Monsters' Den Chronicles
- August 8, 2019
- Monstrum
- 10h median play time
Get on Steam"Monsters' Den Chronicles" is a turn-based dungeon crawler RPG where players manage a party of heroes, exploring dungeons filled with loot and enemies. The game features a campaign mode with multiple chapters, as well as a custom dungeon generator for endless replayability. Players can upgrade their heroes' skills and equipment, and must use strategy and resource management to survive against tougher and tougher foes.
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Chronicles offers a nostalgic experience with improved graphics and atmosphere compared to its predecessors, making it a fun trip down memory lane for fans of dungeon crawlers.
- The game features a solid turn-based combat system with a variety of classes and subclasses, allowing for diverse team compositions and strategies.
- With procedurally generated dungeons and multiple campaigns, the game provides good replayability and a satisfying loot system.
- The gameplay can become repetitive and lacks depth, with many battles feeling similar and reliant on the same strategies.
- Inventory management is cumbersome due to limited space and sorting options, making it tedious to equip and manage loot.
- The story is minimal and often uninspiring, which may leave players wanting more narrative depth in their dungeon-crawling experience.
- story28 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The story in this dungeon crawler is described as minimal and often uninspiring, serving primarily as a backdrop for gameplay rather than a compelling narrative. While there are some interesting elements and lore provided through item descriptions, many players find the overall plot to be repetitive and lacking depth, making the experience feel stale over time. Despite some improvements over previous titles, the storyline remains a weak point for the game.
“So, there is a lot more story than in the preceding games.”
“Outside of combat, the acts each have an interesting story, and the epic item descriptions give some lore about the game's world.”
“I liked the story and the lore, and collecting all the different items for different builds.”
“Nothing special to write home about as there is almost no story at all.”
“The story is really a barebone thing that is totally uninteresting and uninspiring.”
“Gameplay is simple and solid, but without a meaningful story, everything becomes old very, very fast.”
- gameplay26 mentions
- 8 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by simple and repetitive mechanics that, while solid, lack depth and innovation. Players may find the experience becomes monotonous quickly due to a lack of meaningful story and grindy achievements that can lead to frustration, especially if luck plays a significant role in progression. Overall, it resembles a more forgiving version of "Darkest Dungeon," but the repetitive nature and potential for save issues detract from the enjoyment.
“Gameplay-wise, think a slightly more forgiving and looty Darkest Dungeon and you're not too far off!”
“+ it's not very deep mechanically, but also doesn't pretend to be.”
“Gameplay is simple and solid, but without a meaningful story, everything becomes old very, very fast.”
“Achievements are needlessly grindy, and will force anyone looking to complete them to play well beyond the time any fun can be had. Some achievements are heavily random dependent: if you are unlucky, it could take a lot of gameplay before you are able to get all the items necessary to constitute a full set of a given type of armor.”
“There is little to no innovation in mechanics.”
- grinding22 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and often boring, particularly due to the limited item sorting options and the need to manually sift through equipment. While grinding is necessary for acquiring money and unlocking market levels, it can feel excessive, especially when tied to achievements that require significant time investment and are heavily reliant on random chance. Some players have discovered strategies to ease the grind, but overall, the experience can detract from the enjoyment of the game.
“Achievements are needlessly grindy, and will force anyone looking to complete them to play well beyond the time any fun can be had. Some achievements are heavily random dependent: if you are unlucky, it could take a lot of gameplay before you are able to get, say, all the items necessary to constitute a full set of a given type of armor.”
“Grinding is not for the experience, because the enemies scale with your levels, but for money.”
“Grindy and boring.”
- graphics18 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The graphics in *Monster's Den: Chronicles* have received a significant overhaul compared to its predecessors, offering improved visuals and atmosphere. However, while some players appreciate the updated graphics, others feel that the changes detract from the original's simple aesthetic, resulting in a hybrid style that doesn't fully succeed. Overall, the graphics are seen as better than the previous titles, but the game still feels repetitive and lacks substantial gameplay improvements.
“The biggest change that *Monster’s Den: Chronicles* brought with it was the visuals; they have received a complete overhaul.”
“It has somewhat better graphics than the first game, but it also has a ton of quality of life additions.”
“Very similar to the first game, with updated graphics and quality of life improvements.”
“I can say for sure that this is the weakest title in the franchise, although it has better graphics than the previous two.”
“The only 'improvements' that seem to have been made between the original Monster's Den and Monster's Den Chronicles are purely graphical, and not for the better.”
“They flew away from the simple aesthetic of the first game and tried to be an advanced version, almost 3D-like, but fail miserably because it is a hybrid.”
- replayability8 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
Overall, the game offers significant replayability through various team combinations, difficulty levels, and achievement hunting, appealing to players who enjoy experimenting. However, some users feel that the game ends too soon, which can detract from the overall replay experience.
“I especially enjoy the replayability and higher difficulties.”
“Lots of replayability, if you want to try different team combos, difficulty modes, achievement hunting (most are in-game).”
“There is one unfortunate factor that gimps the replayability.”
“That's both a good and bad thing; good for replayability, and bad because it ends too soon!”
- music6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The music in the game has been described as unremarkable and repetitive, largely reusing the soundtrack from its predecessor, "Book of Dread." While there may be a few new tracks, the overall experience can feel stale, especially for players familiar with the earlier game, as it primarily features combat and boss music.
“There might be a few new tracks, but I was not inclined to look too deeply into it since I think that the feeling that it is the exact same OST illustrates my problem with it.”
“So, there is mainly combat music and a boss track. It grows repetitive just playing Chronicles, but if you have already played the previous game, then it might be boring from the get-go.”
- atmosphere4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The atmosphere in the game is significantly improved compared to its predecessor, featuring enhanced graphics and more immersive dungeons. The text elements contribute effectively to the creepy ambiance, providing engaging lore and clear objectives that enrich the overall experience.
“It is basically 1:1 the previous game but with better atmosphere, graphics, and dungeons.”
“The text is pretty good, generally better than I had expected. It gives you some creepy atmosphere, lore, as well as your objective for the floor in a few short lines, and that is pretty good.”
“However, it is worth mentioning that the text is pretty good, generally better than I had expected. It gives you some creepy atmosphere, lore, as well as your objective for the floor in a few short lines, and that is pretty good.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game suffers from poor optimization, likely due to its origins as a browser game, resulting in significant frame rate drops and stutters during certain animations.
