SteamCity Chronicles: Rise of the Rose

About

SteamCity is a turn-based strategy game with a unique world setting, merging steampunk art direction with strong Japanese influences. You can control dozens of characters, from brave Rose Militia members, to powerful steam robots, renegade enemy soldiers, and even the main heroes.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

SteamCity Chronicles: Rise of the Rose screenshot

+10

64%

Audience ScoreBased on 11 reviews

emotional1 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

The game features stunning visuals and a unique Japanese steampunk aesthetic, with beautifully designed diorama maps and character models.
Gameplay offers a strategic challenge with various tactics available for completing missions, allowing for creative problem-solving.
The music and sound design enhance the atmosphere, contributing to an immersive experience.

Significant gameplay issues, including unresponsive units, poor AI pathfinding, and a lack of an undo command, lead to frustrating experiences.
The absence of a save feature during lengthy chapters makes it punishing to replay sections after failures, detracting from the overall enjoyment.
The tutorial fails to adequately explain key mechanics, leaving players confused about unit interactions and game objectives.

story
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
58%
25%
The story in the game serves primarily as a loose framework connecting combat chapters, with a lengthy introductory cutscene providing most of the narrative details. While the linear storyline is conveyed through beautifully animated, fully-voiced cutscenes, players note that the focus is more on gameplay and strategy rather than deep storytelling, leaving some wishing for a richer narrative experience. Overall, the story is functional but not the main draw of the game.
- “Beautiful, fully-voiced cutscenes tell the linear story between the missions.”
- “I really enjoy this game because it's very unique and fun to play, getting really close to a strategic board game, and I would love to see more story on it!”
- “To be fair, the story is clearly not the primary focus of the game and is more of a thread loosely tying the combat chapters together.”
- “That said, a staggering 3 minute 20 second long introductory cutscene that can only be described as an info dump plays on loading and seems to be where you get most of the story details.”
- “You're outnumbered, have weaker pieces, and the story mode is entirely linear.”
graphics
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The game's graphics are praised for their visually stunning dioramas and unique Japanese steampunk art style, which effectively captures the aesthetic of a modern Japanese city through intricate character designs and detailed map elements. However, some users note that while the visuals are appealing, they may not function as well as expected in gameplay.
- “The visually stunning map dioramas, tabletop miniature aesthetic, and fun animations are among the game’s many charms.”
- “The Japanese steampunk tone of the game is mainly set through the art style and character designs.”
- “The maps are visually beautiful dioramas that lean into the Japanese aesthetic well.”
- “For example, the city signs are a mixture of kanji (iconographic characters), hiragana (phonetic alphabet for native Japanese words and grammar), katakana (phonetic alphabet for foreign words), and romaji (modern English alphabet), exactly what you might see in a Japanese city today.”
gameplay
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
40%
40%
The gameplay features various battle scenarios that offer strategic challenges, but some players find it frustrating, particularly when progress becomes excessively difficult, leading to a sense of slog rather than enjoyment. Despite learning from failures, the steep difficulty curve can detract from the overall experience.
- “However, as mentioned earlier, there are some significant detractors to the gameplay experience.”
- “The gameplay consists of different battle scenarios.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The music in the game is generally well-received, featuring a blend of industrial elements and traditional Japanese instruments like the koto, creating a pleasant auditory experience. Additionally, the voice acting has been noted as surprisingly good, complementing the overall sound design, which includes adjustable audio settings for a tailored experience.
- “The music was pleasant and the voice acting was surprisingly good.”
- “The music and sounds are good.”
- “The music has industrial elements and sounds like it is utilizing traditional Japanese instruments like the koto.”
- “The audio mixing is poor, making it difficult to balance the music, sound effects, and UI volume sliders.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's Japanese steampunk aesthetic is effectively conveyed through its art style and character designs, though some players find certain design choices for female characters to be puzzling or questionable.
- “However, some of the female character design choices were puzzling or even questionable.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a surreal and haunting atmosphere, where cyborgs navigate an apocalyptic landscape filled with ancient songs and cryptic elements, reflecting a deep sense of loss and disconnection. This complex interplay of technology and emotion evokes feelings of nostalgia and existential contemplation amidst a backdrop of environmental decay and transformation.
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere is praised for its diorama-like map design and chess piece-inspired unit setup, complemented by stunning lighting that enhances the overall experience.
- “I especially liked that every unit was basically set up as a chess piece, and the maps looked like a diorama. The lighting is gorgeous, as is the overall atmosphere.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users report that the game's stability is unclear, with a lack of information and feedback making it difficult to determine whether issues stem from unresponsiveness or bugs.
- “It lacks information and feedback, but it's hard to say if it's unresponsive or buggy.”

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SteamCity Chronicles: Rise of the Rose

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