Dolmen Reviews
Apart from energy management, Dolmen does not innovate enough. The game is pretty solid, but doesn't really excel at anything. The real Souls fans will have a great time with this game, but Dolmen is not going to help the genre anywhere.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Dolmen bites far more than it can chew, trying to merge the melee combat of any From Software game with the gunplay of Remnant from The Ashes: the result is an average game that tries to accomplish too many things at once.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Dolmen is a brutal but ok action RPG that feels part space opera part action movie. The challenging gameplay and detailed customisation are fully welcome allowing for a lot of strategic thinking.
You probably could have guessed this by now, but Dolmen should have released before Elden Ring. All Soulslike games from here on out will constantly be in that game’s gigantic shadow. It’s not that there’s not enough room in this genre for more entries, especially ones that are in such a wildly different setting. It’s just that whatever games release in this space must now meet such incredibly high standards or face intense criticism and likely faltering sales. Dolmen will surely appeal to those who want a Soulslike adventure in a sci-fi setting, and perhaps were disappointed by 2020’s Hellpoint release. Just go in with lowered expectations owing to a smaller dev team, and perhaps you’ll have some fun smashing enemies to bits.
Dolmen is an interesting Soulslike experience that is troubled by clunky combat, and an outdated UI, which hurts the game's chances of standing out in a crowded market with games that does what it does, but better.
It’s just disappointing that a lack of polish and modern sensibilities hinder the product at all turns, leaving what could have been a chunky and ambitious slice of indie action horror down a path forgotten and overshadowed.
Dolmen relies too much on the Soulslike playbook to be much of anything other than a middling iteration of the formula.
As far as sci-fi Souls-likes go, Dolmen sits somewhere between Hellpoint and The Surge in terms of quality. It can offer a rewarding experience to Souls-like fans, but it falls short of the bar set by the creators of the genre. Still, for those who have patience and persistence, and like the idea of exploring a new, futuristic setting while engaging in challenging combat, it’s worth checking out.
Dolmen may not be a contender for the title of game of the year, but for soulslike fans it will provide some fun. It is a pity that it is often a bit stiff, lopsided and far too simple.
Review in Polish | Read full review
In a post Elden Ring world, Dolmen feels dated and too formulaic. It also lacks the personality, character and soul of the genre’s luminaries. If you’re looking for a new Soulslike game to scratch the itch however, Dolmen will certainly do that, despite its lack of mechanical innovation and uneven difficulty.
Earlier I asked, “Will the game be filled with wonder and treasures, or will it be empty and nothing but bare-bones?”. Well, it is unfortunately the latter. That’s not to say it’s a bad game, because there is some enjoyment to be had. Part of the problem is the developers of Soulslike games have set the bar very high. With all its clunkiness, it would have been ok 10 years ago while the genre was still in its infancy. But Dolmen did just release in the wake of Elden Ring, and that’s a very big shadow to try and shine in. Is it good? No. Is it bad? Also no. It’s just sort of OK which is why I award Dolmen the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Dolmen's janky combat, cheap difficulty, and grindy multiplayer mechanic make it tough to recommend to all but the most devoted 'Souls fans that'll stomach it.
This is going to sound harsh, but when I played this game it felt like someone just used the ARPG pre-built blueprint/template from Unreal Engine 4 and then went to the Unreal Marketplace and bought a bunch of assets instead of creating their own. This is how uninspiring this game felt. If you are trying to sell a product to people that looks like a basic ARPG template straight out of a well-known engine, then I am not sure what the developer was expecting. It comes off lazy and cheap.
For a developer’s maiden title, Dolmen is a really ambitious project. In some places, it works. The boss encounters are the high point and for Soulslike addicts, they alone are probably enough reason to check the game out. There are, however, some glaring issues that prevent this game from getting anywhere near the heights of a Dark Souls, or even a Nioh. Poor enemy and level design, lack of visual or audial atmosphere, and a story that doesn’t engage the player. The list goes on. On balance, the bad probably slightly outweighs the good. Too much emphasis was placed on difficulty, without ensuring there was enough meat on the bone in other areas of the game. However, for Soulslike fans, there is certainly enough here to warrant a look, especially at its launch price point. The raw difficulty, and the tough, engaging boss encounters, provide more than an ample challenge for those looking for their next fix in this post-Elden Ring world.
There is multiplayer for those finding the game too hard, but I found it harder to find a partner to play with than the game itself so that is likely off the table for most players. Dolmen just feels like scraps when a four course meal is literally right there. It was a bad time to release a game of this type when it falls so short of the mark set by the best in the genre and even falls below the current imitators. I am all for expanding on a game idea, but there has to be something there to make it feel special and unique and Dolmen just doesn’t have anything setting it apart on any level.
Dolmen is little but an average, derivative game with some serious balance issues. Now, this can be mended in time, and apart from that, it offers enjoyable exploration, decent gunplay, and pleasant stylistics. Still, for most players, that might not be enough.
Review in Polish | Read full review
It can't compete with the brilliance of Elden Ring (no shame in that) but it also falls short of other AA sci-fi action-RPGs like The Surge and Hellpoint. Ultimately, it seems less like an offshoot of Dark Souls and more like a proof of concept launched before From Software birthed the sub-genre.
Overall, Dolmen is a hastily assembled mess of a well-intentioned game. It is like a wannabe sports car. No matter how pretty it looks on the outside, if it’s running on a 2-cylinder engine underneath the hood, there are going to be awkward looks all around. But in the end, it’s going to depend on your millage. As much as I dislike the all-style, no substance presentation, I have to admit that some of the features are actually quite enjoyable. It may look pretty from afar. But its style over substance approach is what ultimately dulls the experience of this otherwise decent soul-like shooter.
Dolmen has tried to combine the best parts of Dark Souls and Dead Space, however the relative inexperience and low budget has doomed this soulslike to failure. There are things to like here, but the game doesn't have wide appeal.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Dolmen innovates the Soulslike genre with how it handles Energy and ranged combat but lacks a clear vision of what makes these games enjoyable beyond just some interesting mechanics.