Loopmancer
- July 7, 2022
- eBrain Studio
- 7h median play time
If you’re looking for a new Metroidvania, and you like your bosses big and your violence sweary, Loopmancer is an absolute treat.
Get on Steam
Get on Epic Games Store"Loopmancer" is a single-player Hack and Slash game set in a cyberpunk-style Eastern city in 2046. As a private eye named Xiang Zixu, you'll investigate the disappearance of a famous female journalist, only to be killed and wake up back in your apartment, reliving the day over and over. The game boasts wonderful mechanics, phenomenal visuals, and seven large stages, including the vibrant Dragon Town and the grim Shuigou Village. For the latest updates, follow the game on Discord and Twitter.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features beautiful graphics and a well-crafted cyberpunk atmosphere, making it visually appealing.
- Gameplay is fast-paced and engaging, with a fun hack and slash combat system that allows for various upgrades and combos.
- The game offers multiple endings and a decent amount of replayability, especially for fans of roguelike elements.
- The game suffers from optimization issues, leading to frequent crashes and performance problems, especially with RTX enabled.
- The story and dialogue are often criticized for being bland and poorly executed, detracting from the overall experience.
- Some players find the combat mechanics to be clunky and unresponsive, which can lead to frustrating gameplay moments.
- story111 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The story has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it intriguing and engaging, particularly due to its time-loop mechanic and multiple branching paths. However, many criticize the execution, citing poor dialogue, lackluster voice acting, and plot holes that detract from the overall experience. While some appreciate the depth and lore, others feel the story is average and could benefit from further development and refinement.
“Interesting story that keeps you interested as you piece together what's happening to you and how to progress.”
“The story is quite elaborate and has a good flow.”
“For a 20 bucks game, it's impressive that you get a progressive story to invest in, voice acting, cutscenes.”
“I don't think the story is told very well.”
“Combat feels floaty and the story is so bad it's not even worth mentioning in the positive reviews.”
“There's definitely some missed opportunities to tell a more complete and fulfilling story, especially with so much lore and world building invested already.”
- graphics55 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 49 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their stunning visuals and beautiful art style, particularly praised for their cyberpunk aesthetic. Players noted that the game looks exceptional on high settings, with impressive background scenery and well-optimized performance, although some criticized the lack of detail in character models and issues with cutscene lip syncing. Overall, the graphics are considered a highlight, contributing significantly to the game's immersive experience.
“And if you have a PC to run this on max graphics settings (feel free to use DLSS) - it's the best looking roguelite game out there.”
“The cyberpunk aesthetic in this game is simply gorgeous and the gameplay flows nicely as an action roguelike.”
“Stunning background scenery (at max graphics of course) - I love the art concept, this alone is worth the money.”
“The controls aren't great, the visuals are so busy for no reason, the characters have very little detail to them, and yet they insist on zooming in on the lack of close details the game has.”
“Graphics are serviceable (but I haven't been playing on the highest settings).”
“But despite the above problems, it is still pretty fun to play (if you can accept the repetitiveness), it has stunning visuals, everything is just beautiful to look at, the art style definitely nailed the cyberpunk feeling.”
- gameplay55 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay is a standout feature, characterized by fast-paced hack and slash mechanics, fluid combat, and a dynamic roguelike structure that offers significant replayability. While the visuals and overall design are praised, some players note issues with clunky mechanics and a busy screen that can detract from the experience. Despite these drawbacks, many find the gameplay engaging and addictive, with a satisfying blend of melee, guns, and skills.
“Gameplay is where the game shines, offering some fast-paced hack and slash combined with many upgrades in a roguelike-esque manner.”
“The graphics are amazing and the gameplay never gets boring.”
“Gameplay is dynamic and extremely addictive with some nice depth thanks to melee, guns, skills, and gadgets, all of which tend to synergize quite beautifully.”
“I don't want to spoil anything related to the gameplay, but its premise makes it sound like it's going to get boring after a while.”
“The combat mechanic is a bit clunky at times, mostly when attempting to do double jumps and when the second jump or the movement won't be recognized.”
“So forcing the roguelike starting over gamestyle doesn't add anything valuable to the gameplay, I would say.”
- optimization11 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 36 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is a mixed bag; while some users report smooth performance on high-end systems without frame drops, others experience stuttering and issues on lower-end hardware or the Steam Deck. There are calls for further optimizations, particularly for video memory management and compatibility with various systems, as some players encounter significant loading issues and unresponsive screens. Overall, the game shows potential but requires additional work to enhance its performance across all platforms.
“Optimized well and fairly polished; I never had any frame drops or problems like that running on a laptop 2070 on epic graphics settings, no ray tracing.”
“Plays well on Steam Deck; would love more optimizations.”
“No stuttering despite being on UE4.”
“I think the game is not optimized to handle video memory that well.”
“Unsupported for deck but plays with a bit of stuttering.”
“I tried compatibility mode (win7, win8, vista, admin mode, disabled full-screen optimizations) and ran file integrity verification, and at best I get the load screen but once the game is loaded, I only get an unresponsive black screen.”
- music11 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its solid and engaging soundtrack, often compared to the aesthetic of Cyberpunk 2077. However, some users note that while the soundtrack is enjoyable, the overall amount of music is limited and can be considered generic at times. Overall, the music complements the gameplay well, enhancing the experience despite some criticisms of its repetitiveness.
“Soundtrack is banging!”
“But don't expect a lot of music.”
“The aesthetic is very reminiscent of Cyberpunk 2077 along with the music.”
“A metroidvania roguelite with fine gameplay, graphics, and music.”
- humor10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is generally well-received, with players finding it entertaining and often hilarious, particularly due to the variety of funny weapons and decent voice acting. However, some note that the humor can be over the top and that the localization includes some awkward translations. Overall, it strikes a balance between amusing and absurd, appealing to those who enjoy a lighthearted experience.
“Visually great, fun combat with multitudes of different, sometimes hilarious, weapons to choose from.”
“It's been entertaining and hilarious for me, but it might be too over the top for some folks.”
“Decent voice acting and localization, though the translation had some funny faux pas and weird choices here and there.”
- replayability9 mentions
- 78 % positive mentions
- 11 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
Overall, the game exhibits a mixed reception regarding replayability. While some players highlight its high replayability due to multiple paths, endings, and roguelike elements, others feel that the limited content beyond the endings diminishes its replay value. The combat and gameplay mechanics are praised, contributing to a solid experience for those seeking to explore different outcomes.
“Great combat, interesting story, good progression, solid soundtrack, responsive controller support, highly replayable with multiple paths and endings.”
“Extremely high replayability from roguelike elements and the challenges present in each level.”
“Overall great gameplay with tons of replayability to unlock the goodies and different endings.”
“There's not a lot of content besides the endings, so replayability is low in my opinion.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessive, with some achievements requiring an unrealistic amount of time and effort. While the game features a roguelike system reminiscent of Dead Cells, the combat is noted to be less fluid, leading to a more tedious grinding experience, although difficulty options are available to alleviate some of this burden.
“Some achievements are way too grindy.”
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Cyberpunk roguelike has similar systems to Dead Cells, but the combat is not as fast and fluid, and there are difficulty options to make gameplay less grindy.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game effectively captures a compelling cyberpunk atmosphere, though some users feel that the character models appear low-quality, particularly during cutscenes.
“The cyberpunk atmosphere is well made, but the character models look cheap, especially during cutscenes.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Users report a high level of stability, with no glitches or issues encountered during gameplay, even when utilizing a gamepad and running graphics at maximum settings on a 3070 mobile chip.
Critic Reviews
Loopmancer
Loopmancer has difficulty committing to the hallmarks of better roguelites, making progression a chore. But past the questionable localization and writing is an action-focused platformer with personality and a few good ideas.
75%Loopmancer review — Loops, I did it again
Loopmancer has some nifty concepts and flashy combat. However, it's also bogged down by some simplified mechanics and a hammy narrative.
70%Loopmancer Review
Loopmancer is like a great cover of a classic song, in 2D action-platformer roguelite form. It may not be very creative, but it’s excellent and highly replayable nonetheless.
80%
