The Black Grimoire: Cursebreaker
- March 10, 2023
- Olipa Games
- 14h median play time
Get on SteamThe Black Grimoire: Cursebreaker is a medieval fantasy RPG with a sprawling open world and old-school atmosphere. Gain powerful skills and items, complete quests with deep writing, and engage in strategic combat with numerous weapons and spells. Make permanent choices that affect gameplay and customize your player house in this social multiplayer adventure.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Captures the nostalgic feel of playing RuneScape, providing a similar experience in a single-player format.
- Engaging story and well-written quests that keep players entertained and invested.
- Offers a variety of skills to level up and a large world to explore, with many side quests and activities.
- Inventory management is cumbersome, with limited space and many items not stackable, leading to frequent back-and-forth trips to storage.
- The game feels unfinished in some areas, with bugs and optimization issues that detract from the overall experience.
- Grinding can feel tedious and unbalanced, especially with low drop rates for crafting materials and slow experience gain.
- story180 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The game's story is generally well-received, with many players finding it engaging and easy to follow, reminiscent of classic RPGs like RuneScape but with a more developed narrative. While there are numerous quests and side quests that enhance the experience, some players note that the quest design can feel grindy and occasionally lacks clarity. Overall, the writing is praised for its humor and depth, though there are calls for more content and improvements in quest direction as the game continues to evolve.
“The depth and breadth of this game is astounding - I actually find the story engaging and drawing one in.”
“The intro story made me feel engaged with this character by setting up a falling kingdom in which I get murdered, following up with resurrection and subjugation to a necromancer.”
“Questlines and dialogs are well written, especially the main story feels quite unique.”
“It's marketed as 'lore heavy' and 'story driven', which is kind of true for like the first 45 minutes, but as soon as you're past the opening segment (essentially the tutorial) the narrative takes a hard nosedive into the dirt and the game basically turns into an endless series of fetch quests.”
“The final fight of the story is frustrating; skills are spammed at you like it's an arcade game, and all of them can one-shot you from 200 HP. Even if you use numerous 90% reduction potions, you just can't reach him in melee range to stop him from healing. Bad fight design killed the game for me.”
“The quests don't even have voice actors to read out the short story this game does have.”
- grinding78 mentions
- 4 % positive mentions
- 1 % neutral mentions
- 95 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is highly polarizing, with some players enjoying the extensive skill development and crafting opportunities, while others find it tedious and lacking in rewarding progression. Many reviews highlight the slow pace and repetitive nature of grinding, exacerbated by inventory management issues and the need for rare item drops, which can lead to frustration. Overall, while the game is designed to be grindy, it may appeal primarily to those who relish long hours of farming and skill leveling.
“I really enjoy a grindy game that doesn't require constantly killing mobs to progress.”
“I appreciate a grindy game that offers variety and doesn't rely solely on repetitive mob killing.”
“I like a grindy game that keeps things interesting without the need for constant mob grinding.”
“The grind doesn't feel rewarding and it's missing a ton of 'quality of life' fixes that would make the game bearable, but in its current state it's just extremely slow and grindy for no real payoff.”
“Most of the game is just grinding mining or logging or fishing, left click and AFK simulator.”
“This is a massive impairment to the gameplay enjoyment because game progression requires skill leveling, and skill leveling requires a good deal of grinding, and grinding requires traveling to/from the bank, and banks are kind of scarce in the world.”
- graphics44 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a minimalist and retro art style that evokes an old-school RPG feel, reminiscent of titles like RuneScape and Valheim. While some players appreciate the charming and simplistic design, others have noted performance issues, including memory leaks and screen size problems. Overall, the graphics are considered effective for the game's atmosphere, though they may not appeal to everyone.
“The atmosphere is excellent with a very old school feel to the graphics and design.”
“Love the minimalist graphics and the UI is easy to understand and navigate.”
“Given the beauty of the artwork and the impressive music, you will lose yourself in the world.”
“This game has serious memory leak issues... for a game that is not stunning at all with graphics, this should easily run smooth with the tech that's out there in 2020+.”
“Several people seemed to indicate graphical issues; I had one with my screen size, which was not using half the width real estate.”
“I wanted to play RuneScape without paying $10/month (I've essentially completed free-to-play), but Melvor Idle was too similar without any of the graphical components.”
- gameplay42 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The gameplay is praised for its depth and engaging mechanics, reminiscent of old-school RuneScape, but without the lag and microtransactions. Players appreciate the captivating quests, permanent choices that impact gameplay, and a relaxing atmosphere, although some express frustration with forced skill leveling and respawn mechanics. Overall, the game offers a smooth and enjoyable experience, particularly for fans of the genre, despite being in early access.
“Gameplay and story are refreshingly good, and I've never put graphics above them nor depth - this game has insane amounts of depth.”
“Bosses have mechanics that you need to figure out in an old school RuneScape type of way... except no guides ~ very fresh, can't cheese anything really.”
“The atmosphere, music, and gameplay is exactly what I have been looking for for years.”
“If you even learn at the 2nd town you need base 25 stats so you can't ignore skills you don't want to level up... forced gameplay that prohibits you from getting perks for your main style never feels good.”
“I love Runescape, or at least the concept of it, but I really dislike the way the game technically runs and the tick mechanic that is often abused in various ways to actually be able to win.”
“There's a ridiculous mechanic where everything respawns within about a minute.”
- music20 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its impressive quality and ability to set the tone and atmosphere, evoking a sense of nostalgia with its cozy, old-school design. However, some players note that the tracks can become repetitive and fall short of the standards set by classic titles like Old School RuneScape. Overall, while the music enhances the gameplay experience, its limited variety may detract from long-term enjoyment.
“Given the beauty of the artwork and the impressive music, you will lose yourself in the world.”
“In the sound department, music does a good job setting the tone and atmosphere of a situation or area.”
“Music quickly gets repetitive and does not live up to the old school RuneScape standard.”
“Sound is decent, the ambient stuff is nice, but the music tracks are short and can get repetitive.”
“The atmosphere, music, and gameplay is exactly what I have been looking for for years.”
- atmosphere12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its excellent old-school feel, detailed map design, and immersive soundscapes that effectively set the tone for various situations. Players appreciate the combination of graphics, music, and gameplay, although some express a desire for more control over environmental elements like rain. Overall, the atmosphere is a standout feature that resonates deeply with many players.
“The atmosphere is excellent with a very old school feel to the graphics and design.”
“In the sound department, music does a good job setting the tone and atmosphere of a situation or area.”
“Game runs ok, wish it was possible to turn off the rain though, but I guess it's part of the atmosphere.”
“There is a lot to like about this game when it comes to the atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere, music, and gameplay is exactly what I have been looking for for years.”
- optimization10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The game requires significant optimization, particularly during cutscenes, which are central to its storytelling. Users report issues like frequent hitching and underutilization of GPU resources, although some progress has been noted since the demo release. Overall, while graphics and performance show potential, further improvements are necessary for a smoother experience.
“Graphics and overall performance are good.”
“Played the demo when it released, the developers have clearly been making a ton of progress, particularly with respect to optimization.”
“This game needs serious optimization, especially during cutscenes in a game that has lots of them as a means of storytelling.”
“This game needs serious optimization, especially during cutscenes, which are a major storytelling element. It could also benefit from a higher quality HUD and more feedback on certain interactions.”
“There are significant problems, including frequent hitching and poor optimization—despite the CPU not bottlenecking the game, it only uses 40% of the GPU.”
“The developers have clearly been making a ton of progress, particularly with regard to optimization.”
- stability6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The game exhibits minor stability issues, including occasional character glitches such as getting stuck or clipping through objects, but players can teleport to resolve these problems. Overall, it runs smoothly on Linux without user modifications, and while there are some bugs, they do not significantly detract from the gaming experience.
“Runs great on Linux with no modifications from the user.”
“There are minor glitches: (1) seldom my character gets stuck somewhere, but you can teleport out; (2) buildings you can't go into because you clip through the stairs or are unable to climb something, or the character doesn't recognize the door.”
“2 hours in and I'm invested in this game. A few bugs here and there, online works but occasionally buggy. The storyline so far is pretty intriguing; voiced dialogue would be great but not a necessity. Overall, a great game as of now.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by the quest writing, which has elicited laughter from players on multiple occasions.
“The writing for the quests has made me laugh a few times.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its lack of microtransactions, allowing players to enjoy engaging mechanics and captivating quests without the distraction or pressure of additional purchases.
“The fact that there's no microtransactions in the game, but still manages to have relevant mechanics and captivating quests is just perfect.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by a compelling intro story that immerses players in a narrative of loss and resurrection, as they experience the downfall of a kingdom and the subsequent subjugation to a necromancer, fostering a deep connection with the character.
“The intro story made me feel engaged with this character by setting up a falling kingdom in which I get murdered, followed by resurrection and subjugation to a necromancer.”
