Master Bladesmith

About

Master Bladesmith is a single player role playing game. It was developed by Elixir Games and was released on June 30, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

This unique RPG blends VR action and progression. Mine materials, buy equipment, build your arsenal by crafting more and more powerful blades. Battle in the Time Chamber to test your creations as you progress through levels, and build your character as you upgrade your equipment.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

63%

Audience ScoreBased on 405 reviews

gameplay39 positive mentions

grinding36 negative mentions

The game offers a very satisfying and immersive blacksmithing experience with detailed mechanics such as smelting ores, forging weapon parts, and assembling swords.
The core gameplay loop involving crafting, mining automation, and testing weapons in the combat 'Time Chamber' provides engaging and addictive progression.
Developers are responsive and actively interact with the community, providing updates and improvements over time.

The game is considered abandoned or discontinued by the developer, with no expectations for further updates or content, leaving it in an unfinished and unpolished state.
The mandatory combat 'Time Chamber' is repetitive, frustrating, sometimes buggy and heavily grindy, detracting from the otherwise enjoyable smithing gameplay.
The game has issues with poor tutorial, confusing UI/menus, inconsistent mechanics, frustrating controls (especially on certain VR hardware), and slow progression that can make early gameplay tedious.

gameplay
96 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
52%
7%
The gameplay offers a unique and satisfying core loop centered on blacksmithing and weapon crafting, which many find fun and addictive despite some repetitiveness and grind. However, the "time chamber" combat and mining mechanics are often criticized for being tedious, repetitive, and sometimes buggy, detracting from immersion and overall enjoyment. While the crafting mechanics are praised for depth and innovation, slow progression and lack of variety limit long-term engagement.
- “The physics and gameplay loop are so enjoyable and feel very unique to this game; it rewards you in so many little ways as you play and discover all the little things.”
- “The mechanics for the crafting aspects are extremely well done, I only wish there were more ways to get experience and loot.”
- “Really fun and addictive gameplay, all you would hope for in an RPG-like style with a main focus on smithing. It's like leveling up a smithing profession in WoW, but you get to play in first person. 10/10, I'm loving it so far and can't wait to see where it gets in the future.”
- “The blacksmithing part of the game is the only fun thing and it's blocked by an extremely tedious and repetitive "destroy the wooden targets" gameplay.”
- “The gameplay in the time chamber is horrible: it's presented as some sort of dungeon or wave of enemies, but then it puts you in a room with a wooden conveyor belt bringing you "enemies" (training dummies) that you have to slice through, along with launching targets and arrows at you from seemingly nowhere that you have to slash or block. This takes away from immersion and makes gameplay repetitive.”
- “The core gameplay loop is very grindy and buggy, with atrocious collision detection, making it not worth the current price given the quality.”
grinding
37 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
97%
Grinding is a core and unavoidable aspect of the game, with many players finding it repetitive and time-consuming, especially in the initial stages and during activities like destroying targets or mining for materials. However, those who enjoy progression through incremental improvements and crafting satisfying weapons often find the grind rewarding and engaging. Overall, the game appeals to fans of grind-heavy gameplay but may feel tedious or padded to others.
- “When you actually get to smith, it's quite fun, but there's way too much grinding to make any amount of progress; it feels like padded playtime.”
- “Mining, the only way to obtain ores, is slow and requires grinding (5 minutes and 2 coins initially for a single piece of tin, of which you need multiple to forge anything, just for reference).”
- “And then, after you go through grinding to make your brand new sword, armor, or whatever else you might have wanted instead of earning experience points or something actually useful, you just get to go back into the time chamber to restart the process with a slightly more efficient tool.”
stability
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game struggles significantly with stability issues, featuring frequent bugs, glitches, and poor physics that disrupt core gameplay elements like smelting, bow mechanics, and combat. Though it shows promise and some bugs are being addressed, the developer’s abandonment and focus on a sequel leave the current experience unfinished and frustrating for players. Overall, instability and incomplete features heavily impact the game's playability in its early access state.
- “The game has amazing potential; however, the smiting is interrupted by some poorly designed 'trial' where you use the swords you make against wooden targets. It feels rushed and buggy, and the dev has abandoned the game. After not posting for years, he just says that he abandoned it unfinished and will not work on it any more. I could recommend this if after he abandoned it he lowered the price, but no. Do not buy this game or his new game.”
- “And on top of that, the dev decided to leave the game as it is because he will just make a sequel... and it's a janky, buggy mess.”
- “But when I got into the game, I was hit with so many bugs, glitches, and poor game design choices that hindered my experience terribly.”
music
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
The music in the game is limited and often lacks rhythm, leading many players to prefer using their own background music for a better experience. While the sound design and shop area music create a relaxing atmosphere, the combat music in the time chamber is repetitive and could benefit from more variety. Overall, players suggest adding an option to turn off or customize the in-game music.
- “The crafting is oddly relaxing, the sound design is nice and the music helps set a relaxing aura in the shop and smith area, while the combat music in the chamber makes sure you know it's time to test the works you have made.”
- “I also find the game a bit more fun putting some tavern radio on in Spotify and listening to some good music to set the mood while playing.”
- “Just play some music in the background and it's Beat Saber but you craft your weapons.”
- “Progression is slow, the time chamber is boring as hell, there's no NPCs to break the drone of the music, and the actual blade creation is locked behind levels (earned by doing the time chamber).”
- “It's like if Beat Saber was an RPG without the music and you create your own better sabers, 10/10.”
- “Most of my bellyaching is related to the time chamber, but if you enjoy stuff like Beat Saber but with some notes you 100% cannot hit, and also a shield and no cool music, you hopefully won't mind much.”
graphics
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
42%
25%
The game's graphics are generally praised as high quality, detailed, and visually impressive, effectively capturing a fantasy/medieval aesthetic. While some minor inconsistencies in character models were noted, the overall visual design, including weapon crafting and combat, is well-executed. However, the game lacks customizable graphics options for further personalization.
- “The graphics are top notch, the weapons you can make are well done, and the combat portion of the game (while repetitive) is very good too.”
- “If you are looking for a game to craft weapons and make gear to sell just for the fun of it, with good graphics and very well-played physics, I recommend this game.”
- “The graphics range from "oh my god that's real" to "that dude's nose is way too big", but overall it's an amazing looking game.”
- “The graphics range from 'oh my god that's real' to 'that dude's nose is way too big', but overall it's an amazing looking game.”
- “The game also needs more options: graphics, audio, and general game options are missing entirely.”
- “I was expecting Mount and Blade style graphics but it's way better than that.”
story
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The game's story is minimal and lacks depth, with some players noting repetitive gameplay and unfinished elements that hinder narrative progression. While the concept has potential, many feel the story is underdeveloped and overshadowed by gameplay mechanics, leading to a less engaging experience.
- “It has an interesting story, addictive gameplay.”
- “I'm new to VR and this game, but so far there isn't much story or a large variety of gameplay.”
- “I'd be happy just sticking to making swords and fletching bows, but the developer clearly wants the Time Chamber to be an integral part of the gameplay loop by locking XP and various story elements behind it.”
- “Do not buy this game. It is not finished. The developer has abandoned this game to start a sequel for more money without finishing this game. There are so many bugs and unfinished aspects. For example, the relics are not added—you can do all the extra steps but you won't be rewarded because the developer didn't add it in. There's no story or continuation of any sort, just the same actions over and over. In my opinion, we need to stop supporting developers like this.”
- “I'm new to VR and new to this game, but so far there isn't much story or a large variety of gameplay.”
- “I'd be happy just sticking to making swords and fletching bows, but the developer makes it clear that he wants the Time Chamber to be an integral part of the gameplay loop by locking experience points and various story elements behind it, which I personally don't think should be the case.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
Optimization reviews are mixed, with some users praising great performance while others criticize poor performance and control issues, particularly regarding awkward item handling and subpar index controller support.
- “Performance is great.”
- “Rewards in each round are based on performance.”
- “The performance is absolutely horrible.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The monetization in this game is praised for avoiding predatory microtransactions, instead allowing players to sell unwanted items and use in-game currency to purchase equipment, upgrades, and crafting materials.
- “Rather than containing predatory microtransactions, this is where you can sell your unwanted metal and weapons and purchase equipment, upgrades, and materials for crafting.”
- “Thanks for the rugpull cash grab.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the humor in the game clever and enjoyable, often blending playful teasing with genuine appreciation, making the experience engaging enough to play for extended periods without boredom.
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features an interesting atmosphere complemented by a well-crafted and engaging introduction that effectively draws players into the experience.