Zorbus

About

Zorbus is a single player role playing game with a fantasy theme. It was developed by Zorbus and was released on September 14, 2022. It received very positive reviews from players.

"Zorbus is a single-player, traditional roguelike game with fantasy theme and turn-based strategy. The game features a randomly generated dungeon, permadeath, and recruitment of other creatures. Inspired by tabletop D&D, Zorbus aims to create an alive and eventful dungeon, free of hunger mechanics and item identification."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 222 reviews

gameplay6 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

Zorbus offers a great old-school roguelike experience with a modern twist, featuring excellent quality of life improvements and a polished interface.
The game has a rich atmosphere with immersive sound effects, engaging enemy interactions, and a unique companion system that enhances gameplay.
It provides a challenging yet fair difficulty curve, encouraging players to learn from their mistakes and adapt their strategies for each run.

The game can be extremely difficult, especially in the early stages, leading to frequent and sometimes frustrating deaths that may deter new players.
There are balance issues, particularly with magic users being significantly more powerful than melee characters, which can limit playstyle diversity.
Some players have reported UI and control issues, particularly with the auto-explore feature and the need for constant manual adjustments during gameplay.

gameplay
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
73%
9%
The gameplay of the reviewed roguelike games is characterized by a blend of traditional mechanics and modern enhancements, offering a rich and detailed experience that rewards player skill and understanding. While some titles excel in polish and accessibility, making mechanics easy to learn, others suffer from bugs and balance issues that can hinder enjoyment. Overall, players appreciate the depth and challenge of the gameplay, though there are calls for further refinement and additional interactive elements to enhance the experience.
- “What unfolded was a clear indication this was a labor of love, with a stunning attention to detail in the gameplay, enemy interactions, lighting; the whole thing just oozes with attention.”
- “Great roguelike, very worth your time if you ever liked Nethack, ADOM, Angband, etc. What impresses me the most is the level to which everything in the game is explained and documented; it's very rare to find a roguelike, or even just a game, that makes it this easy to learn the mechanics without stumbling through a wiki somewhere.”
- “Zorbus is an extremely well polished traditional roguelike; every mechanic feels like the best version of itself and it all works very smoothly.”
- “Many builds are effectively unplayable due to buggy or inconvenient mechanics.”
- “The main problem, however, is that it does just enough to check the box to technically have mechanics without actually taking the time to polish them and make them fun.”
- “The running away mechanic is obnoxious and just makes the game tedious to play.”
atmosphere
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
40%
30%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for effectively immersing players in a dungeon environment, enhanced by engaging sound effects and lively character interactions. Despite some criticism regarding the abundance of low-quality loot, the overall ambiance and sense of adventure contribute significantly to the experience, making it a standout in the roguelike genre.
- “Probably (if not certainly) the best roguelike when it comes to the atmosphere of being in a dungeon.”
- “There's a lot of activity going on and the sound effects do an amazing job of adding to the overall atmosphere.”
- “This game nailed the atmosphere as a dungeon crawler!”
- “I really enjoyed the atmosphere, and it definitely boosts your mood like you're actually crawling through a dungeon, even though the graphics are very simple.”
- “There's far too much garbage loot; while it does add to the atmosphere, it's kind of annoying to wade through so much junk all the time.”
- “Honestly, the thing that really sets it apart is the atmosphere.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features a surprising amount of humor, with amusing dialogue from both allies and enemies, as well as entertaining sound effects and art. Players appreciate the comedic elements in loot items and character interactions, although some balance issues with character classes are noted. Overall, the humor adds significant enjoyment to the gameplay experience.
- “The game is also surprisingly funny, and the sound effects and art have really grown on me.”
- “Fantastic game with some seriously funny dialogue, worth every penny!”
- “Plus the mobs' chatter is hilarious!”
graphics
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The graphics of the game are generally well-received, with users appreciating the polished, classic-style aesthetic that enhances the dungeon-crawling experience. While some find the interface occasionally frustrating, the overall visual presentation, including attractive dungeons and a strong atmospheric design, effectively captures the essence of classic D&D adventures. The combination of appealing art style, sound effects, and thoughtful map generation contributes to an immersive and enjoyable gameplay experience.
- “A very well-polished classic-style D&D-influenced roguelike boasting an excellent and intuitive UI/QoL, very crafty AI (was impressed to see they use a lot of the same tactics as a sensible player would!), interesting and attractive dungeons, and appealing graphics/sound.”
- “The map generation is very well done, floors have a clear logic to them and a strong aesthetic sense. It really does feel like exploring an ancient temple, and the mapping is very reminiscent of classic AD&D campaigns, think Tomb of Horrors or Temple of Elemental Evil.”
- “If you're looking for a dungeon crawl, Dungeons of Dredmor is exactly that, but with a great art style, music, sound effects, and character diversity and customization.”
- “I was really satisfied with the atmosphere, and it definitely boosts your mood like you're actually crawling through a dungeon, even though the graphics are very simple.”
- “The map generation is very well done; the floors have a clear logic to them and a strong aesthetic sense. It really does feel like exploring an ancient temple, reminiscent of classic AD&D campaigns. However, the graphics could use improvement to enhance the overall experience.”
story
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
Players note a lack of clear overarching story or goals in the game, which can feel disorienting, especially for those accustomed to grand RPG narratives. However, the personalities of the NPCs contribute to an emergent story for the player's character and their companions, with a well-structured dungeon that features logical design and meaningful interactions. Overall, while the main narrative may be subtle, the game offers a unique storytelling experience through character dynamics and environmental coherence.
- “Due to the personality NPCs have in this game, a story emerges for your player character and their recruited followers.”
- “The dungeon has logic; the rooms have logic, story, and furniture. They are not just thrown together by some mindless random algorithm.”
- “I'm used to playing grand RPGs, so having no story or not understanding my goals for fighting in this dungeon was a little strange.”
- “Due to the personality NPCs have in this game, a story emerges for your character and their recruited followers.”
- “The dungeon has logic; the rooms have logic, story, and furniture. They are not just thrown out of some mindless random algorithm.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers express a desire for an emotional system that allows monsters to react based on their feelings towards each other, influenced by various factors like faction and alignment. This would add depth to interactions, making them more dynamic and potentially leading to unexpected outcomes, such as monsters prioritizing battles among themselves. The emotional impact of character moments, like the poignant farewell of a character, also resonates strongly with players.
- “I still shed a tear for hippo man's dying cry to me....”
- “Add an emotion system, in which monsters have emotional reactions to other monsters, depending on their faction, nature, alignment, and so on.”
- “And their emotional state comes in degrees, so that a neutral wizard can finally get ticked off by you, and then attack, but not before.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
25%
25%
The music and sound design in the game are praised for enhancing the overall atmosphere, with engaging banter from party members and monsters that adds a unique layer to the adventure. Unlike many other roguelikes that feature generic soundtracks, this game offers a more immersive experience through thoughtful audio elements and character interactions. Overall, the combination of music, sound effects, and animations contributes significantly to the game's charm and appeal.
- “If you're looking for a dungeon crawl, Dungeons of Dredmor is exactly that, but with a great art style, music, sound effects, and character diversity and customization.”
- “The game has animations, music, and sounds.”
- “While other roguelikes just put music in their game, it feels very stale in large contrast to this game.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unenjoyable, particularly in the early stages, where repetitive tasks and an annoying running away mechanic detract from the overall experience. The need to constantly manage followers adds to the frustration, making gameplay feel laborious.
- “Very tedious and frankly un-fun early game (which you will repeat often).”
- “The running away mechanic is obnoxious and just makes the game tedious to play.”
- “You can manually command your followers, but this is also tedious to do all the time.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
150%
Overall, users report mixed experiences with stability; while the game runs well on Linux and offers detailed settings, many builds are hindered by buggy mechanics that render them effectively unplayable.
- “The game features very detailed settings and runs smoothly on Linux.”
- “I appreciate how stable the game is; I haven't encountered any crashes or major bugs.”
- “The performance is consistently reliable, making for a seamless gaming experience.”
- “Many builds are effectively unplayable due to buggy and inconvenient mechanics.”
- “The game crashes frequently, making it hard to enjoy any progress.”
- “I encountered numerous glitches that disrupted my gameplay experience.”