Ziggurat
- August 14, 2014
- Milkstone Studios
- 13h median play time
A delightful modern take on the first person shooters of old.
Get on Steam"Ziggurat is a single-player Fantasy Shooter with fast-paced combat, Rogue-lite elements, and RPG features. Explore randomly generated dungeons, defeat bosses, and level up to prove your worth as a sorcerer. With its beautiful graphics, hilarious moments, and high replayability, Ziggurat offers a wonderful atmosphere and a challenging experience for players."
Mac OS
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Reviews
- Fast-paced and engaging gameplay with a variety of spells and weapons.
- High replayability due to procedurally generated levels and numerous unlockable characters and perks.
- Challenging yet fair difficulty curve that rewards skill and strategy.
- Repetitive enemy types and room designs can lead to a lack of variety over time.
- Some RNG elements can result in frustrating runs where players feel at a disadvantage.
- Lack of a deep story or lore may leave some players wanting more narrative context.
- gameplay490 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay of Ziggurat is characterized by fast-paced, first-person shooting mechanics combined with roguelike elements, offering a blend of nostalgia reminiscent of classic titles like Heretic and Doom. While many players appreciate the smooth controls and variety of weapons and perks, some criticize the repetitiveness of enemy encounters and level design, leading to a sense of monotony over time. Overall, the game provides an engaging experience for fans of the genre, though it may lack the depth and variety found in other roguelikes.
“Ziggurat is pure FPS mechanics, with infinite replay value, in a fantastic environment.”
“The gameplay is fast, fun, challenging, and addicting.”
“The gameplay is extremely tight and responsive, which is good because it is also very challenging.”
“Gameplay is simply 'go from room to room and floor to floor' to kill the same enemies over and over again.”
“There isn't a ton of variety in gameplay with the maps, weapons, or enemies.”
“The gameplay feels unpolished, boring, and repetitive.”
- graphics355 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 46 % neutral mentions
- 1 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising its vibrant, cartoonish art style and overall visual appeal, particularly for an indie title. While some players appreciate the polished aesthetics and smooth performance, others criticize the repetitiveness of the environments and occasional graphical glitches. Overall, the visuals are considered decent to good, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere, though they may not be groundbreaking compared to modern standards.
“The graphics are gorgeous and the game itself is great fun to play.”
“The visuals are great too, some design can be repetitive and some predefined rooms too big for me, but searching for secret doors and such is more fun than tedious to do.”
“The graphics are very nice and the dark theme is done very well.”
“The game keeps resetting settings like graphics and language each time I turn it on.”
“First and foremost, all the levels in the game have barely any variety in graphical design.”
“The graphics are decent but nothing you haven't seen before and nothing that will make you gape in awe, but they are standable.”
- replayability194 mentions
- 49 % positive mentions
- 49 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The game exhibits high replayability due to its procedural generation of levels, a variety of unlockable characters, weapons, and perks, as well as multiple difficulty settings and game modes. Many players appreciate the endless challenges and strategic options available, although some note that certain aspects, like balance and content, may affect the overall experience. Overall, it is regarded as a fun and addictive title that encourages repeated playthroughs.
“The breadth of weapons, characters, and such cater to all play styles, and the random generation gives it great replay value.”
“This is a highly polished game with great replayability, lots of characters, and lots of strategic options to explore.”
“The random level generation, different character choices, weapon combinations, skills, and amulets make it extremely replayable.”
“It's basically if Hexen/Heretic was a roguelite, but it's overall a little too easy and has limited replay value as a result.”
“Pretty fun game but its replayability is hurt by its lack of content.”
“I got about 9 hours of fast-paced FPS dungeon crawling fun out of this game before I'd seen most of the variation it has to offer, but with a bit more content, gameplay depth, and slightly better AI, it could be a real cult classic that has nearly endless replay value.”
- story111 mentions
- 16 % positive mentions
- 76 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The story in "Ziggurat" is largely minimal and often described as almost non-existent, serving primarily as a backdrop for the gameplay rather than a focal point. Players embark on a quest as a sorcerer to navigate through five floors of a ziggurat, with the narrative being simple and lacking depth, often forgotten shortly after the initial cutscene. While some appreciate the lore found in random rooms, many agree that the game prioritizes fast-paced action over a compelling storyline, making it suitable for those who prefer gameplay over narrative complexity.
“The story is you are a sorcerer trying to prove your worth by braving the rite of passage known as the ziggurat.”
“The story is interesting; you are an eager sorcerer that believes you're ready to participate in 'the ziggurat'.”
“Although the story is not the main focus of the game, it is clear that a lot of thinking was put into it.”
“Basically has little to no story worth mentioning and I became bored with it very quickly.”
“The story is almost nonexistent, but the game really doesn't need one to begin with.”
“Without a story... it just seems utterly pointless.”
- music97 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it forgettable or generic, often noting that it fails to enhance the gaming experience significantly. While some appreciate the atmospheric qualities and the way it complements the visuals, others criticize its repetitiveness and lack of memorable tracks. Overall, the soundtrack is seen as a weak point, with many players opting to turn it off or replace it with their own music.
“The music matches the pace of the game and the environment such that you feel a little more enveloped in the game.”
“The soundtrack is fantastic and really helps immerse you into the world.”
“The world of Ziggurat exists in randomly created dungeons which are beautifully designed with plenty of color and ambient lighting alive with many a lethal trap making combat a fantasy thrill-seeker's delight while bringing an amazing soothing surreal meditative calm between battles as haunting ageless music plays in the background.”
“The soundtrack is very forgettable.”
“There's not much to say about the soundtrack, since it's pretty much non-existent, but the game looks good and the controls are decent.”
“The music is pretty generic and forgettable, and you'll often find yourself turning it off and listening to your own music (at least I certainly did).”
- grinding40 mentions
- 3 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 98 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight a mixed perception of grinding in the game, with many players finding it tedious and repetitive, especially as they progress deeper into levels where enemies become spongier and fights drag on. While some appreciate the fun and addictive nature of grinding for unlocks and upgrades, others express frustration with the lack of variety and the feeling of being stuck in a loop of repetitive challenges. Overall, the grinding aspect is seen as a significant part of the experience, but it can lead to burnout for some players.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“I feel like I'm just grinding through the same challenge without much variation over and over.”
“However, it very quickly becomes tedious: after 6 hours, I'm already burnt out, running around in circles shooting at the same enemies, fights getting longer the deeper you go into the levels.”
“Game feels good and plays well, but is unfortunately a tedious, repetitive, and boring grind for unlocks with procedural semi-modular level layouts that leave a lot to be desired.”
- atmosphere35 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its vibrant, colorful design and nostalgic nods to classic dungeon crawlers, creating an engaging and magical experience. However, some players feel that the cartoonish graphics detract from the potential for a darker, more immersive atmosphere, leading to a mixed reception regarding its overall tone. While the sound design and music contribute positively, there are critiques about the lack of environmental variety and depth that could enhance the atmospheric experience.
“It honestly might be the best atmosphere, lighting, and ambience I've ever seen in a game.”
“The magical atmosphere, otherworldly color scheme, and randomized floor layouts create a highly compelling experience.”
“The atmosphere and visuals are just so well placed, giving it a phantasmic and magical experience.”
“It's hard to tell which atmosphere this game tried to maintain.”
“It varies from a classic fantasy atmosphere coming from stone rooms lighted by glowing candles and magic crystals with skeletons/wraiths/demons/golems as enemies to a ridiculous casual game mishmash with specimens more suitable for Plants vs. Zombies or something like that (mushrooms, carrots, featherless birds, flying one-eyed fishes, etc.).”
“Sadly, the interesting monsters fall flat in a flat world, with a flat atmosphere.”
- optimization34 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is generally praised, with many users reporting smooth performance on various systems, including mid-budget PCs and even lower-end hardware. However, some players experience issues such as microstuttering, performance drops during intense moments, and inconsistent performance related to character progression. While it runs well on most setups, particularly on high-end GPUs, there are notable exceptions where users with specific configurations encounter significant lag.
“Very fun, incredibly well-optimized, amazingly polished.”
“It has beautiful graphics, especially for an indie game, and is extremely well optimized.”
“It's also very optimized; I get no slowdown ever on the highest settings, played through the entire game on normal, nothing lagged me.”
“Great game if it didn't have persistent microstuttering when moving.”
“Badly optimized, 580 GTX + 3.2 GHz hex core + 16 GB RAM (well above recommended), this game lags terribly in spots.”
“Boss fights are about 10-15 FPS, normal rooms with high enemy counts can visibly slow down performance.”
- humor27 mentions
- 93 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for its quirky and charming elements, featuring hilarious enemy designs like man-eating carrots and a variety of amusing secrets and lore. Players appreciate the balance of humor with gameplay, noting that the comedic aspects enhance the overall experience without relying on overused tropes. The game's art style and dynamic interactions contribute to a fun atmosphere, making even challenging moments enjoyable.
“The enemy models are gorgeous and have a pleasant quirky touch to them (maniac man-eating carrots are hilarious).”
“The humor in this is great, and the variety from one playthrough to the next is never boring.”
“The game has a great sense of humor about itself and has the aesthetic to match.”
“I mean, you are a wizard, and killing minions and monsters is not funny?”
“But with so few health packs and permadeath, this is not funny anymore.”
- stability14 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 79 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its smooth performance and lack of major issues, while others report frequent glitches, crashes, and graphical bugs that detract from the experience. Overall, while many enjoy the gameplay, the presence of significant bugs and stability problems has been a common concern among users.
“I am happy to report that this awesome game runs great on OS X 10.6.8 and works on both of my computers!”
“Everyone involved has done a good job, and it runs smoothly and is bug-free; well worth the purchase.”
“Combined, you get this game which looks great, runs great, and is a lot of fun.”
“About 45 minutes into my first run, an enemy glitched out and was below the floor - they couldn't hurt me and I couldn't hurt them.”
“There are a few glitches and bugs that took me out of it.”
“Everything about this game is excellent, except for the insane amount of glitches and crashing.”
- character development7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is streamlined and focused on selecting new perks with each level-up, resembling a quick and straightforward process akin to a fast food experience. While there is a lack of traditional stats and gear, the unique character upgrades and varied enemy designs contribute to a dynamic gameplay experience, allowing players to adapt their strategies effectively.
“From the hard-as-nails enemies to the depth of play and unique character development (imagine 'Rogue Legacy'-like unlocks).”
“Character development allows you to choose skills from a random selection, adding an element of surprise and strategy.”
“The character development is very streamlined and primarily revolves around selecting a new perk (mostly passive abilities) every time you level up.”
“The character development is like a fast food drive-through; pick up your upgrades and resume fighting.”
“There are no stats, no character development, no gear besides a few weapons (just like in action games).”
- emotional5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional responses to the game are mixed; while some players appreciate the nostalgic and reflective qualities reminiscent of classic titles, others find the gameplay lacking in depth and engagement. The experience can evoke a sense of fun and excitement during battles, but frustrations with difficulty and pacing detract from the overall emotional impact.
“Its like listening to a spiritual harp touching the soul making one reflect on the positive setting the player up for some fun battles at any moment.”
- monetization5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 80 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game is mixed; while it features numerous unlockable characters that can be earned through gameplay without any microtransactions, some players criticize the presence of in-game advertisements, which detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the lack of microtransactions is a positive point, but the inclusion of ads has led to negative perceptions among certain users.
“There are tons of unlockable characters earnable through gameplay; no microtransactions, and having randomized dungeons with secret areas keeps things fresh and tense.”
“2/10 a real great game if you love bad design choices, samey rooms, deviantart tier cutscenes, and in-game ads.”
“In Ziggurat, you have endless square rooms, jumping puzzles, in-game advertisements, often-stationary monsters that just repeatedly throw slow bullets, and a primary weapon resembling a stick.”
“Spawn in, summon some ads, charge at you (give or take) and do a large attack.”
Critic Reviews
Ziggurat Review
A delightful modern take on the first person shooters of old.
90%Ziggurat PC Game Review
If Serious Sam was mixed with Hexen and Diablo.
68%Ziggurat Review
There's no school like old-school, and Ziggurat serves as a reminder that there's still fun to be had in 2015 with what's essentially an 'arena' shooter. Whether the shooting is good enough to stand on its own without the rest of the package is up for debate, however the smartly implemented Roguelite trappings, as well as the well pitched difficulty, help to cast a spell that'll have you heading back into Ziggurat time and time again.
80%
