Merchant

About

Merchant is a single player casual role playing game with medieval and historical themes. It was developed by Retora Games and was released on October 8, 2018. It received positive reviews from players.

Offline Playable! No IAP currency, all purchases are permanent!

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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84%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,460 reviews

gameplay53 positive mentions

monetization151 negative mentions

Addictive and engaging gameplay with a mix of RPG, crafting, and inventory management elements.
No forced ads, with optional ads rewarding players with in-game currency; fair and ethical monetization model with one-time purchases for expansions.
Charming retro pixel art style and relaxing music, creating a nostalgic and pleasant atmosphere.

Progression can become slow and grind-heavy in later stages, with increasing wait times for quests and crafting.
Limited inventory and shop slots requiring in-game currency or real money to expand, which can hamper gameplay flow.
User interface can be unintuitive, with clunky navigation, lack of features like multi-quest repeat, equipment preview, and sorting options; some bugs and data loss issues reported.

monetization
214 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
17%
71%
The game's monetization is widely praised for being non-intrusive and respectful, featuring optional ads that offer meaningful rewards without forcing players to watch them. In-app purchases are limited to reasonable expansions or permanent content additions and are never required to progress, avoiding pay-to-win scenarios. Overall, the model balances fair player experience with developer support, though some users report occasional ad-loading issues and a desire for more ad-free options after purchase.
- “Amazing game with creative monetization practices.”
- “The in-app purchases are DLC that are worth buying and serve only to add to the experience, not single-use items that leave you feeling scammed.”
- “The monetization model is actually commendably unoffensive and out of the way, especially early game.”
- “No way to pay to not get ads, so it's getting uninstalled despite buying all the DLC.”
- “Still has watch-to-win advertisements after purchasing the 'unlock all' with real money.”
- “I just paid $18 CAD to unlock 'everything' yet I still need to watch 30-second long ads to get gold reward after every quest. This means if you are grinding and want the gold reward you spend half your time watching ads.”
gameplay
147 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
60%
4%
The gameplay is generally praised for its simple, approachable mechanics, addictive crafting and management loop, and balanced, fair progression without pay-to-win elements. However, it can feel repetitive and slow due to real-time waiting mechanics, limited variety as the game progresses, and minimal player interaction beyond clicking and waiting. While some find the mechanics deep and rewarding, others desire more engaging features like combat, clearer tutorials, and diverse activities to keep the experience fresh.
- “The gameplay loop is satisfying and the premise is simple and unique; there aren't many games where you manage a fantasy store and a small army of adventurers for supplying the merchandise. I highly recommend it.”
- “Game has many different strategies for optimization, and builds on previously introduced mechanics.”
- “The gameplay and itemization is surprisingly deep, and there's always something to do.”
- “The mechanic of 'wait until it's done' being paired with the items only taking seconds to finish makes the game impossible to play leisurely. The gameplay can be boiled down to 'press button, wait, press button, wait'; there is almost no enjoyment to be had with this.”
- “The core gameplay is very tedious, jumping around menus of mediocre design to start various timers had me uninterested in 3 minutes or so.”
- “I seriously fail to see the appeal of this game, there's literally nothing to it. The only actual gameplay consists of waiting for an adventure to be over and crafting and selling which aren't even satisfying to do. You can argue that there's customization but come on, you don't even get to see the equipment on your characters and the stat effects they give don't really matter in terms of seeing their effect because there's no actual combat in the game.”
story
141 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
85%
4%
The game features a simple, addictive RPG-style loop of sending heroes on quests, gathering resources, crafting gear, and managing a shop, but it lacks a structured story or overarching narrative. Players appreciate the steady progression and engaging mechanics, though many wish for more story depth, quest variety, and quality-of-life improvements like auto-repeat and shorter quest times to reduce repetitive grind. Overall, the absence of a clear plot is seen as a drawback, yet the gameplay allows for some player imagination and enjoyment.
- “You're the merchant in charge of sending adventurers on quests for items you need to give to crafters to make goods, with which you can either equip your adventurers, or sell in your shop.”
- “Then you can take their quest materials to a variety of crafters that you again level and progress by making gear your heroes will equip to be stronger; essentially it's an endless RPG that fits mobile gaming to a T.”
- “This game told an incredible story of a young hero who was the seventh youngest in his group.”
- “No story, no real goal or purpose.”
- “Interesting in the beginning but then the direction vanished and I found myself in a loop of crafting to sell to pay to do more quests to get materials to craft to sell... there was nothing to aim for.”
- “I then took away three stars because it's nothing other than a tedious grindfest with minimal sense of actual story.”
graphics
116 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
50%
4%
The game features charming, nostalgic pixel art and retro 8-bit graphics that many users find visually appealing and fitting for its relaxing, old-school aesthetic. While the graphics are simple and not technically advanced, they complement the gameplay well and run smoothly even on low-end devices. Some users wish for more visual variety, such as hero appearance changes when equipping gear, but overall the art style is regarded as a strong, integral part of the game’s cozy, immersive experience.
- “I can't stress enough just how amazing this game is, its simple pixelated graphics are mesmerizing, the progression system is super addictive and there's tons of content the entire time. I've had this game for years upon years, and it's honestly my favourite across the mobile platform. You don't have to play every day all day to have fun with this game, sometimes I hop on just a few times a day to send my heroes out on quests. Honestly a great game.”
- “First off, the pixel art and graphics are just absolutely beautiful!”
- “Charming pixel-art graphics and runs even on low-end devices - a+ a keeper!”
- “Unfortunately this completely deforms the graphics, breaks the immersion and I can't bring myself to play merchant in this state.”
- “Graphics are serviceable, but nothing you haven't seen a thousand times.”
- “Poor graphics and not technically an offline game.”
grinding
95 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding is a core and defining element of the game, with progression heavily tied to questing, farming materials, and crafting gear. Early and mid-game grinding is generally described as enjoyable and rewarding, especially for RPG fans, but the late game often becomes tedious, repetitive, and overly grind-heavy, leading to player fatigue. While some appreciate the challenge and consistent sense of progress, many note the lack of automation and increasing micromanagement make the grind more tedious over time.
- “What really made me drop two stars was how grindy this game is - mainly the rare materials.”
- “I've been farming materials for a single sword for the past two days, and am only at 8/15.”
- “The grind is heavy and constantly checking on better gear for my heroes becomes tedious quickly.”
music
49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
51%
43%
6%
The game's music is widely praised for its soothing, meditative, and atmospheric qualities that enhance the nostalgic and medieval-themed experience. However, many users desire more variety and additional tracks, noting the repeated use of a single theme can become monotonous over time. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a strong, charming element that significantly contributes to the game's appeal despite some wishes for more diversity and sound effects.
- “The music sets the mood brilliantly and the art style gives me major nostalgia.”
- “Absolutely wonderful game: charming, interesting, well drawn, pleasant music, balanced, varied, and a nice progress system that is rewarding.”
- “Charming hand drawn graphics, highly interactive interface, and a hypnotizing soundtrack all provide an engaging gaming experience especially for those fond of classic PC games.”
- “The music they have is soothing and meditative, but it's the same music all the time.”
- “Could use better music though.”
- “Also fairly certain the music has been ripped off into another game.”
stability
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
11%
89%
The game's stability is inconsistent, with frequent freezing and frustrating bugs such as crafting issues and item management problems reported by several users. While some find it largely bug-free and enjoyable, others experience regular crashes and screen stretching, significantly impacting gameplay.
- “I recently purchased the expansion and it freezes most of the time for 2 seconds then continues.”
- “I paid $8.99 for the full paid pack because I thought it was a great time killer and wanted to support the devs, and now the game freezes after 20 seconds in game.”
- “Every 30 seconds to 1 minute the game always freezes for about 30 seconds.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
The game offers various strategies for optimization, building on established mechanics, and is designed for low resource usage. However, some players find that the optimization is lacking, leading to reduced engagement after a short period.
- “Game has many different strategies for optimization and builds on previously introduced mechanics.”
- “Not optimized, held my attention for about an hour or two before it became not worth it to continue progress.”
- “He died because apparently handed down an optimized set they do not make.”
- “Optimized for low resource usage and scratches that RPG itch.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the atmosphere enhanced by the music, which complements the game well without becoming annoying over time.
- “I thought the music would get annoying after a while but it really just adds to the whole atmosphere of the game.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is subtle, with some users hoping for more varied activities, richer NPC personalities, and fun easter eggs to enhance the comedic elements. While enjoyable within its genre, the humor may feel limited due to repetitive gameplay and a lack of plot depth.
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development is praised for its strategic depth and nostalgic, old-school gameplay appeal, offering rewarding progression and engaging customization that adds to the overall fun.
- “If you like oldschool gameplay, loot surprises, strategic character development and just a lot of fun, this is for you.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the emotional experience somewhat hindered by repetitive screen tapping and limited inventory space, which can feel restrictive especially for new low-level characters. This mechanic may reduce overall engagement and satisfaction.
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is engaging and offers a high level of replayability, keeping players entertained through multiple playthroughs.