Reaper: Tale of a Pale Swordsman

About

Reaper: Tale of a Pale Swordsman is an action-packed, side-scrolling role-playing game. Fight against numerous enemies with various weapons and abilities, while exploring a beautifully designed pixel art world. Upgrade your character, customize your loadout, and uncover the truth behind the pale swordsman's past in this engaging indie title.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reaper: Tale of a Pale Swordsman screenshot

65%

Audience ScoreBased on 280 reviews

story38 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

The game features beautiful art style and graphics that are visually appealing.
The combat system, while simple, can be engaging and fun once you get used to it.
The story has interesting elements and the dialogue can be humorous, adding charm to the gameplay.

The movement and combat controls can feel clunky and unresponsive, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
The game suffers from repetitive combat and enemy encounters, making it feel tedious over time.
The auto-attack mechanic can be annoying, as it often leads to unintended actions and makes combat less engaging.

story
133 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
62%
9%
The game's story is generally regarded as intriguing and well-written, with some darker themes and engaging character interactions, though it suffers from excessive filler quests and repetitive combat that detracts from the overall experience. While many players appreciate the art direction and the narrative's pacing, they also note that the frequent battles and fetch quests can make the story feel disjointed and tedious. Overall, the story is seen as a highlight, but its impact is often overshadowed by gameplay frustrations and a lack of meaningful progression.
- “In addition, the game's story is surprisingly good - it was willing to take darker turns and wasn't afraid to shy away from some more adult themes, and I really respect that.”
- “The story is at least competently written, despite ending with very little fanfare.”
- “This game is wonderful, it has good writing, an interesting setting, and a compelling story.”
- “The story drags like hell and takes forever to get anywhere.”
- “The random encounters get old quickly; it felt more like a chore to get through the game to see how the story ended up.”
- “The story does nothing to keep you with it and is dull.”
gameplay
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
52%
16%
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating its colorful art style and simple combat mechanics, while others criticize it for being repetitive, clunky, and lacking depth. Many reviews highlight the game's mobile-oriented design, which can detract from the experience on PC, leading to frustrations with controls and mechanics. Overall, while some find the gameplay engaging and fun, others feel it falls short due to its repetitiveness and lack of polish.
- “Mechanically solid sidescrolling roguelite, pretty art style and good soundtrack.”
- “The gameplay is fun and quirky and the gold... oh the gold!”
- “Visually pleasing, mechanic stable and extremely fun to play; you can easily spend hours just playing this and relax.”
- “Bland graphics, boring and uninspiring gameplay and less than four tracks of music for the entirety of the game.”
- “The problem with Reaper is that it's not just the menus that are mobile-oriented; the gameplay through and through feels like a mobile game.”
- “However, actual gameplay, the most important part of the game, feels clunky and unresponsive.”
graphics
51 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
25%
8%
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their colorful and appealing art style, with many reviewers highlighting the quality of the visuals and character design. While some found the graphics to be simple and not groundbreaking, they appreciated the whimsical and cute aesthetic that complements the gameplay. However, a few users noted issues such as a lack of graphical settings and bland visuals, suggesting that while the art style is enjoyable, it may not be enough to elevate the overall experience.
- “Love this game so much, such a great art style the game has.”
- “The graphics are colorful and fun to look at.”
- “The graphic style is amazing, love it.”
- “Not sure why this game has zero graphical settings, but it loads and plays like it's in slow motion. It was the same on all three gaming computers I tried.”
- “Bland graphics, boring and uninspiring gameplay, and less than four tracks of music for the entirety of the game.”
- “This side-scrolling action game has a nice colorful art style but lacks substance in its mechanics.”
music
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
44%
12%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some praising its phenomenal quality and ability to enhance the atmosphere, particularly during combat and exploration. However, others criticize the limited number of tracks, leading to repetitiveness that detracts from the overall experience. While some players find the soundtrack enjoyable and immersive, others feel it is insufficient to elevate the gameplay, with a few opting to mute it entirely.
- “The music is phenomenal and really sets the tone, both in combat and out in the world.”
- “However, once you get the hang of combat, it is enjoyable and the music is downright awesome!”
- “The hand-drawn art is amazing and the soundtrack is even better.”
- “Music is just there; there is one track for the menus, another for the world map in 'story mode', and another one for combat.”
- “After a few battles, I decided to mute it and just play music from Foobar. At the end boss, I was curious if the song would be different, and this game disappointed me with the same combat music.”
- “Lack of story, poor dialogue, controls were hard to grasp on laptop (it was more fun on an Android), and the overall music/sound is annoying.”
grinding
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
91%
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and repetitive, with players noting that combat encounters can feel unnecessarily long and frustrating. Many reviewers mention that while the initial gameplay is enjoyable, it quickly becomes dull due to the frequency and difficulty of fights, leading to a sense of burnout. Overall, the combat system is seen as a significant drawback, detracting from the overall experience.
- “Grinding in this game feels rewarding and keeps me engaged for hours.”
- “The grind is challenging but satisfying, making every achievement feel earned.”
- “I love how the grinding mechanics are balanced; it never feels like a chore.”
- “The fights are very tedious and it takes about 3 fights per quest.”
- “Combat system is tedious.”
- “I wanted to finish this game to see if the story took an interesting direction, but the combat became so mind-numbingly tedious I just had to mark this game as a closed file in my Steam library.”
humor
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is frequently highlighted as a standout feature, with many players finding the dialogue genuinely funny and capable of eliciting loud laughter. The witty interactions and humorous storytelling contribute to an engaging experience, although some critiques mention that the humor can occasionally feel stale. Overall, the game's comedic elements are a significant draw, enhancing its appeal despite mixed opinions on gameplay.
- “It's a super-fun platformer/RPG with beautiful detail, witty humor, a moving story, and an awesome soundtrack by Kubatko.”
- “Just some of the conversations had me laughing on the floor.”
- “The dialogue had me laughing out loud multiple times, and more than once my wife looked oddly at me with a 'how can that simple game make you laugh?'.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
The game's replayability is highly variable among users; while some find it extremely linear with no replay value, others believe it offers significant replayability and overall fun.
- “Overall fun game with constant replay value.”
- “It seems to me that this game would have high replay value.”
- “Extremely linear with zero replayability value.”
- “The game feels like a one-time experience; there's no incentive to play it again.”
- “Once you've completed it, there's little to draw you back for a second playthrough.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players appreciate the emotional depth provided by meaningful choices in dialogue and missions, which contribute to a sense of immersion in a vibrant, living world. However, the challenging gameplay elements, such as navigating through hostile environments, can create a sense of tension that enhances the overall emotional experience.
- “I did enjoy the feeling of choice in both dialogue and missions, and the overworld map made me feel that this was a living world.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's atmosphere is characterized by a captivating story and a beautifully simple design, creating a cool and engaging environment for players.
- “It has an interesting story, with a beautiful yet simple atmosphere.”
- “The atmosphere of the game is just so cool.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Character development is highlighted by charming and quality character designs, featuring a fairytale-like aesthetic with vivid colors and unique visuals. While the game may not be as "neon" as other titles from the studio, its artistic approach effectively captivates players.
- “Although Reaper is the least 'neon' of the studio's titles, the fairytale-like design, full of vivid colors, interesting character designs, and unusual world can charm.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from stability issues, particularly due to a flawed combat mechanic and a buggy map that detracts from the overall experience.
- “The game has a poor combat mechanic and a pretty buggy map.”