Dungeon Crawlers are two a penny nowadays, so when we got the chance to review Thyria – another entry in the genre – we weren’t massively excited. So it’s a nice surprise to find it’s a pretty solid entry in a very competitive market.
Despite being a standard turn based RPG that boasts exploration and crafting elements, it has a fairly interesting plot. Villagers have been cursed and it’s up to you to enter their minds and defeat their nightmares.
To do this you explore procedurally generated isometric maps, battling enemies in a turn based grid system. You have a team of three chosen Guardians, whom you can upgrade from your base – improving their equipment and so on.
Building a Super Team
The crafting and customization options of your team is by far the most important element of the game, and fortunately it’s one that Thyria nails. Tweaking your team is not only easy, but fun. There’s a great range of options and we were always excited to try out a new Guardian or weapon.
When it comes to the foes you’ll face I was less impressed. There are some cool bosses and a few interesting designs, but I was generally more interested in my own team than anything they were facing on the other side of the screen.
The visuals are a mixed bag too. There’s some amazing hand drawn character art, but the UI is a little clunky. That’s always a potential issue with these games, and it’s not too bad here – but things still feel a little crammed in. Definitely not a title to play on a tiny screen.
Underpar Exploration
Another issue is that exploration feels a little half baked. The levels see you picking up items that often never feel useful in battles, meaning these sections often feel a little pointless in the grand scheme of things.
I will say that this is not a game that’s been dumped on Steam and left to fend for itself though. The developers seem passionate about the title and improving it moving forward.
As if to prove this I just checked the Steam page for the game, and there’s a developer live stream running. This is clearly a title that is taking players feedback on board and trying to build a community. And I love that.
Thyria is not a remarkable game by any means, but if you’re looking for a new dungeon crawler to try we’d recommend trying it out. It’s sensibly priced and looks like it’ll offer plenty of new content in the months to come. You can find it on Steam here.
The good
- Building your team of guardians is great fun
- Hand drawn characters
- Solid plot
- Impressive dev support
The bad
- UI is a bit messy
- Enemies can be a bit dull
- Dull exploration elements