The Thaumaturge Reviews
The Thaumaturge leaves you feeling disappointed. And it's not about outright Russophobia – it's just a bitter cherry on the host of purely gaming problems.
Review in Russian | Read full review
The Thaumaturge is another example of a game whose developers had a good concept in hand, but failed to bring it to fruition. Diving into the world of semi-alternative Russian Empire and Polish nationalists turned out to be an entertaining (albeit specific) experience, which was spoiled by unsuccessful implementation of progression and battles, as well as poor work with Unreral Engine 5
Review in Russian | Read full review
A historical supernatural role-player whose portrayal of Warsaw under Russian rule is highly compelling but where the combat and simplistic detective elements fail to engage.
The Thaumaturge is certainly competent enough, if the prospect of a mystery with some light RPG elements sounds appealing, but don’t expect it to light your world on fire.
The Thaumaturge is the perfect example of a game full of creative ideas, built on an interesting foundation, which is ultimately ruined by very poor execution.
As it stands, though, The Thaumaturge remains quite special overall. Hanging out with Rasputin, shmoozing with turn-of-the-century elites, and exploring some unexpected golem developments with beset Rabbis make for compelling content, even when a few lines in the script fail to land. Anyone taken in by this setting will genuinely want to play The Thaumaturge, and it joins several other recent experimental Slavic fantasy adventures that prove the countless avenues video games have yet to fully explore.
The weaknesses in the combat prevent some cool ideas from ever fully taking off. The rushed ending, whether the result of running out of time during development or an awkward playthrough, means the plot trips at the finishing line. But the uniqueness of the setting goes a long way toward making the game an interesting sell and the characters are fun to spend time with.
The Thaumaturge was one of the games that I was really looking forward to but ultimately, it failed to meet my expectations. Despite an interesting demon-taming concept, nice-looking visuals and an atmospheric setting, I found the story to be lacking with a very slow and dull presentation that made the game feel more like a chore than something enjoyable.
The Thaumaturge shows plenty of promise, but lets itself down somewhat by failing to play to its strengths. Warsaw and its history and culture is a joy to experience when the game properly engages with it, but an insistent focus on a comparatively dull main story ultimately detracts from this for a fun yet frustrating experience.
Lurking behind a dated exterior is a limited but sophisticated RPG with a unique setting and some memorable new ideas.
You’ve got an interesting setting, a ton of material, all kinds of ideas, and a studio that clearly knows what it’s doing. That all of that got combined into something as forgettable as this is pretty disappointing, and it makes it awfully easy to skip past this game without a second thought.
The Thaumaturge is a story driven top-down adventure game that plays like an existentialist novel by Dostoevsky. Its rich cast of characters and expanding story draws you in and sinks its pangs into your brain. If you're looking for a story-rich game that's relatively easy to get into and has some excellent art direction, this is the one. Just be mindful of the performance issues and uneven voice acting in some parts.
The game welcomes you to historical Warsaw surrounded by esoteric beings. If you are not afraid of them, you can tame them. Expect a rich story and dialogue, but the combat won't be for everyone.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
With an original premise and diverging paths based on in-game choices, The Thaumaturge delivers a fairly engaging RPG whose narrative execution would have benefitted from further improvements.
The Thaumaturge’s biggest problems are a result of trying to do so many different things at once. It’s a juggling act on the best of days, and if you’re a working-class person in 1900s Poland you aren’t having a bunch of great days. Not consistently, anyway. This is a deeply interesting game with a lot of cool imagery, historical storytelling hooks and complex systems that are a blast to engage with. There are a ton of swings, and not every one is a hit. Sometimes the voice acting is wacky, the protagonist feels underdeveloped, and combat can be annoying and burdensome. But I also accidentally stayed up way past my adult, parent bedtime on multiple nights playing it. I feel and probably look like Wiktor after catching a new Salutor, but it was worth it.
The Thaumaturge is a curious experiment with an unexplored setting and a unique take on the classic turn-based combat. Fool's Theory has struck gold on the former thanks to an interesting story, rich worldbuilding, and a colorful cast of characters. However, the combat system is severely underutilized and left me wanting more. The same can be said for the investigative part of the gameplay as well. That being said, It'd be a lie if I said I didn't have fun within the said constraints. As a purveyor of Eurojank, there is a certain allure to the game that I couldn't resist. That doesn't mean you'll enjoy the game as much as I did. The Thaumaturge could have easily been one of the best RPGs of the year if it had more to offer in the gameplay department.
The Thaumaturge is a curious and engrossing take on Polish mythology set in a tumultuous period in history. You'll follow a grand story, all the while solving supernatural crimes and fighting unique demons so you can add their powers to your own.
The Thaumaturge is a weird and unique game. It’s engaging from beginning to end, thanks to its great story and timeline based combat system that makes every fight exciting. It’s not perfect, and some pacing issues do slow the game down, especially in the side content, however, it is still well worth your time.
The Thaumaturge is a game with passable storytelling, but the lines of dialog kill its charm. Still, the good combat system with a strong tactical aspect is enough to pull it out from the bottom and make it a fun game. Worth a try.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
The Thaumaturge is a pretty good RPG with a great atmosphere, storyline and interesting combat system, but unfortunately suffers from several problems of the technical layer and very uneven acting combined with a not very diverse soundtrack. A definite key feature for which The Thaumaturge is worth checking out is the moral choice system, which adds the ability to go through the game several times and in different ways. If you are a fan of turn-based RPGs or the pre-World War I period and can get over the uneven acting, this is a great choice for you.
Review in Polish | Read full review