Shades of Rayna

About

Shades of Rayna is a single player role playing game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by QuickSave and was released on July 29, 2025. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Shades of Rayna is a free to play and early access ARPG with lots of loot and endless gameplay content.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

61%

Audience ScoreBased on 132 reviews

gameplay8 positive mentions

grinding16 negative mentions

The game has a lot of potential and offers a fun grinding experience with satisfying loot mechanics.
The developer is actively updating the game and listening to community feedback, which is promising for future improvements.
Gameplay is fast-paced and enjoyable, with a good variety of skills and character progression.

The game suffers from a lack of polish, with numerous bugs, poor optimization, and a confusing UI.
Many features and classes are locked behind a paywall, which detracts from the overall experience and feels exploitative.
The repetitive nature of the maps and combat can lead to boredom, as players are required to grind the same content multiple times.

gameplay
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
64%
10%
The gameplay of the game is a mixed bag, featuring a typical ARPG structure with a focus on grinding and character progression, but marred by a pay-to-win model and a lack of depth in combat mechanics. While the game offers a satisfying loop with responsive controls and impactful skills, it suffers from a confusing UI and a need for polish in its mechanics and tutorial systems. Overall, players find enjoyment in the core gameplay, but many express a desire for more variety and refinement as the game continues to develop.
- “Immediately I see this game is very well done with free DLC for 6 different classes of character and 120 skills to develop. The game has an excellent tutorial for new players to learn the gameplay features.”
- “I love games where you can grind and still grow in power, potentially reaching infinite potential, but it comes with some limits. There is a goal you can achieve in the end, which will take hundreds of hours of gameplay.”
- “Very satisfying gameplay, responsive controls, hitting stuff feels nice, and skills are impactful.”
- “It is a cheaply made pay-to-win boring ARPG with a dull upgrade system and grotesque combat mechanics that you have to manually spam.”
- “Confusing UI, rigid gameplay, and only the base class is available without paid DLC.”
- “No random rolls, no interesting mechanics, nothing special on gear aside from 'higher tier = higher stats.'”
story
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
62%
19%
The game's story is largely criticized for its lack of depth and meaningful narrative, with many players noting that it primarily consists of repetitive grinding and basic quests that do not contribute to a compelling campaign. While there are some quests and unique elements like random NPCs and puzzles, they often feel inconsequential and do not enhance the overall experience. Players seeking a rich story or engaging campaign may find this game lacking, as progression relies heavily on grinding through the same maps rather than a cohesive narrative.
- “I really like how each map has random things in it like portals with puzzles and NPCs with their own rewards and quests, which breaks the repetitiveness.”
- “You will also encounter some NPCs who will give you quests and rewards; you'll also discover portals that lead to different paths to explore and loot.”
- “I like the quest system as well; it's pretty unique for the ARPG market.”
- “There is no story to the game... you have to run each area a certain number of times before you can advance to the next area.”
- “- lack of real story/campaign.”
- “Each map is just a linear path with a boss at the end, with the occasional side area to fight an elite or something. If you're looking for some campaign or really any sort of story, this is the wrong game for you.”
grinding
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews highlight that the game features extensive grinding, often leading to repetitive gameplay without significant challenge. While some players enjoy the grind for item collection and class development, others find it overly tedious and frustrating, especially with the presence of RNG elements and complicated menus. Overall, the game appeals to those who appreciate grinding as a core mechanic, but it may deter players seeking a more varied and engaging experience.
- “There was no challenge, and I don't want to play games that don't have any challenge. Looking through the UI and town, it looks super grindy and repetitive.”
- “After about an hour, it begins to become extremely repetitive and grindy without any extra difficulty.”
- “It’s definitely grindy but fun at the same time.”
graphics
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
54%
23%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players noting significant performance issues, particularly on integrated graphics, and a lack of optimization. While some visuals are commendable thanks to the Unreal Engine, the overall aesthetic is described as basic and inconsistent, with a poorly designed UI and over-the-top graphical effects that detract from the experience. Overall, the game appears to need considerable polish to improve its visual coherence and technical performance.
- “Some nice visuals with it.”
- “Thanks to the Unreal Engine, there are a few graphics tweaks, and the game doesn't look terrible (but it's not winning any awards either).”
- “You as a solo dev may not really be able to compete with companies on graphics or sheer amount of detail or hand-crafted content, but I didn't really criticize that.”
- “This game is too demanding for integrated graphics.”
- “Bugs everywhere, no controller support, graphical issues, horrid UI, nonexistent optimization.”
- “The main performance bust is in the menu screen and unfortunately, you cannot lower certain graphic settings to the lowest to get even a crumb of FPS.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, graphical issues, and poor performance, particularly in the menu screen. Many players feel that the lack of controller support and the inability to adjust graphic settings further exacerbate the optimization problems, leading to a frustrating experience. Overall, the game's performance issues have led some to shelve it for future improvements.
- “Sadly, either it's Unreal Engine being so wonky to change/assets not so optimized, but it's a problem for a lot of games on that engine.”
- “The main performance bust is in the menu screen, and unfortunately, you cannot lower certain graphic settings to the lowest to get even a crumb of FPS.”
- “Optimization aside, I do think that this game is a great time cruncher with its level grinding and mob fights.”
- “If it wasn't for the poor performance optimization, the quantity of bugs, and paywalled classes, I would probably have given a positive review. But for now, I will shelf this game and return to it in a year or so.”
- “Bugs everywhere, no controller support, graphical issues, horrid UI, nonexistent optimization.”
- “Sadly, either it's Unreal Engine being so wonky with changes/assets not being optimized, but it's a problem for a lot of games on that engine.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate its beauty and how well it complements the gameplay, others find it basic and somewhat generic. Overall, it enhances the experience without being overwhelming during intense moments.
- “Really enjoying the game, beautiful music and tight animations and gameplay.”
- “The scoring (music) is beautiful.”
- “The controls are nice and work well with the fast-paced combat; the music is also good, not overwhelming when you need to focus, and the bosses can prove to be a challenge.”
- “The music is very, very basic.”
- “The soundtrack is alright, though it sounds a bit generic.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy of the game has been criticized for its high costs, with players needing to spend around $60 to access all classes, and the presence of confusing microtransactions. Many feel that the limited availability of classes without payment, along with unappealing cosmetic options and a poorly received adventurer pass, contribute to a perception of the game as a cash grab.
- “If you want to enjoy the game with all classes and extras, it adds up to around $60, which is AAA price.”
- “Weird microtransactions; only 1 class available unless you pay for the warrior. Cosmetic character effects aren't worth it at all, and I don't see anyone ever buying that. The adventurer pass just seems bad.”
- “Cash grab lure system that only re-traders will fall for.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players appreciate the game's replayability, highlighting it as a strong point that enhances the overall experience, particularly in the action RPG genre.
- “I'd recommend this game; it's a great ARPG with excellent replayability.”
- “The variety of character builds and choices keeps me coming back for more.”
- “Each playthrough feels fresh due to the dynamic events and random encounters.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by a single archetype and a variety of amusing items and interactive elements. Players find the repetitive nature of the gameplay, particularly in a specific location, leads to an easier experience, which may detract from the overall comedic impact.
- “Even in the early stages, the game features a single character archetype, but it offers a long list of funny items to pick up and things to interact with.”
- “After defeating the dragon five times, it becomes easier each time because you just get overleveled by running through the one funny location repeatedly.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, users report minor glitches that are not game-breaking but can be annoying. Additionally, the gameplay tends to become repetitive and grindy after about an hour, which may affect the overall stability of the gaming experience.
- “Some minor glitches (none game-breaking, just annoying). After about an hour, it begins to become extremely repetitive and grindy without any extra difficulty.”