Runers

Runers offers a truly enjoyable experience, with a good marriage of standard roguelike mechanics expanded by the real-time top-down shooter gameplay dynamic and by the spell crafting system. It offers enough variety to keep things fresh, but not enough to make it truly stand out from the ever-increasing crowd of roguelikes out there. The combat is pretty spammy, and your progression is conditioned by luck and requires a lot of repetition. The rune combining system is a really nice feature, enabling you to mix and match your favorite effects to get spells custom-tailored to your preferred play style, and this experimentation is probably the most fun activity in the whole game.

81%Game Brain Score

gameplay, music

graphics, grinding

81% User Score Based on 212 reviews

Critic Score 75%Based on 4 reviews

Platforms

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About

"Runers" is a fantasy shooter game with local multi-player option for up to 2 players. It's a rogue-like dungeon shooter with top-down perspective, where you gather Runes to create unique spells and explore procedurally generated floors. The game offers customization and discovery with various playing styles, leveling up, and random traits to unlock, but beware, death ends the playthrough.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

81%

Audience ScoreBased on 212 reviews

gameplay23 positive mentions

graphics8 negative mentions

The spell crafting system is innovative and allows for a vast number of unique spells, providing a high level of customization and experimentation.
The game offers a significant amount of replayability with various character classes, races, and random dungeon layouts, keeping each run fresh and engaging.
The fast-paced combat and challenging enemy encounters create an adrenaline-fueled experience that encourages players to improve their skills and strategies.

The game suffers from technical issues, including frequent crashes and bugs that can disrupt gameplay and lead to frustration.
The graphics and sound design are considered subpar by some players, lacking polish and making the game feel less visually appealing.
The reliance on RNG for rune and combiner drops can lead to frustrating runs where players feel they have no control over their progress.

gameplay
73 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
64%
4%
The gameplay of "Runers" is characterized by its engaging twin-stick shooting mechanics and a unique spell combination system that encourages exploration and experimentation. Players appreciate the depth of customization and the challenge presented by various enemies and spells, although some find the gameplay can become repetitive and lacks polish in certain areas. Overall, the game offers a solid and addictive experience, particularly for those who enjoy roguelike elements and spell discovery.
- “The mechanics are solid, the gameplay loop really hooks you in, and it's so much fun to discover spells, especially with a friend!”
- “It's an excellent mechanic that works well, and gives you ever more things to do with all of those runes you'll be filling your inventory with.”
- “The gameplay is fun, and very random.”
- “I have put 6+ hours into this game and I've combined maybe 2 spells total, and those I had to look up because I didn't want to waste runes (well, not the first one because I didn't know about the combiner mechanic the first time).”
- “Thought it would be fun, but I don't feel much difference nor excitement discovering new magics, and the gameplay itself is pretty basic and infested. I felt like it's more important to run around mindlessly than think of any strategy to fight anything.”
- “The graphics, animations, music, and gameplay feel like a flash game or run-of-the-mill dungeon crawler created by some guy in the late 90s at Game Maker because it's his first 'real game'.”
graphics
39 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
67%
21%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players criticizing them as outdated, simplistic, and lacking charm, often comparing them to low-quality flash games. While some appreciate the basic pixel art style and find it charming in a retro way, the overall consensus is that the visuals are a significant drawback, detracting from the game's potential despite its enjoyable gameplay mechanics. Players who prioritize graphics may find this game unappealing, while those who focus on gameplay may overlook the aesthetic shortcomings.
- “The visuals, sounds, and GUI design are spot on and have a very DIY feel that is endearingly telling of a small dev team crafting a hidden gem that will be pined over by loyalists for decades to come.”
- “While the general aesthetic may be considered average, the particle effects are absolutely gorgeous and the enemies are well designed.”
- “On the surface, Runers may seem slightly rough around the edges in terms of aesthetics, with its art and sound effects having a very hand-made and appropriately gritty quality to them.”
- “Graphically it could use some work and there are quite a few bugs that cause me to crash.”
- “The graphics are bad.”
- “The graphics, animations, music and gameplay feels like a flash-game or run-of-the-mill dungeon crawler created by some guy in the late 90s at game maker because it's his first 'real game'.”
music
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
57%
11%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its atmospheric and beautiful qualities that enhance the gameplay experience, while others find it forgettable or too quiet. Despite the availability of a purchasable soundtrack, many users express disappointment that the in-game music does not stand out or significantly impact their experience. Overall, while the soundtrack has its fans, it seems to lack the memorability and prominence that some players expected.
- “Lgk blew my mind on this one, great game, better soundtrack, DLC is worth every penny!”
- “The music is completely beautiful, atmospheric, and brilliant.”
- “The soundtrack is pretty good, and there seems to be unique death/spell sounds so you aren’t just hearing that one sound over and over.”
- “You can buy the soundtrack from Steam, but I don't remember one single track, so I don't know why you would.”
- “The mechanics are interesting, the game is challenging, and as I came to the store page to write this review, I was thinking to myself, I wish the soundtrack was DLC.”
- “A gripe worth mentioning here is the forgettable music, which ranges from alien space tunes while fighting in old ruins to bass-heavy tunes in the depths of hell.”
replayability
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54%
35%
12%
The game boasts significant replayability, driven by its extensive variety of spells, classes, and random level generation, allowing players to explore numerous combinations and strategies. With 285 spells to discover and diverse character options, players can continually find new experiences, making each run feel fresh and engaging. Overall, the game's mechanics and customization options contribute to a high replay value, appealing to fans of rogue-likes.
- “They weren't kidding about the number of unique spells and the variety of classes & races available, and the game definitely has replayability thanks to the random generation of floors and the different traits available on each level up.”
- “Fantastic game! Interesting mechanics, devilishly challenging gameplay, tons of replayability with all the character options and spell combinations. Great soundtrack, just loads I like about this game.”
- “I actually think this is as solid a game as you can get from an indie developer; gameplay is fun, replay value is insane, and there is always something new to explore.”
- “Challenging to find good combinations that then can make it through to the end, and replayable by trying for a different build.”
- “The combinations of those and your starting spell tends to define a run, for better or worse, lending replayability.”
- “Back to this specific game, the replayability factor is huge, due to the previously mentioned customization options, as well as the leaderboards.”
grinding
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often describing it as a painful slog due to the lengthy processes required to unlock spells and level up. While some appreciate the grind as part of the roguelike experience, many others criticize it for being complicated and unrewarding, leading to a negative overall impression of the game.
- “The combination of a grindy game with lots of disappointing spells and constant crashes makes this game terrible, and you should avoid it even if you are a fan of rogue-likes.”
- “The primitive art style, tedious rune gathering, and the frankly poor level-up bonuses make the game a painful, unrewarding slog.”
- “It is tedious, complicated, and as far from intuitive as you can get without just outright lying to you about how to play the game.”
story
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The game's story is minimal and lacks depth, focusing instead on a score-attack gameplay style where players collect items and survive rather than following a traditional narrative. While there is a loose premise involving collecting flowers and seeking a book of secrets, the overall plot feels incomplete and secondary to the action-oriented gameplay. Players have noted that the story seems to end abruptly at level 10, leaving them questioning if further levels would provide more narrative content.
- “Actually, the goal might as well be to collect flowers for the kingdom of fairies whilst searching for the book of secrets that reveals the actual story.”
- “Obviously, story isn’t important, and the whole point is that you decimate your way through the floors while hopefully putting together some deadly spells to further decimate.”
- “With cheats, I found it ends at level 10... seemingly prematurely, without finishing the game's storyline. Maybe this is because I've only tried the 1st and 2nd difficulty levels; maybe the 3rd, 4th, and 5th will go beyond level 10?”
- “There's no drawn-out plot or complicated goals present here; instead, the game takes a more score-attack oriented approach, testing the player's ability to survive and make the best use of their findings.”
- “Obviously, story isn’t important, and the whole point is that you decimate your way through the floors while hopefully putting together some deadly spells to further decimate and so forth.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is derived from its poor sound design, which can be amusing at first but ultimately becomes unbearable during gameplay. Additionally, players find themselves laughing at previously frustrating enemies once they become familiar with their patterns, adding a lighthearted element to the challenge.
- “Once you get to know the majority of the mob types, you will find yourself laughing in the face of enemies that you used to curse for their ridiculous difficulty!”
- “It's almost funny, actually.”
- “The sound design in this game is so bad that it's funny, until you're actually playing it and have to turn off the audio because it's hurting your ears.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its beautiful and atmospheric music, which significantly enhances the overall experience. The soundtrack is described as light and wonderful, contributing greatly to the immersive quality of the dungeons.
- “The music is completely beautiful, atmospheric, and brilliant.”
- “The soundtrack (which is also available for purchase on Steam) is light and wonderful, and adds so much to the atmosphere of the dungeon you're in.”
- “The atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking the depth needed to immerse players in the game world.”
- “Despite the potential for a rich environment, the atmosphere is often dull and fails to evoke any real emotion.”
- “The game’s atmosphere is marred by repetitive visuals and sound design that do little to enhance the overall experience.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game has been criticized for being poor, with users reporting numerous bugs and glitches that detract from the overall experience. Some features are deemed ineffective and contribute to the game's instability.
- “The game is butter-faced, bad, and buggy.”
- “Some perks are just useless and buggy.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's optimization is mixed; while it generally runs smoothly with minimal crashes, some users report poor performance even in low settings. Overall, the experience can vary significantly depending on individual system configurations.
- “It runs smoothly, and it only crashed once in several hours. I was able to return to the level I was on after restarting, so no real harm done.”
- “The game is poorly optimized, even in low performance mode.”