Stoneshard: Prologue

About

Stoneshard: Prologue is a single player role playing game. It was developed by Ink Stains Games and was released on June 5, 2018. It received positive reviews from players.

Stoneshard: Prologue is a demo to Stoneshard, an open-world roguelike RPG currently in development.Key features: Familiarize yourself with the basic mechanics of the main game. Learn the backstory of one of Stoneshard's main characters, Verren. Explore the dark catacombs of the abandoned abbey. Try out a variety of skill trees, from two-handed sword and bows to pyromancy and geomancy. S…

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Play Modes

Single-Player

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83%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,429 reviews

gameplay119 positive mentions

grinding24 negative mentions

Engaging and challenging gameplay that keeps players coming back for more.
Great pixel art and atmospheric sound design enhance the overall experience.
Unique mechanics involving health, injuries, and status effects add depth to the gameplay.

Lack of a save feature makes progress frustrating, as dying resets players to the beginning.
Randomized loot and enemy encounters can lead to unfair situations, making it feel overly punishing.
Clunky controls and UI can hinder the overall experience, making inventory management tedious.

gameplay
286 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
54%
4%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a mix of engaging mechanics and overwhelming complexity, with many players noting that the abundance of systems—such as hunger, thirst, and various status effects—can detract from the overall experience. While the turn-based combat and survival elements are praised for their depth and challenge, the lack of a save mechanic and some clunky controls have led to frustration among users. Overall, the game offers a unique blend of old-school RPG elements and modern mechanics, appealing to those who enjoy a challenging and strategic gameplay experience, but it may not be suitable for everyone due to its steep learning curve and punishing difficulty.
- “Set in a gritty, low-fantasy medieval realm, the game offers a taste of its brutal combat system and unforgiving survival mechanics.”
- “The prologue showcases the game's core mechanics, including inventory management, skill trees, and a unique pain/injury system.”
- “The gameplay is streamlined because the flow of combat is heavily dictated by the more realistic setting — more specifically, the fact that everyone is limited to taking one action per turn (which includes moving).”
- “There are a few good ideas here and there, and overall it could be a great game, but the developers tried to achieve a higher level of micromanagement or engagement with the game, and ended up adding too many game mechanics, systems, and sub-systems that only increase the complexity of the game without adding anything to the gameplay itself.”
- “In my opinion, the game suffers from far too many statuses and mechanics. Not only do you have to deal with equipment, combat, and strategy, but you also have to manage hunger, thirst, wounds, debuffs, etc. These extra mechanics dilute the strengths of the gameplay, leaving the management of hunger and thirst a chore and punishing you for it if you forget.”
- “The main issue for me is that the gameplay - more specifically the combat - is poorly explained.”
graphics
136 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
42%
2%
The graphics of the game are a mix of retro pixel art and atmospheric visuals, which some players find charming and immersive, while others criticize them as simplistic or lacking in detail. Many appreciate the aesthetic's alignment with the game's mechanics and themes, though there are complaints about the lack of animation in character sprites and overall graphical quality compared to modern standards. Overall, the graphics evoke a nostalgic feel that resonates well with fans of the genre, despite being polarizing for some players.
- “Atmospheric pixel art graphics.”
- “The graphics are nice, and the gameplay is interesting.”
- “The artwork is beautiful, the inventory management is akin to Diablo, and the turn-based mechanics are well thought out.”
- “2024 PC game with graphics worse than a smartphone, and no, it's not as interesting as RimWorld or Dwarf Fortress.”
- “The graphics are bad; they are not quaint and trying to be pixelated for style.”
- “I went into Stoneshard expecting to like it - the art style and UI seemed very neat, plus the open commitment to old-school sensibilities, but I have been greeted with so much amateurishness right at the start that I guess I'll just have to skip and maybe try again after it leaves early access.”
story
107 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
65%
3%
The story of Stoneshard is described as minimalistic yet intriguing, with a prologue that sets up a dark fantasy narrative centered around a prison escape. While some players appreciate the engaging lore and character development, others criticize the lack of depth and motivation, particularly in the repetitive gameplay. Overall, the narrative shows potential, leaving players eager for more, but it currently feels incomplete and overshadowed by gameplay mechanics.
- “The story is very refreshing and begs players to learn more and more about its lore, environments, and ways to improve gameplay strategies.”
- “The story is somewhat minimalistic at first as the main character has a single goal in mind which eventually evolves into something much larger once you face (and beat) the boss of the dungeon and leaves you on a good cliffhanger that entices you to purchase the full game and continue the story.”
- “The story has potential, companions are an interesting idea for the genre, and the game's complexity is enough to be intriguing, rather than overwhelming.”
- “Without heavy emphasis on story, there isn't any motivation to get through the same stage three times over to beat it.”
- “The prologue presents a hand-crafted experience and story, while the actual game is a much more boring 'open world' experience where you spend hours killing animals in the forest to grind for money.”
- “I would've bought the full game right away but, unfortunately, as far as I know, it doesn't have a story implemented yet, which is a real bummer for me.”
atmosphere
45 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
73%
20%
7%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its dark, gothic, and immersive qualities, enhanced by atmospheric pixel art graphics, a compelling soundtrack, and high-quality voice acting. Players appreciate the attention to detail in the environment and character design, which contribute to a captivating and sometimes eerie experience. Overall, the atmosphere is considered a standout feature, effectively drawing players into the game's world and enhancing the gameplay experience.
- “This was dark and atmospheric and felt really fun to play.”
- “Great atmosphere, very interesting features like injury, hunger, thirst management.”
- “Stoneshard has a really gloomy and dark atmosphere, and despite being a pixel game, it put a lot of effort into the detail of both its environment and surroundings as well as its character design.”
- “The exploring and looting, the creepy atmosphere, the touches of beauty like the underground waterfall cavern....”
- “Stoneshard, which is a turn-based RPG game, has a cold and dark atmosphere.”
music
41 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
47%
7%
The music in the game is generally praised for its atmospheric quality and ability to enhance the gameplay experience, particularly during combat with fitting tracks that add tension. While some players noted a sparse soundtrack, they appreciated the voice acting and sound effects, which contribute to the overall ambiance. Overall, the music is seen as a strong point, with many players expressing a desire to purchase the soundtrack due to its memorable and engaging nature.
- “Love the aesthetics and fitting music.”
- “The music and sound add atmosphere, and the little voice acting I heard didn't sound cheap.”
- “Stunning graphics and atmospheric music are intriguing and motivating to explore dungeons.”
- “The soundtrack is pretty sparse as there are only songs for combat, but they are quite fitting and initially add to the tension of combat until you get used to the system.”
- “There is no music, it’s just undulating tones.”
- “Music is almost absent.”
grinding
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
96%
Reviews highlight that the game's grinding mechanics are often seen as tedious and overly complicated, leading to a frustrating experience for players. Many express dissatisfaction with the slow pace, cumbersome inventory management, and the need to repeatedly grind through the same areas for resources and achievements. While some appreciate the game's depth and production quality, the overall sentiment suggests that the grinding elements detract from the enjoyment and fluidity of gameplay.
- “This is a tedious system that is punishing and discouraging the player.”
- “Overall, it's just a very tedious system that sacrifices fun and smooth gameplay for realism.”
- “I have not beat the prologue, but got tired of grinding the same 2 maps over and over to have no health for the final boss.”
monetization
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of "Stoneshard" has been criticized as misleading, with users describing it as an advertisement rather than a full game. The $25 price tag, along with an additional $10 for DLC, is seen as excessive for what is essentially a promotional demo, leading to concerns about developers using such tactics to gain visibility at the expense of genuine gaming content. Overall, players feel that this approach detracts from the gaming experience and misleads consumers.
- “If you enjoy advertisements, you can consume them for free on the web or on YouTube without needing to add them to your game library, download them, and then launch the advertising.”
- “While it might seem like an innocuous mistake, publishing demos and advertisements as if they are full games is misleading and in some ways harmful.”
- “It's impossible for me to recommend this incorrectly published advertising spam to gamers; you deserve better than adverts.”
replayability
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
8%
25%
The game boasts high replayability due to its randomized elements, including procedurally generated dungeons and diverse skill paths, which keep each playthrough fresh and engaging. Players appreciate the balance of challenge and enjoyment, making it a worthwhile experience even in its prologue form. Overall, the combination of rewarding mechanics and varied encounters contributes to its strong replay value.
- “The replay value of this prologue is astounding.”
- “Even here there's a good amount of replayability too: the dungeons and items are random on each run, and you can choose different skill paths to follow.”
- “Freaking amazing mechanics, gorgeous pixel art, grim & dark ambiance and theme, perfect difficulty (not too easy, not frustratingly hard), engaging lore, nice music, great replayability (procedural dungeons), rewarding loot and skill system, fun condition management.”
- “Replay value: it's short, but it's also free.”
- “The two dungeon floors are procedural and offer a large amount of replayability, while the boss is a challenging and well-designed encounter not for the faint-hearted.”
- “Skill tree is straightforward, with randomly generated floors, so it's replayable.”
stability
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
88%
The game's stability is a significant concern, with numerous users reporting frequent bugs and crashes that can disrupt gameplay and lead to lost progress. While some players find the overall concept enjoyable and promising, the current state is marred by glitches that detract from the experience, particularly in early access. Overall, the game shows potential but requires substantial improvements in stability before it can be fully recommended.
- “The game runs smoothly without any noticeable bugs or glitches.”
- “I've experienced consistent performance throughout my playtime.”
- “The stability of the game has allowed me to fully immerse myself without interruptions.”
- “It's often buggy (that's to be expected in early access) and there is a lot of early access 'abandonware' on Steam.”
- “I had a ton of fun playing, but it annoys me how buggy this demo is that I can't even finish a run due to the crashes, and the fact that a single crash aborts your entire run and causes you to lose everything.”
- “At the moment, your fun can be completely ruined by bad programming and glitches.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its humor, featuring hilarious voice acting and funny moments throughout, particularly in its dungeon crawling and boss encounters. While players enjoyed the comedic elements, some expressed frustration with gameplay mechanics, such as misplaced checkpoints. Overall, the humor adds a significant charm to the experience, making it a recommended play.
- “Seems to be a funny dungeon crawler.”
- “The hilarious voice acting is worth the download, but that's about it.”
- “It will be a really good game, had real fun with this beta, and will probably get the full game on release; a really funny hardcore classic RPG.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Stoneshard features a richly detailed pixel art style that enhances its gloomy atmosphere, contributing to a strong sense of character development. The attention to detail in both the environment and character design helps to create a more immersive experience, allowing players to connect with the characters on a deeper level.
- “Stoneshard has a really gloomy and dark atmosphere, and despite being a pixel game, it puts a lot of effort into the detail of both its environment and surroundings as well as its character design.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is well-optimized for Linux, particularly on MX Linux, with users reporting excellent performance even on lower-end hardware, such as an i5 ultrabook with integrated graphics.
- “I've only played this on Linux (specifically MX Linux), and have had zero issues at all - performance is excellent on an i5 ultrabook with only integrated graphics.”