxing and fun, others criticize the controls and lack of clarity in mechanics, leading to a chaotic experience. Overall, the game offers intense, fast-paced action with exploration elements, but it could benefit from refinements to enhance the overall experience.
- “All in all, Kromaia is a pretty neat exploration of the concept of a fast-paced 3D shoot-em-up, with great presentation and fun gameplay.”
- “Kromaia may look abstract and alien, but the gameplay is pure arcade action.”
- “Good gameplay is essential for any successful shmup, but Kromaia offers more than fast ships, cool enemies, and big explosions.”
- “Well, the controls are wonky (probably fixable), but the gameplay itself is a mess.”
- “This game is basically a game with bad controls, with unexplained mechanics, with an ugly and cluttered screen none of which is clear what things are, with a bad save system, and a bunch of filler added in.”
- “Confusing gameplay; before going into this game, I didn't know what it was about.”
graphics
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
63%
13%
The graphics of the game are described as a stunning blend of retro and abstract styles, reminiscent of titles like Tron and Rez, featuring vibrant colors and surreal designs that create a captivating atmosphere. However, some players noted issues with blurriness and a lack of graphical settings, which detracted from their experience. Overall, while the visuals are praised for their aesthetic appeal, opinions vary on their execution and clarity during gameplay.
- “Kromaia is an aesthetic marvel: it creates an atmosphere of wonder that few games manage to capture.”
- “The art style is an explosion of colors and weird design, simple but complex at the same time.”
- “It's a 6dof arcade shooter with a lovely aesthetic.”
- “Played for about half an hour before my eyes hurt from the bad graphics and my brain hurt from boredom.”
- “I find it particularly misleading that the artwork of this game shows some clear and crisp geometry with lots of style and sometimes an extra outline, while in-game everything is badly blurred.”
- “No real graphical settings other than post-processing, including bloom, depth of field, and optional scanline/pixel filters.”
music
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
57%
13%
The music in the game is generally well-received, featuring a diverse soundtrack that enhances the gameplay experience with atmospheric tracks during exploration and more intense themes during combat. While most levels boast impressive music, some players noted that the boss theme lacks the same intensity, and repetitive use of the same track during multiple boss fights can become tiresome. Overall, the soundtrack is described as immersive and fitting, contributing significantly to the game's engaging atmosphere.
- “The player is given a great range of control of the ship, allowing you to zip around and take ridiculous paths through the environments. The music has a pretty good range between calm, atmospheric tracks when first entering a stage before combat starts, to ramping it up a few notches when blasting your way around.”
- “The heavy and ominous electronic dronings of the soundtrack fit the abstract surroundings and hazy retro-future feel as it builds up towards the climactic final boss encounter of each expansive and open stage.”
- “The fitting music, the tight controls, and the 360° freedom is what makes the game so immersive.”
- “The music and sound effects I felt were suitable, but nothing in particular stood out to me.”
- “Occasionally the sound would dissolve into bizarre static, or a single note in the soundtrack would drag, as if my sound card were receiving improper commands from the game.”
- “I love the soundtrack, but since all the boss fights use the same music, it starts to grate after the 10th time.”
story
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
15%
70%
15%
The story in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it boring, unoriginal, and at times confusing, while others appreciate its mythological elements and environmental storytelling reminiscent of titles like "Shadow of the Colossus." The narrative revolves around a son seeking revenge against four gods, conveyed through a sparse and somewhat abstract approach that prioritizes gameplay over depth. Overall, while the story may not be the main draw, it offers a unique backdrop to the action, with a blend of arcade shooting and mythological themes.
- “I enjoyed the timeless, ominous, and mysterious feel to the story.”
- “There is a sparsely told story about a son getting revenge against four gods who are responsible for some sort of catastrophe, the narrator is the father, reaching out to the son via his thoughts.”
- “You play as a lost soul trapped in a spacecraft, woken up by a mysterious voice and sent on a mission to destroy four ancient gods in the false universes they rule.”
- “The story is boring and unoriginal and at times confusing.”
- “If there is a story, I have a feeling it won't be an incredibly deep or engaging.”
- “Last thing, the story is pure babble (but at least this shouldn't matter in a bullet hell game).”
atmosphere
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The atmosphere in the game is highly praised for its captivating blend of moody, atmospheric music and visually stunning environments, creating a sense of wonder and nostalgia. Players appreciate the dynamic range of the soundtrack, which shifts from calm to intense, enhancing the overall experience as they navigate through the game. The combination of aesthetic beauty and immersive sound design contributes to a unique and engaging world that draws players in.
- “The action is solid and its moody atmosphere intrigued me into learning more about this world.”
- “Kromaia is an aesthetic marvel: it creates an atmosphere of wonder that few games manage to capture.”
- “The whole atmosphere is thick with otherworldly wonder and a familiar neon warmth, giving me a feeling of nostalgic bliss not felt since that initial excitement of discovering the world of arcade gaming long ago.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
100%
Players highlight the significant replayability of the game, attributing it to its challenging yet accessible gameplay, as well as features like score attack mode and customizable configurations. The potential for official expansions further enhances the game's longevity and appeal.
- “The score attack mode and editable configurations the engine uses may be its saving grace and where the replay value resides, and hopefully, official expansions are also a possibility.”
- “However, the score attack mode and editable configs the engine uses may be its saving grace and where the replay value resides, and hopefully official expansions are also a possibility.”
- “I have had this game since the first day it appeared on Steam and never once have I been disappointed in the way it plays. Sure, the game is hard but not impossible, and Kromaia does have an enormous amount of replayability.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users praising its smooth performance and efficient resource management, while others report issues such as frame rate drops and long loading times. Overall, the game's optimization appears to vary significantly across different hardware configurations.
- “The game runs poorly on even high-end systems, making it frustrating to play.”
- “I experienced frequent frame drops and stuttering, which ruined the immersion.”
- “The optimization is so bad that loading times are unacceptably long, even for simple tasks.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly noting that boss encounters lack challenge and primarily serve to extend playtime rather than provide engaging difficulty.
- “The bosses aren't that hard; they just feel tedious to defeat.”
- “Grinding feels like a never-ending chore rather than an engaging part of the game.”
- “The repetitive nature of grinding makes it hard to stay motivated to play.”