Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle Reviews
While overly ambitious, Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle is an enjoyable enough dungeon crawl, but could easily be ignored if you aren't absolutely in love with the genre.
Simple, satisfying, vertical and easy to binge on, like a tube of Pringles. Hyakki Castle feels like a generic alternative. It'll fill the gap for a while, but once you pop, stopping might be easier than you'd hope.
Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle is a clever twist on the traditional dungeon crawler, with a focus on the split-team function. Learning to work with separate teams can be tough at first, but it's well worth the effort. The combat is otherwise simplistic and easy to pick up, making it easy to jump in for hours at a time.
Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle has a lot of interesting elements. Unfortunately, it's most talked about feature, team splitting, could have used more work and it felt like there needed to be more to it besides switching on some floor panels.
Hyakki Castle is a game with some clever ideas but falters in execution and implementation- leading to an experience that feels serviceable but decidedly bittersweet as I'm left wondering what could have been.
Hyakki Castle probably wouldn't be great for newbies to the dungeon-crawling scene, but if you already know you like the movement and combat system then it's definitely something to try. It has its mechanical issues, and requires a lot of fiddling to figure out at first, but is executed creatively and diversely enough to still be engaging. It just needs a little extra touch to become the beacon that it wants to be.
the game falters for its repetitive scenery and total lack of tutorial or even on screen button cues.
If I had to describe Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle in one word, that word would be, “fumbly.” There's a lot of fumbling, mostly with the controls, some with the menus and UI, and some with getting around the maps with their samey walls and lack of landmarks. Real-time, horror-tinted dungeon crawling is a neat idea, and with the customization, skills, and cool monsters, there is fun to be had here. Multiple difficulty levels and post-game content also gives plenty of challenge for the genre hardcores. But this is a game that leaves me wanting more from it, but in a way that means the promise from the concept doesn't match the experience in my hands.
Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle is a unique exploration RPG on Switch that doesn't live up to its concept.
Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle may not be the greatest game ever made but that doesn't stand on its way of being a welcome RPG to arrive on the Nintendo Switch. Thanks to creative gameplay, a great variety of characters and a good dose of Japanese and Western themes, the game's qualities stand out against its rather uninspired level design and unimpressive soundtrack.
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Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle certainly has some interesting elements - most notably its team-splitting mechanic and use of classical Japanese folklore - but thanks to the rigidity of its first-person dungeon crawling design it soon loses steam and you're left exploring a vast castle full of dangerous yokai and unimaginative level design. It takes plenty of inspiration from those that came before it, but does little to innovate on its own merit.
If you're in for some meditative classic gaming, Hyakki Castle is for you. It's a game that knows exactly what it is, and it has no interest in punishing you or making you feel like you don't get it. It's a friendly, old-style game that wants you to succeed, and that seems to be less and less present now. It also has cat people in it.
If you like strategy games and are really into ancient Japanese legends, Haunted Dungeon: Hyakki Castle takes art and story from the Edo period to create a unique strategy game. While it was not entirely my speed (it does put the crawl in "dungeon crawl"), it is a break from the frantic pacing of many dungeon crawlers with a central mechanic adds creative possibilities to puzzle solving and combat.
Only gamers who specifically love dungeon crawling and the 1600s Japan setting should keep an eye out for this game during a 50% or higher price drop. Others will likely be frustrated by long and repetitive combat in a generally very repetitive game.
Despite some great puzzles and an interesting group mechanic, I will be waiting before returning to Hyakki Castle. If you love dungeon crawlers and need something new, give it a try. If you are new to the genre then maybe start with the superb Legend of Grimrock. Hyakki Castle is out now on Steam.
Hyakki Castle is a solid dungeon crawler with some fun classes, mechanics, and amazing monsters to keep drawing players into the labyrinth.
While I wish there was a greater variety of Yokai, at least their attack patterns and behaviors differs a bit so they aren't merely cosmetic variations slapped on the same base. Save points tend to be fair in their spacing and the choices you make for upgrading your characters open the door to some variety depending on the skills you choose, further encouraging replayability. If you've been looking for something a bit different on the Switch, for a variety of reasons Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle sets itself apart as unique, even if its style and pacing may not be for everyone.
Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle is not a perfect game as it does have its flaws, not to mention that the split-screen gameplay mechanic might prove to be uncomfortable for some players. But if you're looking for a dungeon crawler on PlayStation 4 that will provide you with a hearty challenge, then Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle will definitely do that.
Like most games, how good of a time you have with Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle will ultimately depend on what you bring to the experience yourself. If you're hoping for the next great dungeon crawler, then you most likely will be disappointed.
Hyakki Castle puts up a welcome challenge and offers players something rooted in a very authentic Japanese (Shinto) spirituality. It's an artifact of the country and comes from the same place that the likes of Okami, Nioh and God Wars does. It's truly amazing that the Nintendo Switch has had three of those four released on it in the span of just a couple of weeks.