The Knight Witch

The Knight Witch is an endearing tale that perfectly blends fast paced shooting and satisfying spell casting. From the sensational artwork and score to clever game design, the entire experience was remarkable.

74%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

grinding, stability

82% User Score Based on 478 reviews

Critic Score 75%Based on 18 reviews

Platforms

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About

The Knight Witch is a metroidvania adventure game with fast-paced, shoot 'em up combat set in a beautifully hand-drawn world. Cast devastating card-based spells, forge close bonds, and make moral choices all in your quest to save your home and discover who's behind the War Golem invasion.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

+12

82%

Audience ScoreBased on 496 reviews

story116 positive mentions

grinding21 negative mentions

The game features beautiful hand-drawn art and a captivating soundtrack that enhances the overall experience.
The combination of bullet hell mechanics with metroidvania elements creates a unique and engaging gameplay experience.
The story is surprisingly interesting, with well-developed characters and themes that resonate with players.

The card system introduces randomness that can lead to frustrating moments, especially during intense combat situations.
The game lacks fast travel options for most of the playthrough, making backtracking tedious and time-consuming.
Some boss fights, particularly the final one, are considered overly difficult, leading to a reliance on cheats for many players.

story
302 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
59%
2%
The story of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it engaging and filled with intriguing twists, while others criticize it for being predictable or poorly executed. Many appreciate the themes explored, such as environmentalism and the impact of social media, but feel that the delivery often falls flat, with some dialogue being tedious. Overall, while the narrative has its strengths, including interesting characters and a charming presentation, it also suffers from inconsistencies and a lack of depth in certain areas.
- “The story is simple but effective, and it isn't purely linear, but sprinkled with twists, turns, and allegory.”
- “The story is engaging and has a bunch of twists, and I found myself thinking 'ok, so this will be the final boss' many times during my playthrough, just for my certainties to be overturned by a plot twist.”
- “Great art, a wonderful story that's actually much better-developed than the myriad souls-like-with-environmental-storytelling games out there, performant on my relatively low-end machine, and engaging enough to sink 20 hours into.”
- “The game story is all over the place, it's built on solid ideas but executed in a terrible way!”
- “The storywriting is atrocious, the main character is frustratingly stupid and a lot of the story beats feel needlessly preachy; this whole script needs a proper writer to tear through and rewrite half of it.”
- “There are plot points, characters, and moments all set up with plenty of impact potential, but the delivery fails every time.”
gameplay
210 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
62%
4%
The gameplay of "The Knight Witch" is a mixed bag, combining bullet hell and metroidvania elements with deck-building mechanics that some players find awkward and poorly integrated. While the core mechanics are generally solid and engaging, issues such as slow movement, cumbersome mechanics, and a lack of clarity in essential gameplay elements detract from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, many players appreciate the game's visuals, music, and the potential for dynamic playstyles, making it appealing to fans of the bullet hell genre.
- “The bullet hell + metroidvania aspects of the game were well done, making the gameplay and challenge factor fit into a sweet spot of fun without frustration.”
- “The gameplay is very fun and tight.”
- “The knight witch not only looks stunning, but the gameplay is tight and inventive, providing an enjoyable bullet hell extravaganza.”
- “The actual gameplay should've been overhauled back in the early prototype stage.”
- “I can say that in The Knight Witch, the merging of the deckbuilding elements doesn't fit with the gameplay at all.”
- “The choice of locking mechanics early in made the start of the game feel very slow.”
music
136 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
64%
34%
2%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim, with many reviewers praising its catchiness, atmospheric quality, and ability to enhance the overall experience. While some tracks are described as generic or dull, the majority of the soundtrack is noted for its beauty and fittingness to the game's various moments, making it a highlight for players. Additionally, the dynamic use of music adds depth, although it occasionally leads to minor glitches.
- “The music is fitting for each moment throughout the game and never got on my nerves.”
- “The game is gorgeous, plays well, the music is mesmerizing.”
- “The areas are diverse, including lakes, forests, and laboratories, all with a commendable degree of attention to detail and accompanied by great and pertinent music for each atmosphere.”
- “Mediocre gameplay and lame music.”
- “The music was sometimes quite decent, and in some places quite dull and generic.”
- “The game has so many problematic points that I'll just summarize it by saying that it feels like it was made in a month by one developer (plus artist and musician).”
graphics
128 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
39%
5%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their vibrant, hand-drawn art style, charming character designs, and beautiful backgrounds, creating a visually stunning experience reminiscent of a storybook. While many players appreciate the aesthetics and overall presentation, some express concerns about gameplay visibility due to flashy visuals and a lack of graphics settings. Overall, the art direction is considered a strong point, contributing significantly to the game's appeal despite some gameplay-related criticisms.
- “What first drew me into it definitely was its gorgeous and colorful art style, both in terms of character design, as well as in its background art.”
- “Of course, the first thing you likely noticed when you stumbled upon the store page were the game's visuals; as far as the sights on offer are concerned, I'm inclined to describe them as most akin to a lavishly-illustrated storybook, boasting distinctive character and environment designs, vibrant colors, and lots of little details to take in if you spare the time to notice them.”
- “The graphics are absolutely gorgeous; every screenshot is a painting.”
- “I detest the art style and character designs.”
- “There are next to no graphics settings, why?”
- “By the way, graphic optimization is bad: in my machine, fps fluctuated between 15 and 60 in native resolution (1080p), with occasional stutters.”
grinding
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious, primarily due to slow character movement, linear progression, and frequent backtracking. While the core mechanics and deckbuilding offer some variety, the overall experience is marred by repetitive tasks and uninspiring rewards, leading to a sense of frustration rather than enjoyment. Despite some opportunities for exploration and side quests, the grind often overshadows the game's potential.
- “The game becomes tedious.”
- “This game is tedious in the extreme.”
- “However, structurally and for a metroidvania, the progression is too linear - despite having the traditional unlockables, which allow access to additional rooms later, the rewards rarely excite and backtracking becomes tedious given the character's slow movement speed and low amount of fast travel points.”
character development
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
Character development received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the cute and colorful character designs, particularly praising the main character and spirit cat. However, others criticized the dialogue and character design as cringeworthy, suggesting a self-insert quality that detracted from the overall experience. The art style was a highlight for many, but opinions on character depth and dialogue varied significantly.
- “What first drew me into it definitely was its gorgeous and colorful art style, both in terms of character design, as well as in its background art.”
- “The background art style looks awesome and detailed, character design looks cute but the main character looks absolutely adorable, also spirit cat :3”
- “The combat felt engaging throughout, the music kept my mood up and the fluid animation never ceased to amaze me (plus, Rayne's character design is super cute).”
- “Character design and dialogue were really cringe (really suspecting self-insert).”
- “I detest the art style and character designs.”
- “Character design and dialogue were really cringe (really suspecting self-insert).”
stability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game has experienced significant stability issues, particularly on the Steam Deck, with users reporting various bugs that hinder gameplay, such as character freezing and achievement glitches. While some problems have been addressed, players still encounter major glitches that may prevent them from fully completing the game. Overall, stability remains a concern, with mixed reports on improvements.
- “But it's got some major glitches, at least on my Steam Deck.”
- “Very buggy; you will likely not 100% the game due to a bug with the achievements, and the item that's designed to show you where missing secrets are not flagging certain secrets as uncollected.”
- “Every time you get hit, your character freezes for a full minute.”
humor
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is widely praised for its clever and lighthearted tone, featuring funny dialogues and cute interactions that enhance the overall experience. Players appreciate the protagonist's grounded sense of humor, which adds depth to her character and prevents her from feeling clichéd. Unique narrative moments, such as a humorous press conference, further contribute to the game's charm and engaging storytelling.
- “Great mashup of metroidvania and bullet hell mixed in with beautiful aesthetics and funny dialogue.”
- “Even your playable heroine, so frequently saddled with 'blank slate' or 'archetype' status, is not only earnest and determined but possesses a gently grounded, easygoing sense of humor which keeps her from ever becoming one-note or overbearing; this additional effort on the writers' and localizers' part is very much appreciated.”
- “The story is super cute and interesting and it has some very unique and smart moments (like the press conference). I also love the way the narrative is connected to the gameplay; the dialogues are funny with a light humor tone and slightly meta.”
atmosphere
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
The game's atmosphere is noted for its vibrant level designs and a beautiful soundtrack that enhances the experience, showcasing diverse environments like lakes, forests, and laboratories with impressive attention to detail. However, some players feel that the overall mood does not align with their expectations, particularly until the endgame, leading to a sense of disappointment regarding the execution of the atmosphere in relation to design choices.
- “The areas are diverse, including lakes, forests, and laboratories, all with a commendable degree of attention to detail and accompanied by great and pertinent music for each atmosphere.”
- “The game is incredibly atmospheric, the vibrant level designs paired with a beautiful soundtrack.”
- “So sad this idea and beautiful art and atmosphere got wasted on some of the worst design choices I've seen in games.”
- “While I sort of disagree with them, I do find that the atmosphere and the mood did not match at all; it felt nothing like I imagined it should at any given point in the game, at least until I started marching into endgame.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a main character who embodies a blend of positivity and emotional resilience, contributing to a heartwarming narrative. Players appreciate the fun concept and the emotional depth, likening the experience to a powerful journey reminiscent of "FernGully." Overall, it is praised for its engaging story and emotional impact.
- “The main character is a perfect balance of positivity and emotional strength.”
- “Fun concept, heartwarming story, and successful power trip.”
- “It's a good game wrapped in an emotional consumption of Ferngully.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game's optimization has been criticized for significant performance issues, including fluctuating frame rates between 15 and 60 fps at 1080p resolution, accompanied by frequent stutters and excessive visual clutter. Overall, the graphic optimization is deemed poor by users.
- “There is a lot of visual clutter and serious performance issues.”
- “By the way, graphic optimization is bad: on my machine, FPS fluctuated between 15 and 60 in native resolution (1080p), with occasional stutters.”