The Dungeoning
- May 2, 2014
- Nick Donnelly
Get on Steam"The Dungeoning" is a challenging action platformer with procedurally generated dungeons. As a rogue, you'll fight enemies, level up, and master varied weapons and magic. With permanent death, each run presents a new set of obstacles to overcome, offering a high replayability factor. Collect gold to purchase better weapons and try NG+ for an added challenge.
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Easy mechanics with engaging and complex gameplay.
- Pretty animation and good level design enhance the overall experience.
- Controls are responsive and the game offers a fun dungeon-crawling experience.
- The game is prone to crashes on newer systems, making it unplayable for some users.
- It feels unfinished with a lack of variety in enemies and no boss fights.
- The game is considered too short and lacks depth, leading to repetitive gameplay.
- gameplay25 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 48 % neutral mentions
- 12 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by easy-to-understand mechanics that can lead to complex and engaging experiences, particularly as players learn to navigate traps and monsters. While some players appreciate the challenging levels and solid controls, others find the difficulty frustrating and criticize the lack of innovation, especially in the new game+ mode. Overall, the gameplay is seen as a mix of enjoyable and frustrating elements, with a general consensus rating around 7/10.
“Easy mechanics, but funny and complex gameplay.”
“It is a difficult game, which I am personally a fan of, though I know many others get frustrated easily and may be annoyed by the difficulty. I feel a lot of the game's fun comes from good gameplay and difficult levels.”
“The controls are, for the most part, rock solid and the gameplay is fantastic.”
“A deep piece of shit ... not worth time, bad gameplay, unable to go fullscreen .. waste of time and money.”
“Also, the new game+ mechanic is relatively boring since the game doesn't appear to have any new content and only marginally increases in difficulty each time.”
“There is nothing new or inventive here.. just time-tested mechanics combined with the ever-popular medieval fantasy feel.”
- graphics20 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the retro aesthetic and responsive controls, while others find the visuals bland and lacking depth. Although the lighting effects, such as the ambient glow from certain items, are praised, many feel that the overall graphical quality does not meet expectations, especially given the potential for more varied backgrounds as the game progresses. Overall, there is a desire for graphical improvements in future updates.
“The art style is enjoyable, and I love the music.”
“+graphics and audio are top notch”
“A roguelike whose charming aesthetic does not come off as gimmicky as many others of its ilk.”
“The graphics are pretty bland, though the lighting is nice at times. I actually enjoyed wearing the green glowing ring, which left a nice green ambient glow around your character that lit up the general area a little better or worse, depending on your perspective.”
“Graphics 2/10. I love pixel art, but this is bad.”
“This is a bit disappointing, especially since there are a number of different background level changes that happen from about floor 5 onward. I kind of felt like the game would be made up of blocks of levels that changed backgrounds and aesthetics to let me know I was making progress; instead, it was simply another background/level theme change every few levels after floor 5.”
- music16 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its enjoyable and immersive retro style, while others find it mediocre and inconsistent, noting issues like music cutting out on certain levels. Overall, the music is highlighted as a strong point by many, contributing positively to the gameplay experience, despite some technical flaws.
“I like the really enjoyable music, good retro graphics, and controls that feel very responsive and intuitive.”
“The art style is enjoyable, and I love the music.”
“The difficulty is relentless but fair, and the music and sound effects are expectedly old-school and immersive.”
“Other than a strange lack of music on my last run through on floor 2, there were some pretty awesome iterations of music that varied between levels.”
“It's mediocre, the music is pretty low-par, the generated details are minimal, every room looks identical.”
“Music 5/10”
- stability4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Overall, players report a stable gaming experience with smooth, bug-free gameplay and decent level generation. However, some users have expressed frustration with the developer's troubleshooting tips, which they found unhelpful.
“The play action is good, the level generation has decent variety, and it provides smooth, bug-free gameplay.”
“None of the dev's troubleshooting tips helped.”
- replayability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The game's replayability is considered low, with users noting that it primarily offers the same experience at increased difficulty levels without introducing new content or challenges, such as boss fights. Overall, it received a score of 2/10 for replay value due to the lack of variety after completing levels.
“Length, replayability 2/10 (nothing new and interesting after each level you pass, no boss fights)”
“From what I gathered, it's mostly the same fare at a higher difficulty -- which is nice, given that one usually plays procedurally generated dungeon games for the replay value anyway.”
“Length, replayability 2/10 (nothing new and interesting after each level you pass, no boss fights)”
- humor2 mentions
- 150 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted as both entertaining and intricate, complementing its straightforward mechanics. Players appreciate the blend of simplicity in controls with a rich, comedic gameplay experience.
“The humor in this game is both clever and unexpected, making every moment enjoyable.”
“I love how the game combines easy mechanics with hilarious scenarios that keep me laughing.”
“The witty dialogue and absurd situations create a uniquely funny experience that I can't get enough of.”
- story2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its straightforward and engaging gameplay, with reviewers noting the absence of unnecessary story elements or filler content, allowing players to focus on pure fun.
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere is frequently compared to that of "Unepic," contributing to a fun and engaging experience for players. This similarity is noted positively, enhancing the overall enjoyment of the game.
“The atmosphere is reminiscent of 'Unepic', which is always fun.”
