Necropolis Reviews
The PS4 version of Necropolis is spoilt by the lazy conversion of the PC edition, with a weak combat system and a bad optimization.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Necropolis is best taken as a satire. It’s not perfect in that role, but it’s good fun nonetheless, and a healthy foil to the kind of experiences that have become so in-demand with the success of the Souls games. If you’re able to get the full complement of four players together, you’re in for some classically entertaining and self-aware dungeon crawling fun.
After the relentless grimdark of FROM Software's stellar Souls and Bloodborne offerings, Necropolis feels like a breath of fresh (fetid, really) air. Hellbent on not taking itself too seriously and offering solid roguelike, dungeon crawler mechanics underpinned by a finely tuned combat system, Necropolis is not a game you want to be sleeping on.
Necropolis is a solid foundation with a really weird, questionably designed house built on top. If you're willing to take the time and try to spruce the place up, you may find it was worthwhile, but beware that it may require more work than you're willing to put in.
It's strange to see tridimensional indie games like this one. It tries to imitate the “Souls” formula with its strategic action based combat and the unrewarding deaths. Something nice and different for rogue-like players.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Necropolis is a decent stab at creating a Souls roguelike. If it had that all-important "just one more go" feeling nailed, what we would have here would be something truly special. Unfortunately, it’s merely the cold shadow of a much warmer bonfire.
There were a few elements that I really enjoyed, but it wasn’t a game I personally wanted to keep playing because of the lack of satisfaction. The dialogue was hilarious, though, and the combat still very engaging, but it’s definitely an acquired taste.
Necropolis gets off to a good start, evoking the dark feel of the Souls games while adding in some unique roguelike elements to boot. One does not generally associate the word 'accessible' with either of those two inspirations, but by and large Necropolis actually has a surprisingly low barrier of entry. However, over time that accessibility gives way to a somewhat shallow and ultimately less satisfying experience than the games that clearly inspire it.
There was definitely something here at the core of Necropolis, but it felt flat with each area of the game feeling average and lacking any sort of excitement.
Is there anything I liked about my time with this game? Hardly.
Would you prefer a tenacious coach who encourages you to do better or an obstinate teacher who seems aroused by failure? Necropolis expects its audience to compose the latter. No one needs their games to be nurturing or complimentary, but the decency to spotlight meaningful content and abandon waste is a manner Necropolis could stand to learn
'Necropolis' feels like an amalgamation of 'Dark Souls,' dungeon crawlers, and roguelikes. Sadly, it also seems to miss the mark on what is enjoyable about those games. The combat lacks variety, the randomized dungeon wasn't fun to explore, and technical issues keep it from ever feeling fair. If anything, it suffers from trying to do too much. When combined with the shocking exclusion of online matchmaking for cooperative play, I simply can't recommend it.
As of the 6th of September, the Necropolis has become more Brutal. Having gone back and re-designed a variety of elements from its original debut release, Hairbrained Schemes has released a variety of updates taking into account community and reviewer feedback alike to create version 1.1 titled Brutal Edition. Not only making improvements, the Brutal Edition introduces the Brute which is very fun to play as He or She is Big, Bad, and packs one heck of an epic punch.
Necropolis: Brutal Edition is a successful mix of Souls inspired combat with roguelike elements. It may hit a few bumps along the road, but Harebrained Schemes’ third person action roguelike can be easily recommended to most gamers, and it’s incredibly fun in co-op.
Necropolis is a game that has its bright spots, but that brightness quickly wanes and extinguishes. The more you play it, the more you’ll feel like you’re running in circles from which you wish to escape. And that’s unfortunate, because at first glance the game shows promise.
As it stands there are a few hundred other games I’d crawl through before coming back to this one.
Necropolis has solid combat and tight controls, but the lack of proper pacing and the disappointing progression system mean you should probably wait until the game gets the promised tweaks before picking it up.
At one point, I drank a “mysterious potion” that informed me that my character felt “repellent.” I can think of no better word to describe Necropolis.
Necropolis is worth playing mostly because of its commitment to a fun tone, but falls short when you actually have to play.
Necropolis has some good core mechanics, but the game assumes that you’ll want to start run after run simply out of your good graces, and fails to provide anything of merit for your efforts.