We Who Are About To Die

I want to like this game but every fight just feels like two people flailing at each other with foam swords. In theory you have like 7 different direction attacks but in practice 95% of the time you'll be using the same one (swinging from left to right) as it's the only one that consistently avoids shields. I also dislike the patron favor system, 3 of the 4 patrons getting mad at you just because you fought for someone else even when they had no available fights and then getting punished by them makes you feel like you're being punished just for playing the game. This game is clearly made by someone who's passionate about what they're doing and I'll definitely check back in a few months to see if I can make this review more positive but as of right now I can't recommend it.

No campaign, graphics are meh, and you basically do the same thing over and over again. Perfect recipe to give it a try, and quickly move on to something else. And then I load another match. And another. And another. Not sure what sort of Voodoo is involved, but instead of getting bored I just keep playing.

The sole title since the PS2 era's Shadow of Rome, a neglected classic unleashed over two decades ago, to profoundly quench my yearning for an authentic gladiatorial "sim". Truly superlative craftsmanship, Jordy! No other game is better suited to feature permadeath among its many virtues. To ever more illustrious triumphs within the arenas!

I just came back to this after taking a break for awhile and I gotta say it's a lot worse than it used to be. I don't remember the dudes being this rubber-bandy looking. I also don't remember weapons deleting themselves this often or being confused by what even hit me as much. Also, when there's more than one fighting you now (half the game) it's just silly looking now. It was before as well - just even moreso now. . . .idk . . . I used to love this game and now . . . eh. . .

I have spent about 70 Hours on this game. I have had a blast with it. It offers a range of difficulty, from cheesy easy to insanity (Condemned). I love this game for what it is. The ragdoll effect are hilarious, and makes the game entertaining and different every match. I truly hope the Devs keep adding things! WE NEED ANIMAL FIGHTS! NAVAL BATTLES! Keep up the great work on this gem!

I don't really understand how this has a "Very Positive" review score. The fights feel INCREDIBLY repetitive after 5-10 hours. You get new traits when you complete certain fights, but you have to choose between the 2 they offer and after you've taken 4 you don't get any new ones so i guess your character is done growing. The Patron system sucks, why do you lose so much favor every week? I did the "Criminal Scum" background where i had to get 80+ favor with all patrons and it was an absolute SLOG. Every week i'm gaining 7-13 favor with ONE patron and losing 6 each with all the others. Literally the only way to complete the run was to take every single tournament and draft fight that was offered and those draft fights are the most boring thing in the game, it's the exact same fight on the exact same map over and over and over, but you have to take it because it's the only thing that gives favor to all the patrons. It feels like this game should be about building and improving a Ludus, but it's not, it's about each individual run because you can barely pass anything on to your next gladiator and all your improvements to the "Scollo" die with you. Also, the incredibly miniscule amount of stuff you can pass on is limited even further because you're only allowed 2 rerolls on your background before you forfeit all of it anyways. Is there something i'm missing? I just retired my second character and i feel like i've basically done everything in the game at 10 hours of played time.

This game is what Sword and Sandals was to me in my head when I was a kid. Totally recommended. Permadeath makes every battle intense and Lionslayer difficulty is where it's at.

So much love goes into this game from such a small team, and its really great. Every addition has been great too. Some things I don't like so much (can't fully name your gladiator, balancing patrons is a bit hard when they all hate you if you don't pick their match [seems artificial] ) but it is among my favourite games and deserves your time and money. PS-- Please implement a graveyard so I can look back on former gladiators of the past, and not have to track them in excel myself like the geek I am.

I like this game. It's pretty unique / good. I even beat it using my custom sandbox character. However, since it is early access, I am hoping that the game improves enough where I can give it a true recommendation. Here are my issues with it: 1. Combat: The combat system is supposedly "physics based", which is supposed to sound deep, but in actual practice, I am just constantly relying on left to right attacks. Even in my attempts to "switch things up", I soon realize it doesn't work and it's not worth it, there is no reward for varying your attacks, and I go back to swinging left to right. It's basically how I won every battle in the game. Combat becomes repetitive and there is no reward for being clever, strategic, or timing/creativity. There's no Rock Paper Scissors system where in real life it would apply, such as 2-handed polearms/spears would defeat swords and shields, but would lose to throwing knives and projectile weapons. Even a Light / Medium / Heavy attack would make the combat much more interesting. A high attack blocks a high attack, medium blocks a medium, low blocks a low, but any other combo would mean one person would win the engagement. Shield attacks, kicks (are there kicks?), don't really do a whole lot to the strategic element of the game. 90% of the time you're going to want to just repeat the left and right attack. 2. Environment: There's no real variety to the arenas. Sure, the graphics change, but the elevation changes, designs, etc. are mostly just cosmetic. There's no actual strategy here where if I have high ground and they have low ground, I can rain down devastating attacks, or control a harpoon, or kick someone down a hole, or push someone into spikes for extra damage. There's no environmental interaction at all. In gladiator games they had chariots, sea level re-enactments, animals, traps, etc. 3. Management/Strategy: After mid/end game, I didn't really care about the patrons and what my relationship with them were. I just kept trying to focus on winning and that was it. Early game it matters more how you spend your money/fame, but after that it's just an afterthought, meaning the management system isn't actually that deep nor that it matters too much. After a little while, you'll have seen every weapon or armor there is. If there was a Diablo 2-esque quality to the loot then that would be cooler. 4. Graphics: The menus/UI look kind of dull. It's just not that pretty or exciting to look at. The graphics put a big strain on Steam Deck even though it's a small arena fighting game. Also hard to navigate the menus because it just doesn't flow right. 5. Lastly - this game genre is asking for a Multiplayer PVP / Local PVP / Co-Op and would greatly enhance the life of this game. I mean come on, it's gladiator fighting - a fighting game. The whole point of gladiators was to face off against other people and see who's the best. Add ELO rankings, tag team matches... its basically the early UFC/WWE but in ancient times. Make it so. For an indie game with this price range, I hope the game can address these issues so I can jump back in and have more fun with it and give it a thumbs up.