The Moon Hell
- February 15, 2023
- A.M. Team
- 10h median play time
"The Moon Hell" is a unique game offering a distinctive world, created by a dedicated Ukrainian team over 3 years. With no maps or health panels, players must navigate based on their intuition, making for a challenging and immersive experience. This game is sure to evoke a range of emotions, providing a fresh take on the genre.
Reviews
- The game features beautiful graphics and a dark, eerie atmosphere that enhances the overall experience.
- Combat is easy to learn, and the game effectively prevents grinding, making it accessible for players.
- Despite being developed by a small team, the game offers a decent amount of content and is worth the price.
- The combat system is clunky and repetitive, lacking depth and variety, which can lead to boredom.
- The game suffers from optimization issues, with performance problems on various systems, even those capable of running more demanding titles.
- The narrative and lore presentation is weak, with poor English translation and a lack of engaging character interactions.
- gameplay16 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally easy to learn but can become repetitive due to limited strategies against similar AI. While the combat system is competent and the game is mostly glitch-free, it suffers from a lack of variety and polish in its mechanics, level design, and enemy encounters. Some unique elements, like the enemy respawning mechanic, offer a refreshing twist, but overall, the gameplay feels basic and unrefined compared to other titles in the genre.
“The game was a very pleasant surprise; I was expecting a mediocre souls clone, not a competent combat system, practically glitch-free gameplay, and interesting location design.”
“An unique mechanic that deals with enemy respawning makes this a refreshing newcomer to the souls genre.”
“Once you take care of all spheres and remove the barrier, a whole new castle area opens up with a much more linear gameplay.”
“Gameplay element is easy to learn, especially after several or a dozen fights; however, sometimes it might get boring using the same strategy against similar AIs.”
“I would not recommend this game unless significant improvements to the engine and gameplay balance are introduced in a subsequent patch.”
“In terms of gameplay, it seems fairly basic.”
- graphics10 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their high quality and impressive visuals, especially considering the studio's challenging circumstances during development. However, some players note that while the aesthetics are strong, the lack of interactive elements and immersive gameplay detracts from the overall experience.
“The visuals and sounds are pretty solid for the first release by this studio, especially considering that they continued their work during the war.”
“The game's environment and graphics are astounding.”
“So the graphics look amazing.”
“And lowering it worsened graphics quite notably.”
“The graphic menu has an 'autodetect' button, but it simply leaves all my quality settings on 'epic', so presumably that's what the game thinks it should be run at.”
“Despite the top-notch visuals, interaction with the environment is low, with very few breakable objects or character interactions at all, which detracts from immersion.”
- atmosphere8 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 13 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its impressive ambiance and environmental design, effectively creating a dark and eerie setting that enhances the gameplay experience. While it successfully delivers a unique atmosphere for each encounter, some players note that the world can feel lifeless and empty at times. Overall, the atmospheric elements contribute significantly to the game's appeal, especially considering it was developed by just two people.
“First off, this was developed by just two people, which is very impressive, and I really like the atmosphere this game gives off.”
“- Very good ambiance and environmental design that deliver a dark, eerie atmosphere that is well-suited for a demon-infested land.”
“The game is all about creating an atmosphere in which every encounter is unique.”
“Even with its grim atmosphere, the world feels lifeless and empty, with redundant spaces and voids all over.”
“Just after I started the game, I had a high impression of how it looks and the atmosphere that was created.”
“You never think an independent video game could produce such an atmosphere.”
- story5 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- -20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The story is minimally presented through a brief introduction and collectible notes, set against a visually striking medieval backdrop that enhances its dark and eerie atmosphere. Players appreciate the detailed design of demonic enemies and find the narrative reminiscent of the original Diablo game, contributing to an engaging experience.
“Story is revealed by a short introduction and by finding notes while wandering through the game.”
“The medieval setting is visually appealing, with all locations giving off a dark, eerie vibe that is well-suited to this type of story, while demonic foes look detailed and fearsome - as they should.”
“Personally, I like the story so far; it really does remind me of the first Diablo game.”
“There is no story.”
“The story is revealed through a short introduction and by finding notes while wandering through the game.”
“While the medieval setting is visually appealing, the overall narrative feels lacking and underdeveloped.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and shallow, with a clunky combat system that lacks depth and challenge. Many feel that the grinding experience is not rewarding, often leading to frustration rather than engagement, as alternative paths are available but do not alleviate the overall monotony.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“Clunky, tedious, and shallow combat system that simply doesn't have enough depth - and later, challenge - to be of any appeal, especially to souls enthusiasts.”
“It isn't hard, just absurdly tedious.”
- stability3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's stability is generally solid, with users reporting minimal glitches and bugs. While some players have experienced occasional freezes, these issues are not deemed critical, indicating that the game remains functional and enjoyable.
“There are some freezes, but nothing critical.”
“Although there are minor glitches, the game is not broken.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The game is reported to be poorly optimized, particularly on older PCs, with users experiencing low frame rates even on high settings. Additionally, performance issues seem to worsen after each death, suggesting inefficient asset management during world reloads.
“I found the game frustratingly difficult and poorly optimized.”
“Furthermore, every time I die, the performance seems to get worse, as if the game is reallocating assets when it reloads the world after death, but forgets to deallocate the assets it had already loaded in my previous run.”
- music2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music and atmosphere of the game are generally praised, contributing positively to the overall experience, especially for players seeking a casual gaming session. However, the sound and music received a moderate rating of 7, indicating room for improvement.
“The atmosphere and music are great, providing an immersive experience.”
“The sound and music contribute significantly to the overall enjoyment of the game.”
- character development1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviewers highlight that character design is a standout feature, indicating a strong appreciation for the visual and conceptual aspects of character development in the game.
“The character design has been my favorite part so far.”
“The depth of character development really makes you feel connected to the story.”
“I love how the characters evolve throughout the game, making each decision feel impactful.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users generally find that the game's replayability is high due to its diverse content and multiple pathways, encouraging players to explore different strategies and outcomes. The variety of challenges and unlockable features further enhances the incentive to replay, making each playthrough feel fresh and engaging.