Moonscars

77%
Game Brain Score Based on 451 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
Moonscars Game Cover
Moonscars is a standout example of what a 2D souls-like should be. From its beautifully atmospheric world, exceptional animations, to its fluid and gratifying combat, makes Moonscars an absolute pleasure to play. A best in class 2D souls-like.
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"Moonscars is a single-player Hack and Slash game with exceptional mechanics, masterful graphics, and delightful music, but has lots of grinding and is very buggy. As the clayborne warrior Grey Irma, players battle relentless darkness in a painterly 2D world, mastering new abilities to progress and uncovering truths about their existence. Explore shadows, sharpen combat skills, and unearth a dark fantasy tale in this atmospheric adventure."

  • Nintendo Switch
  • PC
  • Play​station 4
  • Play​station 5
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Play​Station
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

77%
Audience ScoreBased on 451 reviews
story76 positive mentions
grinding15 negative mentions
  • Moonscars features stunning pixel art and a captivating atmosphere that immerses players in its dark universe.
  • The combat system is fluid and satisfying, with a rewarding parry mechanic that encourages skillful play.
  • The game offers a unique blend of roguelike elements and metroidvania exploration, providing a fresh take on the genre.
  • The story can be confusing and cryptic, making it difficult for players to fully engage with the narrative.
  • Some gameplay mechanics, such as the Moonhunger system, can feel overly punishing and detract from the overall experience.
  • There are occasional bugs and technical issues that can disrupt gameplay, including soft locks and performance drops.
  • story222 mentions

    The story of "Moonscars" is characterized by its cryptic and esoteric nature, often leaving players feeling lost or confused, reminiscent of the storytelling style found in Souls-like games. While some players appreciate the intriguing themes and character depth, many criticize the narrative for being poorly conveyed and lacking coherence, making it difficult to engage with the plot. Overall, the story is seen as a mixed bag, with potential that is often overshadowed by its convoluted execution.

    • “In Moonscars, you play as Grey Irma, a warrior made of clay on a mission to find her creator, the sculptor.”
    • “The story is intriguing, the combat system is fun, the graphics are gorgeous, and it’s difficult enough to keep things interesting.”
    • “The story is compelling and the characters and lore are interesting.”
    • “The story is confusing, not interesting, and you quickly want to dismiss it because it's not clear and you don't understand what NPCs are talking about most of the time.”
    • “The story is very intentionally vague and esoteric, a trope that is honestly getting more and more tired the more I see it used.”
    • “The story is just far too poorly told for me to care about any of the story or the characters.”
  • gameplay174 mentions

    The gameplay in Moonscars is characterized by its intuitive mechanics and satisfying combat, though it can become repetitive over time. Players appreciate the unique blend of roguelike elements and metroidvania features, but some mechanics, such as the moonhunger and doppelganger systems, are seen as overly punishing or confusing. Overall, while the game offers a solid experience with beautiful visuals and engaging combat, it suffers from performance issues and a lack of clarity in its mechanics.

    • “Moonscars has intuitive game mechanics that don't take long to get the hang of.”
    • “The gameplay was solid, the parry was initially difficult to figure out, but rewarding.”
    • “Great visual style and music, really satisfying gameplay.”
    • “The game has performance issues; every time I started the game, after walking around a bit, the game suddenly stopped, the screen became frozen, and after 3 seconds it concluded (it happened often in the same gameplay and other times).”
    • “The gameplay overall is a bit janky.”
    • “The parry mechanic is garbage; it seems to work the way it should 30% of the time.”
  • graphics145 mentions

    The graphics of the game are a mixed bag, with many praising its stunning art style and fluid animations, often described as a beautiful blend of gothic horror and pixel art. However, some players find the overall aesthetic too grimdark and colorless, leading to a monotonous visual experience. While the visuals effectively set a dark and immersive atmosphere, they can sometimes obscure gameplay elements, and the lack of variety in environments has been noted as a drawback.

    • “The art style is a beautiful blend of gothic horror and claymation nightmares.”
    • “The main one, which is also the reason why the game got a decent amount of attention, is its absolutely gorgeous art style.”
    • “The visuals, animations, and music are great.”
    • “The aesthetics, worldbuilding, and atmosphere are terrible; they undermine everything else: the combat is okay, but the enemies look bad; the world looks the same in every area; and the story is dull, as I couldn't care about any character or their motives.”
    • “The art style is neat, but sometimes it's a little too smeared or messy in appearance, and I feel like some potential details in scenery can get lost.”
    • “There's no reason for it to run this badly when it's only giving mediocre 2D graphics.”
  • music80 mentions

    The music in Moonscars is generally praised for its atmospheric and immersive qualities, effectively complementing the game's dark and gloomy aesthetic. While many reviewers appreciate the soundtrack's ability to enhance the overall experience, some find it lacking in memorability and uniqueness, with a few describing it as muted or forgettable. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's ambiance, though opinions vary on its standout moments and overall impact.

    • “However, the art, design, and music is where Moonscars truly excels - effectively setting the tone and immersing the player into its universe.”
    • “The music is very atmospheric and fits each area very well.”
    • “Beautiful pixel art, great atmospheric soundtrack, very interesting and captivating story, and great metroidvania gameplay.”
    • “Most of the music and locations aren't overly unique.”
    • “The soundtrack was a disappointment.”
    • “The music is so muted and ambient you'll never notice any of it.”
  • atmosphere59 mentions

    The atmosphere in the game is widely praised for its dark, immersive quality, enhanced by a striking art style and a fitting soundtrack that deepens the experience. Many reviewers highlight the effective use of color palettes and sound design to create a moody ambiance that complements the gameplay, while some note that the atmosphere can overshadow other elements like story and character development. Overall, the game's atmosphere is considered one of its strongest aspects, contributing significantly to its appeal.

    • “The atmosphere and art style is dark and gritty, the action feels heavy and impactful, the enemies are punishing but fair, exploring the map is rewarding... honestly, I can't say enough about this game.”
    • “The ambiance of the game together with its art, focusing on a three-color palette (black, white, and blood), creates a very interesting atmosphere that matches the lore of the game's region - a desolated land where the fierce but gentle gaze of the moon lies eternal, a result of hunger, war, and death.”
    • “The atmosphere is insane; it actually creeps you out in certain moments with its use of sounds and silences.”
    • “The aesthetics, worldbuilding, and atmosphere are terrible; they undermine everything else: the combat is okay, but the enemies look bad; the world looks the same in every area; and the story is dull, as I couldn't care about any character or their motives.”
    • “It is gloomy, it is dark, and it intentionally looks ambiguous and low quality to create an atmosphere where the beings in the game have recognizable shapes but are… off in a creepy way.”
    • “The grim atmosphere; deep lore elements; game mechanics reminiscent of the vastly superior Blasphemous; large map to explore; all sorts of things I should like.”
  • grinding15 mentions

    Players have mixed feelings about the grinding aspect of the game. While some find the farming for achievements and upgrades enjoyable and not overly tedious, others describe certain elements, like repetitive boss fights and backtracking for collectibles, as frustrating and time-wasting. Overall, the experience can feel grindy at times, but it varies significantly depending on individual playstyles and objectives.

    • “I think the word 'tedious' sums up this game quite nicely as this game actively wastes your time.”
    • “Not only is it annoying and tedious, but it dramatically slows things down for basically no reason.”
    • “There's one that requires you to canvas the entire map for 77 collectible items, but they only show up after a certain point in the game and when a certain condition is met, which makes it extra annoying and you will have to do a lot of tedious backtracking if you choose to try to gather them all.”
  • stability10 mentions

    The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing significant bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay, such as parry issues and quest-related problems. However, others report a smoother experience, particularly after recent updates, with minimal glitches encountered. Overall, while some users enjoy a stable experience, many still face frustrating technical issues.

    • “Steam Deck users report that the game runs great on the device.”
    • “The game maintains a stable frame rate, providing a smooth experience.”
    • “I haven't encountered any crashes or bugs, which speaks volumes about its stability.”
    • “I was really looking forward to this... unfortunately, the game is still buggy from the start, at least for me.”
    • “Game is great but buggy as hell.”
    • “Random tearing or screen freezes made me fail difficult jumps and I had to backtrack.”
  • optimization9 mentions

    Overall, the game's optimization is mixed; while some players report smooth performance with minimal issues, others experience frequent stuttering and crashes, particularly during combat. Many users hope for future patches to address these technical problems and improve the overall experience.

    • “The game runs smoothly.”
    • “Performance was great apart from the odd stutter here and there.”
    • “Outside of a few seconds after loading in, I had 0 performance issues.”
    • “The game has performance issues; every time I started the game, after walking around a bit, the game suddenly stopped, the screen became frozen, and after 3 seconds it crashed (this happened often in the same gameplay and other times).”
    • “Constant stuttering in a game where you have to parry enemy attacks.”
    • “The technical issues also hamper the experience; it's not so much bugs as it is frequent stuttering which can happen at any time, but most often during combat.”
  • humor3 mentions

    The humor in the game is highlighted by the irony of easily unlocking overpowered amulets early on, rendering the amulet hunting aspect somewhat pointless. Additionally, the contrast between the game's perceived difficulty and the actual ease of the final bosses adds a comedic layer, particularly in response to players' frustrations.

    • “A few of the amulets here (your itemization) are strictly overpowered compared to other amulets, and the funny thing is that you unlock them pretty much straight off the bat, which makes amulet hunting pretty much redundant.”
    • “Hilariously, the bad reviews seem to be a 'get good' issue.”
    • “Funny enough, the last few bosses are actually pretty easy.”
  • replayability3 mentions

    The game is generally regarded as a solid experience, but it suffers from a lack of replayability, with many users noting that it offers little incentive to play again after the initial experience.

    • “Overall a great experience, despite the fact that its replayability value is almost null.”
    • “I bought this on sale and I'd say it's worth that money; solid 6.7/10 game that has no replayability.”
  • character development2 mentions

    While the game excels in visual aesthetics and character design, it lacks accompanying music, which may detract from the overall immersive experience. The strong visual elements contribute positively to the character development, but the absence of an auditory backdrop leaves a gap in emotional engagement.

    • “The character development feels shallow and lacks depth, making it hard to connect with the protagonists.”
    • “I was disappointed by the lack of meaningful choices that impact character growth throughout the game.”
    • “The characters seem one-dimensional, and their arcs don't evolve in a satisfying way.”
  • emotional2 mentions

    Players find emotional resonance in Grey Irma's character, who serves as an effective surrogate, allowing them to engage deeply with the game's intricate worldbuilding. However, frustrations with navigation and progress loss due to bugs can detract from the overall emotional experience.

    • “Grey Irma as a character works really well as a player surrogate. The excuse for discovering bits and pieces of the fairly convoluted worldbuilding through dialogue and events made me feel like I was a bit of an archaeologist or a detective in a crime scene.”
  • monetization1 mentions

    The monetization strategy includes the presence of ads, which some users find excessive or unnecessary.

    • “Spawn ads because why not?”
    • “The monetization strategy feels overly aggressive and detracts from the overall experience.”
    • “It's frustrating to see so many paywalls in a game that could be enjoyable without them.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

68% average critic score

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Play time

9hMedian play time
12hAverage play time
3-24hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 3 analyzed playthroughs

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