The Thaumaturge

About

The Thaumaturge is a single player tactical role playing game with horror, fantasy, mystery and dark fantasy themes. It was developed by Fool's Theory and was released on March 4, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

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83%Audience ScoreBased on 2,213 reviews

story808 positive mentions

optimization33 negative mentions

Unique and immersive historical setting in 1905 Warsaw with rich worldbuilding and cultural detail
Engaging story with meaningful player choices and multiple impactful endings
Turn-based combat with strategic depth involving collecting and using supernatural beings called Salutors
Excellent art direction and atmosphere, complemented by a fitting soundtrack
Good voice acting particularly in the original Polish version
Exploration and side quests that add to the lore and character development

Repetitive and sometimes tedious gameplay loop dominated by walking and spamming perception to find clues
Combat is shallow, repetitive, and sometimes feels forced with little enemy variety
Poor optimization and technical issues including crashes, graphical glitches, and stuttering
Mixed quality voice acting in some languages and awkward dialogue localization
Some pacing issues with slow story progression and a rushed or unsatisfying ending
Investigation mechanics lack player agency as conclusions are automatically drawn
Limited character customization and progression system that can lock the player out of choices

story
2,114 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
58%
4%
The story of Thaumaturge is widely praised for its compelling, mature narrative set in an alternative early 20th-century Warsaw, blending historical events with occult and slavic folklore elements. Players appreciate the deep character development, meaningful moral choices, and branching outcomes that impact the plot, creating an immersive and atmospheric experience. However, some critics note pacing issues, occasional narrative confusion, and a slow, repetitive investigation style that may detract from engagement for some players.
- “A very deep story with lots of different choices and outcomes, most of which hidden in the role-playing branches.”
- “Story and RPG element are definitely the best developed part of the game.”
- “The story, characters, and setting are outstanding; the combat is serviceable, but not the main draw.”
- “The main plot spirals completely out of control starting in chapter 3, seemingly consumed by its own defect. Just when players anticipate a major twist or expansion as the protagonist lands in prison, crucial characters die with bewildering abruptness, and the entire story grinds to a halt with zero logical coherence. It's so absurdly bad it defies belief as a standard game script.”
- “The story never climaxes; you keep expecting something that never happens. The plot rarely hits predictable beats and the narrative feels out of control, with some side quests encountering temporary progression blocks. As its story limped to its conclusion and the credits began to roll, my heart sank with profound disappointment.”
- “Most side quests aren't full story quests, but are fetch quests for XP or simple collectibles. The gameplay mostly consists of running around, clicking through the environment to find clues or objects, followed by viewing a sketch or brief text. The story is bogged down by irrelevant filler, feels slow, and many quests lead nowhere, making it feel like a tedious chore.”
gameplay
677 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
63%
9%
The gameplay in "The Thaumaturge" is a blend of investigative point-and-click mechanics and turn-based combat that many find repetitive, shallow, and lacking in depth or challenge. While the combat system introduces unique elements through its "salutors" and thaumaturgy-based skills, it often feels simplistic and can become tedious over time. However, the game’s strong narrative, atmospheric worldbuilding, and distinct lore compensate for these shortcomings, making the experience more appealing to players prioritizing story over gameplay complexity.
- “The combat is accessible enough not to get in the way, yet the final boss fight is cleverly designed to test your understanding of the mechanics, providing just the right amount of challenge.”
- “Gameplay 9/10 - the magic system is truly compelling and deeply embedded in the mechanics of all three modes of play (combat, conversation, walking about).”
- “The gameplay goes hand in hand with the narrative aspect, as it goes deeper with an elaborate and interesting system of choices.”
- “The gameplay is lackluster and quickly becomes a repetitive point-and-click fest with very few actual decisions to make outside of your combat loadout.”
- “The gameplay is very boring, and the combat system is even more boring: there’s no strategy involved, you don’t need to think at all — you just have to run around and spam the right mouse button.”
- “The worst of it is the gameplay loop, we walk around town spamming the perception ping to reveal interactables with almost no visual representation for the "wall" of text it shows, and then the game reveals the conclusion with no margin to error; we don’t have to try to figure anything out, it is not stimulating.”
graphics
380 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
49%
4%
The graphics of the game are generally praised for their unique, atmospheric art style and detailed, historically inspired environments that effectively evoke early 20th-century Warsaw’s gloom and charm. However, the visual experience is marred by frequent and sometimes severe graphical glitches, performance issues, and optimization problems, even on high-end PCs, which detract from immersion. While fans appreciate the art direction and setting, character animations and facial expressions are often criticized as stiff or uncanny, and technical hiccups remain a significant drawback.
- “The graphics are good, the combat is flexible but punchy enough not to overstay its welcome, the characters and beautifully Slavic setting take you away and immerse you easily.”
- “From a design standpoint, The Thaumaturge excels with graphics so crisp that the smallest details stand in sharp relief. Sweat beads on a character's brow, the gentle melting of snow upon warm skin—it's a visual banquet that takes full advantage of current-generation game graphics. The polished aesthetic complements the narrative's depth, conjuring atmospheres that feel tangible, almost as if one could stretch out a hand and touch the vintage surfaces of a bygone time.”
- “The visuals and atmosphere draw you in, making the whole experience feel rich and exciting. Not only is it fun, but the story is captivating, the world is wonderfully designed, and the aesthetic is mesmerizing.”
- “That alone would even be acceptable if it wasn't for the visuals and the animations - the characters move weirdly, their facial expressions placed solidly in the middle of the uncanny valley, sometimes even not moving at all.”
- “I really liked the concept of the game and what it could be, but it's quite literally unplayable for me on any graphics but the lowest. I have a reasonable PC (RTX 4060, 32 GB RAM, i5-12400f), not that good, but I didn't expect problems playing this game. With max settings, it crashed at the end of the first cutscene; after multiple attempts, I downgraded to medium settings, skipped the first cutscene, got through the second, and upon entering the first location, the game instantly crashed again. Only after lowering graphics to the minimum was I able to reach the village, but the game constantly had visual bugs and looked so bad it was gross. I wanted to play, but fearing constant crashes, I'd rather not. Extremely disappointed, especially since the game is almost two years old; what are the devs doing?”
- “The graphics are refined, but the game suffers from numerous severe graphical glitches, like loading in character assets every time the camera switches from one character to another, including the cloth simulation, which looks ridiculous when clothes flutter wildly, especially when seated, every time a character comes into view.”
atmosphere
262 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
62%
37%
1%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive, dark, and richly detailed portrayal of early 20th-century Warsaw, blending historical authenticity with supernatural and folkloric elements. Reviewers highlight the haunting music, evocative art style, and well-crafted environments that together create a unique, gripping mood comparable to titles like Vampyr and Call of Cthulhu. While some note occasional technical or performance issues and uneven voice acting, the overall atmospheric worldbuilding and setting stand out as the game's strongest and most compelling features.
- “The thaumaturge is a very special and great dark RPG with tons of dialogue choices, fun & challenging turn-based combat and very detailed atmospheres.”
- “The game's atmosphere is its best quality and it is absolutely top notch.”
- “Brilliant illustration of Warsaw in 1905, with a vivid, living atmosphere that pulls you into the city’s streets, cafés, and back alleys.”
- “Almost everyone, with very few exceptions, sounds emotionless, tired, depressed, and it just reinforces the very grim and morbid atmosphere of the game, which is about as appealing as a rainy winter evening in central Poland.”
- “While Warsaw looks great from a technical standpoint and the character models are sharp and detailed, it’s all so very lifeless; partly due to the drab colour palette, a criminally underused soundtrack that leaves many scenes void of atmosphere and blends together otherwise, and the blatantly poor animation.”
- “Sadly, after finishing the game I have to say that it has many issues: it is buggy, the atmosphere does not get better at all, the music is bad and gets much worse over time, since it likes to loop on itself very often and the track is quite short; in addition, it also has pauses between loops which is an issue since there are very few ambient sounds, especially indoors.”
music
182 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
53%
43%
4%
The game's music is widely praised for its atmospheric, immersive, and culturally rich soundtrack that effectively complements the eerie, mystical setting of early 20th century Warsaw. While many highlight the haunting melodies, dark Polish motifs, and folkloric instrumentation as standout features, some reviewers note issues with repetitiveness, limited variety, and occasional sparse or absent tracks that dilute overall impact. Overall, the soundtrack enhances mood and worldbuilding, though it could benefit from more dynamic and memorable compositions, especially during combat.
- “The soundtrack complements this perfectly: mournful strings, whispered chants, and dissonant tones echo the tension between science, faith, and madness.”
- “The music is outstanding, adding atmosphere and enhancing immersion.”
- “Accordions, clarinets, strings, and even the hurdy gurdy combine to create unusual and atmospheric Polish horror folk music that my ears just gobbled up.”
- “The soundtrack is embarrassingly sparse, cycling through a handful of monotonous tracks ad nauseam, none possessing the iconic quality of disco's masterful playlist.”
- “Sadly after finishing the game I have to say that it has many issues, it is buggy, the atmosphere does not get better at all, the music is bad and gets much worse over the time, since it likes to loop on itself very often and the track is quite short, in addition it also has pauses between loops which is an issue since there are only very few ambient sounds, especially indoors.”
- “The music in fights is so bad I don't want to feel like a ruffian when I'm a literal stand master with damn near psychic abilities.”
optimization
123 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
57%
27%
Optimization for the game is generally problematic, with many users reporting heavy performance demands, frequent stuttering, frame drops, crashes, and graphical glitches even on high-end hardware. While some have found partial solutions or experienced better performance on platforms like Steam Deck or with specific settings, overall the game struggles with uneven and poor optimization that detracts from the experience. Minor improvements and patches may help, but in its current state, optimization remains a significant drawback.
- “The game is well presented and I noticed no significant bugs or performance issues.”
- “Firstly, the performance: it runs smooth on my RTX4080, no glitches or bugs.”
- “Add to that stellar Steam Deck performance and dedicated graphical settings, and this easily becomes one of the most compelling narrative RPGs in recent memory.”
- “The optimization is definitely lacking, it feels rather careless, and there are also some annoying graphical glitches with occasional flickering.”
- “Sadly it completely maxes out my RTX 3060 (which is above the minimum requirements and barely below the recommended). I can't get more than 40 fps, and even then with a lot of stuttering and frame drops.”
- “Super poorly optimized, it crashed my graphics card several times (even playing with super low settings).”
grinding
85 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
4%
92%
Grinding in the game is widely regarded as tedious due to repetitive combat encounters, slow-paced turn-based fights, and numerous fetch quests that contribute to a sense of monotony. Players often find the upgrade and leveling systems underdeveloped and disproportionately demanding, with exploration and clue-hunting sometimes feeling like a chore. While some appreciate the story and atmosphere, the overall gameplay loop involving combat and side activities tends to wear out its welcome, especially in later stages.
- “Luckily, there is no grinding or combat encounter whenever you want.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “I am 12 hours in and still haven't beat it but it's not tedious.”
- “The gameplay itself becomes a bit tedious quickly, combat plays out the same way every time after a while, and running around doing various side quests also becomes a chore.”
- “And even though the story is quite interesting, the gameplay becomes very tedious after a while.”
- “Leveling up/exp farming: if you want to level up and max out Wiktor's dimensions, you basically have to do all the side quests; from collecting all the clothes, the sketches, photographs, and side quests. This will get tedious; I think this is the part where it feels grindy and filler-ish.”
stability
57 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
96%
The game suffers from frequent stability issues, including numerous graphical glitches, freezes, and occasional crashes that disrupt gameplay and require restarts. Many users report unoptimized performance, animation quirks, and bugs in menus and combat, causing frustration despite the game's otherwise engaging narrative and atmosphere. While some players experience minor issues, others find the bugs severe enough to significantly impact their experience.
- “Firstly, the performance: it runs smooth on my RTX 4080, no glitches or bugs.”
- “But in all seriousness, great game, it runs great on Deck.”
- “Startup performance tanked the more saves I had (I assume that's the cause); the menu was barely functioning on startup by the end and I had quite a lot of complete freezes (it never crashed and like the menu, it got back on track if I waited some).”
- “The game freezes several times every time I sit down to play, or dialogue will cut out halfway through a scene, characters moving their lips without anything coming out.”
- “However, after reaching chapter 3 (after the docks), my game just constantly freezes at random, and if it freezes during dialogue (which is a huge portion of the game), the audio cuts out until you restart the game.”
emotional
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
96%
4%
The game offers a unique emotional experience centered on psychometry and uncovering characters' memories and feelings through object-touching, deepening narrative connections and moral complexity. While some praise its heartfelt depiction of personal and historical struggles, emotional relationships, and atmosphere, others criticize flat voice acting, uneven dialogue, slow pacing, and a lack of impactful choices that hinder emotional engagement. Overall, it presents a slow-burning, emotionally layered journey with moments of warmth and melancholy, though its delivery may feel stunted or meandering to some players.
- “The world and the gravity of the choices you make are sometimes heart-wrenching (poor sister, I shouldn't have taken your flaw, despite the combat buff) and sometimes delightful (off you go, Albuquerque Chad), but always satisfyingly colored by your previous choices.”
- “Wiktor's relationship with his sister is very heart-warming, cheeky, and well acted and written.”
- “Even with the slow-burn pacing in mind, The Thaumaturge presents an emotionally engaging, morally grey trip through early 20th century Poland with a dash of mysticism and a heaping spoonful of inquisitive exploration.”
- “It's mainly boring wandering around to unravel a boring story.”
- “Boring gameplay (just spam thaumaturge sense button), boring fight (80% of the game I use one strategy), boring story (only Russians everywhere bad, you can predict anything using this thought).”
humor
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a dry, dark, and often quirky humor that blends witty dialogue, cultural references, and occasional slapstick moments, frequently eliciting laughter and refreshing narrative twists. Players appreciate its clever writing, eccentric characters, and morbid or zany comedic undertones, though some find the humor less consistent or impactful during the middle sections. Overall, the humor enriches the story’s atmosphere, making it engaging and memorable despite minor technical glitches.
- “The dialogues sparkle, there's a sense of over-the-top, eastern European humor (i.e., the magical space between wanting to commit suicide and enjoying another day).”
- “One of the funniest moments comes when two women are checking Wiktor out on a park bench; this reversal of the male gaze is both hilarious, and as a female player, incredibly refreshing.”
- “Each NPC has a distinct personality, contributing to the rich content and thought-provoking discussions that Wiktor engages in, and that scene about inscribing words in onion and fork is brilliant and funny.”
replayability
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
35%
57%
8%
The game offers moderate to high replayability primarily through its branching storylines, multiple endings, and meaningful choices that impact the narrative and character relationships. While some find the combat and skill systems underdeveloped for varied builds, many appreciate revisiting the game to explore different decision paths. However, a few players feel the linearity and limited content reduce its desire for repeated playthroughs.
- “The game’s branching dialogue options and decision points impact character relationships and the story’s outcome, adding replayability and encouraging players to consider the consequences of their choices.”
- “The game also has multiple endings, which adds to replayability.”
- “Amazing world, amazing quests, immense replayability value and just an enjoyable experience overall.”
- “I am aware you could play a few more hours for some different choices using some key saves, but if you eliminate most optional stuff and reading that still does not add that much more and combat and skill system is not developed enough to have what I consider actual "builds" so not that much replay value I would say.”
- “No choices, no variety, no replayability, just plain boring.”
- “Not much replayability frankly.”
character development
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
61%
10%
Character development in "The Thaumaturge" is generally praised for its deep RPG elements, rich lore, and well-crafted character designs that enhance the storytelling and world-building. While some reviewers note linear progression and limited mechanics until late-game, the customization, meaningful choices, and unique supernatural elements provide a compelling and immersive experience. Criticisms include occasionally uninspired combat, repetitive facial designs, and inconsistent voice acting that detract from character immersion for some players.
- ““The thaumaturge” is basically an isometric CRPG with plenty of character development opportunities, especially regarding combat.”
- “Deep character development: each character is well-developed, with their own backstories and motivations.”
- “In the end, players will be left with a lasting impression of a game that combines a rich and engaging story with challenging combat and deep character development features.”
- “- Character development mechanics offered very little up until the very end, where players just lack points to buy every skill, which locks them out of a few choices.”
- “It has some issues such as extremely bare-bones combat and character development and terrible dubbing both in English and Polish versions. It's clear that it's a low budget game.”
- “This is forced linear story, forced linear character development, forced linear combat, forced linear dialog.”
monetization
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
80%
The game features no microtransactions, providing a straightforward monetization approach. However, some players feel the in-game rewards system, such as thaumaturgy points, is overly generous, affecting the balance and progression. Overall, the monetization is transparent but the gameplay experience may not fully meet the advertised expectations.
- “The game's advertisement really sold this well, but the game I got, while it kind of fits into what was suggested, did not live up to expectations.”
- “I do think, however, that the thaumaturgy points are awarded much too freely; even reading repeated advertisements or articles that do not provide anything for quest objectives give experience; I have maxed out my heart and deed trees (up until the second salutor) and I only just acquired the third salutor in the entire game.”
- “There are no microtransactions.”

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78%Critics’ scoreBased on 32 critic reviews

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20h Median play time

21h Average play time

7-35h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 22 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

The Thaumaturge is a tactical role playing game with horror, fantasy, mystery and dark fantasy themes.

The Thaumaturge is available on Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5, Steam Deck and others.

On average players spend around 21 hours playing The Thaumaturge.

The Thaumaturge was released on March 4, 2024.

The Thaumaturge was developed by Fool's Theory.

The Thaumaturge has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked The Thaumaturge for its story but disliked it for its optimization.

The Thaumaturge is a single player game.

Similar games include Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, The Necromancer's Tale, The Council, Gamedec, Hell is Us and others.

The Thaumaturge

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story

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atmosphere

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optimization

grinding

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The Thaumaturge review – lacking polish

The Thaumaturge Review – Embrace the demons within

The Thaumaturge Review – Embracing Your Demons Makes For a Devilishly Good Time

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The Thaumaturge

Platforms

About

story

gameplay

graphics

atmosphere

music

optimization

grinding

stability

emotional

humor

replayability

character development

monetization

Buy The Thaumaturge

The Thaumaturge (PC) - Steam Key - EUROPE

The Thaumaturge Steam Account

The Thaumaturge

The Thaumaturge

The Thaumaturge

Videos

Games Like The Thaumaturge

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden

The Necromancer's Tale

The Council

Gamedec

Hell is Us

Tower of Time

Drova: Forsaken Kin

Call of Cthulhu

Tyranny

Vampyr

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