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Oaken

While there's nothing egregious about Oaken, it doesn't push the genre in any particular direction.
Oaken Game Cover
73%Game Brain Score
gameplay, graphics
replayability, grinding
75% User Score Based on 174 reviews
Critic Score 65%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

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Oaken Game Cover

About

Oaken is a single player role playing game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Laki Studios and was released on May 2, 2022. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

"Oaken is a single-player, fantasy turn-based strategy game with roguelite elements, set in a mystical world filled with spirits and Celtic vibes. Experience a hero-oriented campaign with deck management, as you navigate a randomly generated world map filled with levels, bosses, and events. Engage in unique, tactical battles on a hexagonal grid, with spell and spirit upgrades, offering both chill and challenging modes."

Genres & Tags
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Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
Oaken screenshot
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75%
Audience ScoreBased on 174 reviews
gameplay30 positive mentions
grinding3 negative mentions
  • The game features a charming art style and pleasant music, creating an engaging atmosphere.
  • Oaken offers a unique blend of tactical depth and roguelike elements, encouraging strategic decision-making and experimentation.
  • The gameplay mechanics, including unit positioning and resource management, provide a satisfying challenge that rewards thoughtful planning.
  • The game can become repetitive quickly, with limited variety in gameplay and mechanics, leading to a lack of long-term engagement.
  • The user interface is clunky and can lead to confusion, making it difficult to track unit abilities and actions during combat.
  • Some players find the difficulty curve steep and the early stages overwhelming, which may deter newcomers to the genre.
  • gameplay
    73 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay in Oaken is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating its tactical depth and unique mechanics, while others criticize it for being repetitive and lacking variety. The hexagonal grid system and card-battling elements offer strategic opportunities, but the execution can feel clunky and overwhelming at times, particularly for newcomers. Overall, while the game boasts charming visuals and a solid foundation, many reviewers feel it could benefit from more innovative mechanics and a refined user interface.

    • “The gameplay in Oaken, centered around a hexagonal grid, offers a blend of tactical depth and roguelike elements.”
    • “Very well done, from gameplay, smart mechanics, art, music, and feel; I'm a bit obsessed with it.”
    • “The gameplay is phenomenal, bringing its unique ideas mixed with the best mechanics from tactics games and roguelike games into something completely brand new.”
    • “Instead of offering different playstyles, tactical approaches, or fresh mechanics, Oaken locks you into the same loop over and over again.”
    • “No matter how beautifully the game is presented, the gameplay quickly becomes predictable and boring.”
    • “Regardless of which guide you choose at the start, you're going to be doing mostly the same thing, making the same decisions on the same fights, on the same map, with the same limited pool of, frankly, uninspired mechanics.”
  • graphics
    43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game are generally praised for their charming and unique art style, which many reviewers find appealing and reminiscent of titles like "Ori and the Blind Forest." However, there are notable criticisms regarding the user interface and visual clarity during gameplay, leading to confusion and misclicks. While the overall aesthetic is considered a strong point, some players feel that the in-game visuals do not fully match the quality of the artwork, detracting from the experience.

    • “The art style and theme (cartoony woodland spirits) helps set Oaken apart from other titles in the genre. People have compared the theme to the 'Ori' games - completely different gameplay, but I'd agree it's a similar theme/style.”
    • “A unique and complex combat system, catchy music, and satisfying graphics make Oaken a must-play for anyone who enjoys strategy games.”
    • “Both the visuals and the audio work very well together, making the world feel very alive.”
    • “Visually it looks nice (though a bit oversaturated) and the mechanics are functional, but the UI needs work and it was too easy to make mistakes from misclicks or confusing graphical representation.”
    • “5/10 right away you will notice Oakens combat animations and visuals are pretty lackluster (on the game board), which is sad because the actual models when previewed are generally pretty detailed.”
    • “The UI and visuals need a rework and a lot of the mechanics should be reworked.”
  • music
    29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game has received widespread praise for its quality and ability to enhance the overall experience, with many players describing it as fantastic, soothing, and immersive. While the soundtrack complements the charming visuals and gameplay, some users expressed a desire for a greater variety of tracks. Overall, the music is considered a standout feature that contributes significantly to the game's appeal.

    • “The art and music are just stellar, and complement a cute if simple story.”
    • “The music is fantastic as well; I only wish there was more of it.”
    • “The gameplay is intricate and deep, and the presentation and music are absolutely gorgeous.”
    • “Sometimes if an energetic high tempo song plays, it can get in the way of thinking through your next turns.”
    • “A slapping soundtrack.”
    • “Behind pleasant, joyful art design and atmospheric music, there are neat game systems that create a very engaging turn-based roguelike.”
  • story
    22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is generally perceived as simplistic and lacking depth, with many players expressing a desire for a more linear and well-crafted narrative. While the visuals and music are praised for their quality, the story often feels tacked on and unengaging, leading to a mixed reception overall. Some players appreciate the light humor and optional quests, but many feel that the narrative could benefit from more substantial development and clearer integration with gameplay.

    • “The art and music are just stellar, and complement a cute if simple story.”
    • “The game is fun, the optional objectives add some vibrancy, the units are fun, music's great, it has little story beats, I enjoyed it right to the end!”
    • “The game is also so beautiful, I love the environment and story although it is not the kind of story that is wordy and demanding of your attention.”
    • “The game features no proper level design or game/story flow/plot, as they opted to try to use samey repetitive procgen algorithms as a substitute for adding such content to the game, to avoid doing the important job of level/map design.”
    • “When it comes to cons: the story is very rudimentary if not a bit bland and the game could use some improvements in front-loading information about its systems.”
    • “The story is meh, but the mechanics are very satisfying.”
  • replayability
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers significant replayability through its branching map system, diverse units, and various play styles, encouraging players to experiment with different strategies. Players can increase difficulty and unlock new content, enhancing the replay value, especially for those who enjoy the gameplay. As a roguelike, it inherently supports multiple playthroughs, making each run feel fresh and engaging.

    • “The branching map system adds a layer of replayability, encouraging players to experiment with different routes and strategies.”
    • “The game also rewards thinking ahead and experimenting with its many different units and play styles - there are many things to tinker with here, and per usual for the genre, there is a significant amount of replayability to be had.”
    • “Finally, I like that this game has very high replay value, especially since the story isn't all in your face.”
    • “Quite replayable if you like it after the first hour, as each run after you can up the difficulty and give yourself some buffs as well.”
    • “So it can be cleared in a few hours (with all side objectives cleared), however, there is a lot of replayability and unlockables.”
    • “But it is a roguelike, so replayability is inherent to a certain extent, and I think what is already there is very fun.”
  • grinding
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players find the grinding aspect of the upgrade system to be tedious and unengaging, with many describing the upgrades as lacking excitement and creativity.

    • “The upgrade system is not only grindy, but the upgrades themselves are extremely boring.”
    • “Grinding feels like a chore rather than an engaging part of the game.”
    • “The repetitive nature of grinding makes it hard to stay motivated to play.”
  • optimization
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is well-optimized, running smoothly without any reported bugs, contributing to a seamless gaming experience.

    • “The game runs smoothly; I encountered zero bugs.”
    • “The optimization is top-notch, making for a seamless gaming experience.”
    • “I appreciate how well-optimized the game is; it never lags or stutters.”
  • atmosphere
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is characterized by a unique visual style inspired by ancient Celtic themes, complemented by pleasant art design and atmospheric music. This enchanting environment enhances the engaging gameplay of the tactical turn-based strategy and roguelike elements.

    • “Tactical turn-based strategy and roguelike with a unique visual style and the magical atmosphere of the ancient Celts.”
    • “Behind the pleasant, joyful art design and atmospheric music, there are neat game systems that create a very engaging turn-based roguelike.”
  • humor
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game features a light touch of humor woven into its narrative, enhancing the overall user experience without overshadowing its strategic elements. Players appreciate the balance between gameplay mechanics and comedic moments, which adds charm to the game.

    • “The UI is really intuitive, and there's a little bit of story and humor sprinkled throughout the game. The devs really know how to tailor a proper user experience for a strategy/card game/tactics game, whatever you want to call this.”
  • stability
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game exhibits some minor bugs, which is typical for an early-access title; however, none of these issues significantly impact gameplay.

    • “It's a little buggy, but that's to be expected in an early-access game, and none of the bugs are game-breaking.”
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65%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews
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Frequently Asked Questions

Oaken is a role playing game with fantasy theme.

Oaken is available on Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5 and others.

Oaken was released on May 2, 2022.

Oaken was developed by Laki Studios.

Oaken has received mostly positive reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its replayability.

Oaken is a single player game.

Similar games include Gordian Quest, Trials of Fire, Hadean Tactics, Roguebook, Meteorfall: Krumit's Tale and others.