Skul: The Hero Slayer

Despite the minor problems, Skul is an immensely enjoyable, constantly surprising and great looking roguelike adventure that comes well recommended.

89%Game Brain Score

gameplay, story

grinding, stability

92% User Score Based on 8,474 reviews

Critic Score 80%Based on 2 reviews

Platforms

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About

Skul: The Hero Slayer is a single player platformer game. It was developed by SOUTHPAW GAMES and was released on January 20, 2021. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

"Skul: The Hero Slayer" is a side-scrolling platformer with rogue-like elements, where you play as the lone surviving skeleton warrior, Skul, in the aftermath of a devastating attack on the Demon King's castle. With the ability to wear different skulls, each granting unique abilities, discover new playstyles in ever-changing maps filled with challenging encounters. The game features tons of skulls and playable characters, providing high replayability value.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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92%

Audience ScoreBased on 8,474 reviews

gameplay528 positive mentions

grinding141 negative mentions

gameplay
1,084 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
49%
46%
5%
The gameplay of "Skul: The Hero Slayer" is characterized by its fast-paced, engaging mechanics centered around a unique skull-swapping system that allows players to adopt different abilities and playstyles. While many players appreciate the variety and depth this mechanic brings, some express concerns about the game's balance, repetitiveness, and reliance on RNG, which can lead to frustrating experiences. Overall, the game offers a satisfying roguelike experience with a charming aesthetic and a high replay value, though it may require patience to master its mechanics fully.
- “The gameplay loop is pretty fun, and the skulls are all diverse and balanced.”
- “The variety of gameplay is colossal; there are over 30 skulls, and each plays differently, adding to the build possibilities for each run.”
- “The gameplay is very dynamic, and every choice you make matters way ahead in the future.”
- “The gameplay is surprisingly dull for an action roguelike.”
- “The gameplay becomes repetitive and boring way too early on.”
- “The actual gameplay completely lacks a sense of weight or impact, with combat at best feeling slippery and repetitive.”
story
710 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
46%
4%
The story of "Skul: The Hero Slayer" is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its unique twist on the typical hero vs. villain narrative, where the demons are portrayed as the protagonists. While some find the plot engaging and emotionally resonant, others note that it can be simplistic or predictable, often serving as a backdrop to the gameplay rather than a central focus. Overall, the game combines charming visuals and character design with a narrative that, while not groundbreaking, adds depth to the roguelike experience.
- “The story is beautiful, as is the character design.”
- “The story is a fun twist on the general fantasy, where the demon king and the monsters are the good guys, and the heroic kingdom of golden knights and adventurers are the bad guys.”
- “The story is simple but relatively interesting.”
- “The story left me in awe; the overall design of the game kept me playing for hours, even though at times I kept dying at the same point.”
- “The story also leaves a lot to be desired as it's pretty generic and more of a vehicle to get you to the end of the game rather than being an experience.”
- “While the story might not captivate you or feel very novel, the gameplay alone is worth every penny you pay for Skul.”
graphics
407 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
61%
38%
1%
The graphics of the game have received widespread praise for their charming pixel art style, vibrant colors, and detailed animations, creating a visually appealing experience that enhances gameplay. Many players appreciate the unique character designs and the overall aesthetic, which evokes nostalgia while maintaining a modern polish. However, some users have reported occasional graphical glitches and issues with clarity during intense gameplay, which can detract from the experience. Overall, the art style is considered a significant strength of the game, contributing to its fun and engaging atmosphere.
- “The visuals are amazing.”
- “The pixel graphics are great, action is amazing and even though it's in the early access stage, the game already provides a great experience and I can't wait for further additions; the potential for this game is just amazing.”
- “The graphics are visually stunning.”
- “I have had graphical glitches since the first hour I played it.”
- “I've tried turning the settings to low but it did not help; it's kind of frustrating to know that I can play more resource-intensive games on higher graphic settings, but this game has the gall to not run properly even on low.”
- “The problem is that the game suffers from a huge graphical glitch that causes the HUD to break down over the course of a run.”
music
333 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
32%
5%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players praising its quality and how well it complements the gameplay, particularly during boss fights. However, several users noted that the soundtrack can become repetitive over time, leading to some frustration. Overall, while the music is generally appreciated for its charm and fitting atmosphere, there is a consensus that more variety would enhance the experience.
- “The soundtrack is awesome and the developers have put a lot of love into this game.”
- “The music always fits the mood (like my heart enters overdrive when their boss music kicks in) and is really well made.”
- “The music is beautiful and intricate, it gives you a very fresh and enjoyable fantasy feel.”
- “The music is serviceable, albeit gets very, very irritating at times as a result of a lack of diversity in music/sounds.”
- “I honestly don't like the soundtrack at all; after I installed the game for the first time and started playing my first runs, my god, the music is so annoying since it's just one song playing over and over again.”
- “The music gets really repetitive pretty fast, unfortunately, but that's a minor annoyance.”
replayability
234 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
42%
2%
The game "Skul" boasts exceptional replayability, largely due to its extensive variety of skulls, each offering unique gameplay mechanics and build possibilities. Players appreciate the dynamic gameplay and frequent updates that introduce new content, ensuring that runs remain fresh despite some repetitive boss encounters. Overall, the combination of diverse character builds and engaging mechanics contributes to a highly replayable experience, making it a standout title in the roguelike genre.
- “Skul is a standout roguelike with unparalleled replay value, offering dynamic gameplay through the combination of a wide variety of skulls, skills, and items.”
- “The skull mechanic in the game keeps things fresh with every run and makes the game have seemingly endless replay value.”
- “Overall, with the amount of characters and items that Skul has, one is left with content for hundreds and possibly even thousands of hours of replayability.”
- “Worth the purchase but has no longevity and limited replayability.”
- “The bosses and mobs remain the same throughout each playthrough, so once you exhaust trying many of the item and skull combinations and understand how to dodge and beat boss/mob attacks, the game becomes relatively easier and loses much of its replayability.”
- “While I do recommend the game, the replayability is hampered by these issues above.”
grinding
146 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
1%
2%
97%
The grinding aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it excessively tedious and repetitive, particularly in the later stages where enemy health pools inflate significantly. While some appreciate the grind as a necessary part of the roguelike experience, others feel it detracts from overall enjoyment, leading to burnout and a lack of meaningful progression. Overall, the game is described as fun but requires a considerable time investment to overcome its grindy nature.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Please, God, no more! I've been grinding for 12 hours.”
- “Honestly to say, it's a really good game at the first half of the game, but after that, the game is grindy and tedious.”
- “The first boss is not fun to play, and the few starting skeletons you have access to are not that enjoyable, meaning you're stuck with them having to tackle the grindy, slow, repetitive early game to unlock the actual fun characters which only have a chance to show up in runs.”
- “The game is amazing but there's not a ton of content and the progression is really slow/grindy so it gets pretty repetitive.”
humor
93 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely praised, with players enjoying the quirky and comedic elements, particularly the funny skeleton characters and their amusing interactions. Many reviews highlight the game's lighthearted tone, clever dialogue, and humorous mechanics, making it an entertaining experience despite its challenging gameplay. Overall, the humor adds a delightful charm that enhances the roguelike experience, earning it high recommendations from players.
- “The good: it's a roguelike where you can slaughter enemies left and right, pretty good way to spend an afternoon, the story is good, the combat is fluid, and the little enemy dialogues are funny.”
- “Finally, the game has a very good sense of humor - the rocker skull, for instance, has a 'super-special' attack that I found hilarious.”
- “This game is an absolute gem with funny but tense combat.”
stability
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
83%
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting frequent bugs and graphical glitches that can disrupt gameplay, such as freezing screens and misplaced HUD elements. While some users note that the game runs well on platforms like the Steam Deck, others express frustration with the severity of the issues, including crashes and unresponsive gameplay. Overall, while the game is considered fun and engaging, it requires significant polishing to address its stability problems.
- “It runs great on Steam Deck.”
- “Runs great, looks great, solid game. I got it on sale for 10 dollars, and I think that's the perfect price.”
- “Early access or not, this game is so bug-free and fleshed out; it is definitely worth the price already!”
- “I have had graphical glitches since the first hour I played it.”
- “When you revive at the start of a new run, the game freezes, and it freezes so bad I have to shut my PC down via the button on the tower because in no way, form, or fashion can I get it to respond otherwise.”
- “Currently has enormous and consistent visual glitches that completely break all dialogue boxes, the inventory screen, and the options screen.”
character development
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
71%
15%
14%
Character development in the game is highlighted by its impressive and diverse character designs, which range from cute to creatively uninspired, yet are generally well-received. Players appreciate the unique fighting styles and the ability to develop characters through various builds, although some note that the steep progression grind can be challenging. Overall, the aesthetic and visual appeal of the characters contribute significantly to the game's charm and enjoyment.
- “The story is beautiful, as is the character design.”
- “This game is one of a few very fun and active roguelikes with many ways to develop your funny little skeleton boy with some very nice looking visuals and character design.”
- “Well designed interface, great story, charming levels, and character design challenging, fun, and definitely repeatable; could spend days trying to test different playstyles and builds, but it doesn't need you to do that to be fun or succeed.”
- “Character design ranges from cute to unusually sexy, to straight-up uninspired; however, the enemy design is effective but not especially creative despite the opportunities provided by the game's unique premise.”
- “The character development grind is very steep.”
- “You can't see what the hell is going on half the time because of the poor choices in color and character design.”
optimization
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
53%
14%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while many players praise its smooth performance, excellent graphics, and sound, some report issues such as performance drops over extended play sessions, particularly on high-spec machines. There are also complaints about controls feeling unoptimized and occasional graphical errors, especially in ultrawide mode. Despite these drawbacks, many users find the game enjoyable and engaging, with no significant crashes or bugs reported.
- “It's like Rogue Legacy, but trimmed down and optimized for combat.”
- “Fun, good-looking, good-sounding, excellent performance of game graphics and music are all worthy of high recognition.”
- “No wonky hitboxes I've experienced, no performance issues impacting gameplay, nothing.”
- “Been having performance issues since the recent update.”
- “Performance occasionally drags when the game's been running for a while on an overspec'd machine - some sort of leak, or unoptimized code?”
- “The game takes a bit long to load from the main menu and could either use optimization or an animation that indicates properly that it is doing something (current loading animation freezes with the loading of the game).”
emotional
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
95%
14%
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its heartfelt storytelling and the deep investment players feel in the narrative, often leading to tears during pivotal moments. Many reviewers describe the experience as an emotional rollercoaster, with a touching story that resonates, particularly in the game's conclusion. Overall, players appreciate the blend of action and emotion, making it a memorable experience that stands out among other titles in the genre.
- “This game was a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful experience, and I enjoyed it, but I cried maybe 14 times and died over 60.”
- “I don't know if it's because I have just become a father, but with the main storyline, I honestly became emotionally invested in defeating the last boss... then you get the last part of the story that will run with the credits.”
- “The storytelling is very heartfelt and brings out emotion.”
- “I cried.”
- “The emotional moments felt forced and didn't resonate with me.”
- “I expected to feel more connected to the characters, but I just didn't.”
atmosphere
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
18%
19%
The atmosphere in Skul is widely praised for its beautifully crafted pixel art and engaging music, creating a vibrant and immersive world that enhances gameplay. While some reviewers note a homogeneity in design, the overall ambiance is described as unique, chill, and enjoyable, contributing to a fresh experience in the roguelite genre. Despite minor criticisms regarding map monotony and controller issues, the game's atmosphere remains a standout feature that captivates players.
- “In terms of graphics, Skul features pixel art that is well-crafted and beautifully designed, creating an eye-catching world where each map provides a different atmosphere.”
- “The graphics and atmosphere are great, especially the music stands out to me.”
- “The world is vibrant, the music is atmospheric, and the gameplay is fun and smooth.”
- “It is however very homogenic in terms of design and atmosphere, which gives it its own identity and makes for a discreet, lighthearted and comfortable ambience that feels bang on for a game you're meant to replay.”
- “Cons: monotonous maps, little to no atmosphere, unreasonably high dq costs, skills are limited and tricky to change.”
- “You want a different atmosphere, fresh air and different stages.”
monetization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization strategy has been criticized for excessive DLC advertisements and a slow progression system reminiscent of cash grab mobile games, although it lacks pay-to-win features. Additionally, the quality of in-game items, such as skulls, has been deemed subpar, further detracting from the overall experience.
- “I hate the excessive DLC advertisements.”
- “It's also got cash grab mobile game progression (meaning painfully slow) though without the pay-not-to-wait features, which I guess makes it better?”
- “Almost all of the skulls are trash; the Grim Reaper isn't a bullet sponge but is bigger than most of the ads, and honestly, the two moves it can use suck against bosses.”

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80%Critics’ scoreBased on 2 critic reviews

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15h Median play time

59h Average play time

6-44h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 58 analyzed playthroughs

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