Ludus: A Gladiator Story

Sadly its AI garbage. First couple chapters at least playable and demo gived me good first impression but its super bad later on. Choices not matter, different naration voices even robotic ones. Game is in super bad shape cos its AI coded and its just mess. Do not buy it. Nothing can fix it. Не покупайте игру ребят, просто мусор.

[h1][b]Not Recommended[/b][/h1] Truth be told, this game has the foundation for an enjoyable interactive RPG, but its current execution leaves a lot to be desired. While the clean presentation and historical aesthetic initially drew me in, the AI slop was a huge red flag for me. But ignoring that for now, by the end of my playthrough, I was left feeling that the game's systems needed far more refinement before they could support the experience it aims to deliver. [b]Choices & Progression[/b] The core appeal of a choice driven RPG is that your decisions matter. Unfortunately, Ludus rarely delivers on that promise. Many dialogue options that should logically produce vastly different outcomes often reward the same, or even greater, trait bonuses regardless of the decision made. This makes the progression system easy to exploit, removing any incentive to carefully consider your choices. Rather than shaping your own gladiator, it often feels like you're simply selecting whichever option grants the best statistics. The game would benefit greatly from a complete rebalance of its choice system, with stronger long-term consequences and meaningful butterfly effects that encourage replayability. [b]Writing[/b] There is clearly ambition behind the narrative, but the presentation makes it difficult to stay invested. Large blocks of text are frequently interrupted by punctuation and grammatical inconsistencies, and important names, events, and locations often become lost within lengthy passages. Highlighting key information or improving text formatting would go a long way towards making the story easier to follow. [b]Visuals[/b] Visually, the user interface is one of the game's strongest qualities. The menus are clean, easy to navigate, and evoke the feeling of classic CRPGs such as Baldur's Gate. Unfortunately, the interface itself isn't always as polished as it looks. Rapidly progressing through dialogue can cause page transitions to stutter or even return to previously viewed pages, making reading feel clunky rather than seamless. The game also relies heavily on AI-generated artwork and voice acting. While this may not bother every player, the visuals are often inconsistent, and the voices lack the emotion and natural delivery needed for dramatic scenes. As a result, the presentation struggles to maintain immersion. [b]Optimization & Content[/b] One aspect I found particularly difficult to overlook was the install size. Despite occupying roughly 29 GB of storage, I completed the game in under an hour. For a predominantly text-driven RPG, the amount of content simply doesn't justify the storage requirements in its current state. Better optimization and compression would significantly improve the overall package. [b]Okay finally[/b] There is potential here. The historical setting is interesting, the UI is attractive, and the concept itself has promise. However, the gameplay systems currently undermine player choice, the writing requires further editing, the presentation feels inconsistent due to its AI-generated assets, and the optimization is surprisingly poor for the amount of content available. With substantial revisions to the choice system, meaningful story consequences, writing quality, optimization, and overall presentation, Ludus could become a much stronger experience. As it stands, however, I cannot recommend it. [h1][b]Note to developer[/b][/h1] [b]I cannot say this enough, AI slop games will never be as successful and or enjoyed to the same degree as human made games. Please choose to support actual artists to create a more lasting experience.[/b]