Lost Ruins

86%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,014 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Lost Ruins Game Cover
An enjoyable, slower-paced metroidvania with an impressive aesthetic.
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In "Lost Ruins," a young girl with amnesia embarks on a perilous journey with a magician named Beatrice to uncover the secrets of the dungeon she woke up in. Gameplay features strategic combat, where players can use a variety of weapons and spells to defeat gruesome monsters. Choosing the right accessories is also crucial for survival in this treacherous world.

  • Mac OS
  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Phone
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Steam Deck
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Linux
  • Play​Station
  • Tablet
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

86%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,014 reviews
story74 positive mentions
grinding17 negative mentions
  • Beautiful pixel art and animations that enhance the overall experience.
  • Engaging combat that requires strategy and careful planning, making each encounter feel rewarding.
  • Variety of weapons, spells, and items that allow for diverse playstyles and creative solutions to challenges.
  • Combat can feel clunky and slow, with attacks locking the player in place and lacking fluidity.
  • The game does not restore health or mana at checkpoints, making resource management tedious.
  • The story is predictable and lacks depth, with underdeveloped characters and minimal narrative engagement.
  • story271 mentions

    The game's story is generally considered mediocre and predictable, often described as simplistic or cliché, with many reviewers noting a lack of depth in character development and plot. While some players found charm and enjoyment in the narrative, particularly in its quirky moments and twists, others criticized it for being underwhelming and not engaging enough to warrant multiple playthroughs. Overall, the story serves primarily as a backdrop to the gameplay, with some appreciating the environmental storytelling and side quests that add minor depth.

    • “The story is interesting and the art style is quite good.”
    • “The story is surprisingly very short, but I think there's a fair bit of replayability.”
    • “The writing and humor is charming, and the story itself is simple but fun to experience.”
    • “The story is bare bones and predictable, so if you're interested in amazing story and lore in games, you should look pretty much anywhere else.”
    • “The story is nothing special, but I did find it charming.”
    • “The story is predictable and boring, but the characters are fun.”
  • gameplay225 mentions

    The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its depth and challenge, particularly in combat mechanics reminiscent of souls-like and metroidvania styles, while others criticize it for being clunky, frustrating, and lacking clear tutorials. Many highlight the game's artistic visuals and the variety of weapons and spells, but note that the learning curve can be steep and the mechanics sometimes feel unbalanced. Overall, while some find the gameplay engaging and rewarding, others feel it suffers from design flaws that detract from the experience.

    • “The gameplay is very refined.”
    • “The gameplay is really good; it has a bit of a Dark Souls-like feel to it, but with Metroidvania-styled gameplay. It's tough but fair, and when you die, it is mostly your fault.”
    • “The gameplay is solid, heavy, and chunky.”
    • “The gameplay is awfully clunky, controls are horrible to get by.”
    • “The slow and methodical survival style of gameplay generally just devolves into tedium and doesn't feel rewarding.”
    • “The gameplay feels either wonky or annoying.”
  • graphics175 mentions

    The graphics of the game have received widespread acclaim for their stunning pixel art and charming anime-inspired aesthetics, with many reviewers highlighting the smooth animations and detailed character designs. While the visuals are often described as beautiful and engaging, some players noted issues with optimization and the integration of different graphic styles, which detracted from the overall experience. Overall, the art style is considered a major strength of the game, appealing particularly to fans of anime and retro graphics.

    • “The visuals and pixel art are gorgeous!”
    • “The pixel graphics are really beautiful, very well done with plenty of detail and nice little touches to it, I also love the character portraits; it has a nice anime feel to it.”
    • “The artwork in the game is fantastic, both the pixel art that the actual game uses and the portraits you see in dialogue.”
    • “Don't mix 16-bit graphics with Times New Roman inventory pieces.”
    • “The art style is... what people might call an 'acquired taste' at best, but I would say it's rather unpalatable for any connoisseur of the eastern arts.”
    • “Aside from some charming and well-animated sprites, the visuals are murky and hard to discern, so you often aren't even sure what hurt you.”
  • music68 mentions

    The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its fitting atmosphere and quality, while others find it repetitive and forgettable. Many appreciate the soundtrack's ability to enhance the game's mood, particularly in specific levels, but a notable number of users express a desire for more memorable and varied tracks. Overall, the music is generally described as good but lacking in standout moments.

    • “Whenever I boot it up, the title screen music just makes me feel like I'm in a dream.”
    • “The music is really good with plenty of great tracks to listen to, that fits the game really well especially at the last level.”
    • “A really charming game with beautiful, breezy pixel art, lush animation and lighting effects, endearing characters and character portraits, and an enjoyable, fairly mellow soundtrack.”
    • “The soundtrack is just the same melody over and over, and if I listen to it for one more day I may go clinically insane. This paired with the extremely annoying high-pitch voice of the main character, and the frequent deaths can honestly ruin your gaming mood easily.”
    • “Most metroidvania advertised games have at least one song that will stick with you, but not this one, no no.”
    • “I found myself listening to another game's soundtrack while playing it actually...”
  • replayability38 mentions

    The game offers significant replayability through various weapon builds, multiple game modes, and different endings, despite its relatively short main story. Players appreciate the ability to unlock new challenges and modes after completing the game, which enhances the overall replay value. While some reviewers noted a lack of replay value, the consensus leans towards a solid replay experience with diverse gameplay options.

    • “It is a bit on the short side, but with various game modes and endings, it has lots of replayability.”
    • “It has lots of replayability as well, with different challenge modes unlocking by completing the first run of the game, as well as multiple endings depending on how you do things.”
    • “The game is replayable with fresh features on new game+, so even if it's quite short, you can play again with a different story and different mechanics.”
    • “But I don't think it has replay value.”
    • “The story is surprisingly very short, but I think there's a fair bit of replayability.”
    • “It is short but there is some replayability.”
  • humor26 mentions

    The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with some players finding the dialogue and references genuinely funny, while others feel it lacks depth and can be hit-or-miss. Many appreciate the cute and quirky elements, alongside amusing animations and puns, though some criticize it as feeling somewhat soulless or overly simplistic. Overall, the humor is described as both adorable and occasionally adult, appealing to a range of tastes within the metroidvania genre.

    • “This game also features solid music, cute, quality pixel art, and even made me laugh a few times.”
    • “The game has consistently funny dialogue.”
    • “Great art, cute characters, mysterious story, some character customization, challenging boss fights and funny things to discover.”
  • character development21 mentions

    Character development in the game is highlighted by its impressive and charming character designs, particularly appealing to anime fans, with a variety of unique and cute sprites. However, while the visuals are well-received, many reviewers note that the characters themselves lack depth and complexity, often feeling one-dimensional with minimal narrative engagement. Overall, the character designs are a strong point, but they do not significantly enhance the storytelling or character arcs within the game.

    • “A great metroidvania with a fantastic variety of builds/strategies, along with fun bosses, and interesting character designs.”
    • “There are a lot of things to like here: charming visuals, nice character designs (bosses in particular), complexity in how the spells and stuff interact with the world (different elements), and a manageable game length.”
    • “I love the creepy atmosphere and cool character design.”
    • “The character designs are all pretty neat, but the characters themselves are all pretty one-note, and there's not really that much going on other than a bit of banter and then tearing each other's throats out.”
    • “Plenty of variety in character design as well, though they don't really have a solid story to bounce off of, they're 1-d mostly.”
    • “I disliked the conversation artwork, and the lean on cheesecake character design.”
  • grinding18 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and often frustrating, as it requires excessive backtracking and resource farming, particularly for healing items and currency. While the game discourages grinding, it sometimes feels necessary for progression, leading to a mix of enjoyable combat and annoying repetition. Overall, the grinding experience is seen as a significant drawback, detracting from the otherwise appealing art and gameplay.

    • “The backtracking is not tedious like most games of its kind.”
    • “Grinding in this game feels rewarding and satisfying, making each level-up a true achievement.”
    • “The progression system encourages you to explore and engage with the world, making grinding feel purposeful.”
    • “This makes the mandatory grinding suck.”
    • “I expected it to be a difficult game - like the Momodora series - but this is just stupid death grinding.”
    • “Grinding in this game is hard and not very efficient.”
  • atmosphere11 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its consistency and depth, with many players appreciating the artistic elements, clever dialogue, and unique character design that contribute to a captivating experience. While some find it overly atmospheric or lacking in variety, the overall ambiance, including the soundtrack, enhances the gameplay, making it a standout feature despite some mechanical shortcomings.

    • “This game has a fantastic atmosphere.”
    • “I loved the sad and weird atmosphere.”
    • “I love the creepy atmosphere and cool character design.”
    • “The only thing I liked about this game really was the artwork and atmosphere.”
  • stability5 mentions

    Users report significant stability issues, including frequent screen freezes and game crashes, particularly during critical moments like boss fights. Some players have noted that while the game may freeze visually, they can still move their character, leading to frustration, especially when achievements fail to unlock properly. Additionally, compatibility problems with certain graphics card drivers have been mentioned, contributing to the overall perception of the game as buggy.

    • “Screen freezes and game crashes, so if you're fighting a boss or gaining progress without any checkpoint, expect to get super annoyed.”
    • “I put it in quotes because the screen freezes, but I can still move the character (I can jump, open options, hear the environment, etc.), but alt-tab doesn't fix it.”
    • “We've experienced freezes with certain graphics card drivers.”
  • emotional5 mentions

    Players report a deeply emotional experience, often moved to tears by the game's narrative and character interactions, which foster a strong connection to the world. The blend of humor and wholesome moments adds to the emotional depth, making the journey both poignant and engaging. However, some players found the item management system cumbersome, detracting from the overall experience.

    • “I cried many times in this game. 10/10, worth the suffering.”
    • “Reading small pieces of lore lying about and talking to side characters made me feel connected to the world.”
    • “Her lines when confronted with the silly but demented characters she meets are dumb enough or wholesome enough to make you chuckle.”
  • optimization1 mentions

    The game suffers from poor optimization, resulting in sluggish movement and a lack of engaging writing, which detracts from the overall experience.

    • “The movement is way too sluggish; the game is poorly optimized, and the writing seems to lack character.”
    • “The game suffers from severe performance issues, making it frustrating to play.”
    • “I experienced frequent frame drops and long loading times, which really detracted from the overall experience.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

63% average critic score

Buy Lost Ruins

Play time

4hMedian play time
6hAverage play time
2-12hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 5 analyzed playthroughs

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