Shogunaria

I had high hopes for SEEP tackling a Zelda-like game, even more so as I realized one of the four playable characters, Kan the Samurai, is none other than the protagonist of [b]Katana Soul[/b] (his intro text makes clear those events already happened), although the completely different art style and atmosphere make him hardly recognizable. It's also full of references to other games of the developers, like the big bad being the Master Ghost from [b]Super BOO Quest[/b]. Even the dev duo themselves are in a hidden room. Unfortunately, it's turned out to have the same problem as others of their less successful titles: no especially glaring issues, playable from start to finish, just very bland and leaving nothing of its passage. I finished it in 3 hours and yet it felt like a slog. That is also due to the choice of having most enemies acting simply as slow-moving homing projectiles towards the player, which forces constant situations of having to strike, retreat, repeat dozens of times. The rotation attack is extremely useful, but the way the enemies work, most times you will also receive some damage because they are hardly staggered by a strike. Oftentimes in dungeons you will have t…

Shogunaria is a retro-inspired action RPG developed and published by SEEP that pays clear homage to classic top-down adventure games of the 8-bit and 16-bit eras. Built around exploration, dungeon crawling, and character-driven progression, it channels the spirit of early console action RPGs while incorporating light Metroidvania elements. From the outset, the game presents itself as a nostalgic journey through pixel-art landscapes filled with monsters, secrets, and steadily escalating challenges. The story centers on a dark force threatening Yuni Country after the villainous Master Ghost unleashes ancient demons by stealing sacred statuettes. While the narrative framework remains relatively straightforward, it provides enough motivation to push players through the overworld and into the game’s major dungeon hubs. Rather than relying on elaborate cinematic storytelling, Shogunaria emphasizes classic environmental storytelling and steady quest progression. Dialogue sequences and character interactions are brief but functional, keeping the focus on gameplay rather than lengthy exposition. One of the most notable features is the ability to choose between four playable characters, ea…

I paid a buck for this with the rpg party sale! If you like games like secret of mana or the mystical ninja on snes then you will love this game! You can beat the game in a few hours on the first playthrough, but you replay again and can pick different characters which changes the weapons and magic skills you obtain during the game. Some really cool secrets to find as well and has a legend of zelda a link to the past feel but much shorter and linear. Once you beat the game an art mode and bestiary unlocks and also a cheat mode. The cheat mode has over a dozen cheats which break the game its insane. I will be beating it with the other three characters in the future to 100 percent the game! Would of been even better if it was local or online coop still worth the price and time. 10/10! =)

I own and have played almost all of the SEEP catalogue, but this one is my favorite. Such a charming, well made, bite-sized action RPG. Wish there was a sequel.

A short action/adventure RPG that was over very fast! + The game has a fuzzy homemade feel about it. I can grasp the idea and love behind the project. + Each area had it's own theme and music. + Each character has their own intro/ending and their weapons and skills vary. - The game is very short. - The game quickly becomes repetitive and around the second "dungeon" the pattern becomes so obvious that you just want to run through the maps/"rooms" and hurry to the next room (to get to the boss). - The dungeons are just a maze (go somewhere and hit a switch then backtrack, repeat more and more for each following dungeon) to get to the boss and contains no useful findings or items. - The learnable "skills" are mostly optional/useless. They don't make anything easier or have any smart/useful uses.

This is a fairly simple Zelda esque game with 4 playable characters to choose from. Unfortunately all the playable characters are almost all identical, all that changes is they have different ranges for attacks, and two unique special moves. All of them have access to the same items and upgrades, so it seems like a waste to prolong the game further. It will take you about 8 hours to get 100% achievements. It's not bad, but treat this review like a 6.5/10. You could do better, you could do worse.