Story of a Gladiator

About

"Story of a Gladiator" is an action-packed game where you, a survivor of a war against the Roman empire, seek meaning in your life and fight for survival in the Roman Colosseum. With over 80 enemies and 20 animals, each with unique fighting strategies, master combat skills and moves to dazzle your opponents. Win the crowd's favor, pray to the gods, train your pet tiger, and choose your origin for a personalized experience. The arena awaits you.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Local Multi-Player Play with friends in the same physical space using split-screen or multiple screens
2-Players Play with one other player, either online or locally, in a cooperative or competitive game mode
Multi-Player Compete or cooperate with other players online
Co-Op Team up with friends to complete levels or missions together
Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo
Split Screen Play with multiple players on the same screen, often with divided or shared screen real estate

82%

Audience ScoreBased on 92 reviews

story4 positive mentions

grinding8 negative mentions

The game features beautiful art and engaging music, enhancing the overall atmosphere.
It offers a fun and addictive gameplay experience with a variety of customization options for characters and equipment.
The combat is simple to learn but challenging to master, providing a satisfying progression as players upgrade their gladiators.

The game suffers from repetitive gameplay and a lack of depth, leading to a grindy experience.
Controls can be awkward, especially with the inability to use a mouse, resulting in frustrating combat mechanics.
Balancing issues and poor AI can lead to frustrating encounters, including being easily stun-locked by enemies.

story
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
68%
14%
The story in "Story of a Gladiator" is generally viewed as simplistic and lacking depth, primarily revolving around a gladiator's journey to improve their skills and gear, with a few mentions of personal loss and revenge against the Romans. While some players appreciate the game's premise and the initial cinematic, many criticize the overall narrative for being childish and underdeveloped, expressing a desire for more intricate storytelling and character development. Overall, the game is seen more as a fun beat 'em up experience rather than a compelling narrative-driven adventure.
- “Just your typical gladiator story: a gladiator trying to hone their skills, obtain better gear, and work their way up in order to buy a giant kitty that eats people.”
- “The story is told quite quickly: our family and friends are killed by the Romans and we manage to escape so that we do not end up in slavery... or worse.”
- “This is the story of a gladiator, who killed everyone in the whole world.”
- “The starting cinematic is very well done, but the story is so bad and childish that I would have preferred no cinematic at all.”
- “My only issue with it is the lack of story and in-depth customization; the game feels very limited in that aspect. It's not even as good in terms of depth as Sword and Sandals, to be honest.”
- “Even if you could assume a story according to the title of the game, it's not really the aim to tell a story.”
graphics
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
15%
15%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the impressive art style and hand-drawn visuals that enhance the gladiatorial atmosphere. While some players find the graphics to be merely adequate or reminiscent of a mobile game, others highlight the fluid animations and overall aesthetic appeal, contributing to an enjoyable gameplay experience. However, performance issues, such as poor framerate on lower-end systems, detract from the visual experience for some users.
- “The graphics are amazing, the armor looks very nice; I just wish there was more depth to fight styles, weapon, character customization, story arc, training, and maybe companions in fights.”
- “I liked the very good hand-drawn graphics, the music, and the day-to-day fighting atmosphere that gives us a glimpse of how it was like to be a gladiator in ancient Rome.”
- “The really impressive art style and fluid 2D animation combined with the bloody gladiator atmosphere sold it for me.”
- “The graphics are okayish but nothing to write home about; it's a glorified mobile game (possibly a mobile port, I don't know).”
- “I know I'm playing on a laptop with integrated graphics, but there is nothing on screen that justifies such a bad framerate, except the developers' incompetence.”
- “Only nice thing about this game is the decent art style.”
gameplay
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the simple mechanics, aesthetic, and combat progression, while others criticize the lack of depth and the reliance on artificial inflation of gameplay elements. Issues such as frustrating dodge and block mechanics, limited customization options, and a feeling of randomness detract from the overall experience for some users. Despite these criticisms, many still find the game entertaining and visually appealing.
- “Love the gameplay and the aesthetic; the combat and enemy types get hard, the customization of your gladiator is quite fun if not expensive.”
- “Simple game mechanics but very entertaining, good progression in difficulty.”
- “Fun beat 'em up game with cool artwork and gameplay.”
- “Except you can buy it unlimited times... for the one match... with no explanation. Oh, and if you buy the bonuses/consumables and change your mind, you can't reselect the other; no, you have to buy it again in order to try to further drain your gold and artificially inflate the gameplay.”
- “Oh yeah, there's dodge and block mechanics... which don't really do that much because with the instant kill pits, some enemies knock you back or use a fear spell that makes you run... straight into the pits with no way to get around it, thus making rounds almost RNG.”
- “The game looks amazing, but it lacks the key component: gameplay.”
music
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
30%
20%
Overall, the music in the game receives mixed reviews; while many players praise the excellent soundtrack and its ability to enhance the atmosphere, some find it repetitive and tedious, leading them to turn it off or play their own music. The hand-drawn graphics complement the audio experience, but the consistency of the music's quality varies across different settings.
- “The art is beautiful and it has excellent music!”
- “I liked the very good hand-drawn graphics, the music, and the day-to-day fighting atmosphere that gives us a glimpse of how it was like to be a gladiator in ancient Rome.”
- “Great music, good sound, concise gameplay.”
- “The music in the game is quite tedious; I had to play some music from outside to make it suitable for this game's genre.”
- “At some point, however, the music in the city was too monotonous for me, so I turned it off.”
grinding
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is a mixed bag; while some players find it manageable and enjoyable, others criticize it for being excessively time-consuming and poorly balanced, particularly early on. Many players note that significant grinding is required to progress, especially for character upgrades and achievements, leading to repetitive gameplay. Overall, the grinding can detract from the experience, though some appreciate the stable difficulty curve if they keep up with upgrades.
- “Great simple premise and foundation ruined by a structure of constant grinding and controls that are made awkward by the inability to use a mouse.”
- “Zero balance; there are 36 levels and you spend level 6 grinding your character from zero to max stats, skill points, animals, everything, before you can play the remaining 30 levels because it's so poorly balanced. So enjoy grinding the same level 6 for 4 straight hours to upgrade your character before playing the game with no more upgrades available.”
- “Not a bad hack'n'slash, but very grindy to upgrade.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its impressive hand-drawn graphics and fluid 2D animation, which effectively capture the gritty and immersive experience of being a gladiator in ancient Rome. The combination of evocative music and a vivid fighting environment enhances the overall experience, making it both engaging and atmospheric.
- “The really impressive art style and fluid 2D animation combined with the bloody gladiator atmosphere sold it for me.”
- “I liked the very good hand-drawn graphics, the music, and the day-to-day fighting atmosphere that gives us a glimpse of how it was like to be a gladiator in ancient Rome.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
150%
Players appreciate the game's strong replayability, noting that despite its shorter length, it offers ample opportunities to replay stages for rewards like gold and experience points. This encourages repeated playthroughs and enhances overall enjoyment.
- “The only flaw is that it's a bit short, but it has a great replay value.”
- “Replayability is one of those features where you can replay a stage over and over and still earn rewards like gold and XP.”
- “Replayability is lacking; once you've completed the game, there's little incentive to go back.”
- “The game feels repetitive after the first playthrough, making it hard to justify replaying.”
- “While there are some unlockables, they don't add enough variety to encourage multiple playthroughs.”
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game has been reported to have stability issues, with users experiencing frequent bugs that detract from the overall experience.
- “Unfortunately, I found it to be buggy.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
- “I experienced constant lag and stability issues that ruined my experience.”
character development
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Character development in the game is praised for its depth and complexity, with players noting that characters evolve significantly throughout the story. Many reviews highlight the emotional arcs and personal growth of the characters, making them relatable and engaging. However, some players feel that certain characters could benefit from more backstory or resolution to enhance their overall impact.