Tails of Iron Review Summary

Challenging combat and gorgeous art meet an engaging story, but unfair hitboxes, dodge without invincibility frames, and Steam Deck black screens frustrate.

Combat is challenging and satisfying: Players consistently describe the combat as difficult but rewarding, requiring timing and precision. The challenge provides a sense of achievement without being overly frustrating.

Art style is beautiful: The hand-drawn art style is frequently praised for its beauty, detail, and uniqueness. It stands out as a major highlight, contributing to the game's immersive atmosphere.

Story is simple but engaging: The narrative is described as straightforward yet captivating, with a well-told story that holds interest. It is considered well-written and serves its purpose effectively.

Graphics are impressive: Reviewers commend the game's visual presentation, noting the graphics are top-tier and aesthetically pleasing. The 2D visuals are described as a work of art.

Game is fun and engaging: Overall, the game is highly enjoyable, with addictive gameplay and a good balance of challenge. Players find it entertaining and worth playing.

Hitboxes are broken and unfair: Players consistently report that hitboxes are imprecise, oversized, or mismatched with visuals, causing dodges to fail and unfair deaths. This issue is especially prominent in boss fights and on higher difficulties, artificially inflating fight times and frustrating players.

Dodge mechanics lack invincibility frames: Multiple reviews state that the dodge roll provides no i-frames, making it unreliable even with perfect timing. The dodge is also described as short, slow, or delayed, compounding the hitbox problems and making evasion nearly impossible in some encounters.

Hardest difficulty is unbalanced: The highest difficulty settings, including Bloody Whiskers, are criticized for being untested and unfair, with enemies dealing two-hit kills and leaving little room for error. Players feel the difficulty spike is frustrating rather than challenging, ruining replay value.

Side quests are mandatory and tedious: Players complain that side quests are forced to progress the main story, requiring repetitive backtracking and feeling like artificial padding. The quests are described as boring, tiring, and monotonous, detracting from the overall experience.

2D soulslike metroidvania adventure: The game is a 2D side-scrolling action-adventure that combines soulslike combat with metroidvania exploration elements. It features challenging gameplay and a dark fantasy atmosphere inspired by the genre.

Combat uses parry and dodge: The combat system revolves around parrying, dodging, blocking, and counter-attacking, requiring precise timing and strategic management of defensive actions. Players must master these mechanics to succeed in battles.

Bloody Whiskers is hardest mode: The game features a special high-difficulty mode called Bloody Whiskers, which is required for platinum trophy completion. It is described as the highest difficulty setting alongside a normal mode.

Metroidvania elements are present: The game incorporates metroidvania-style exploration, though some players note it is fairly linear with limited backtracking. It blends these elements with soulslike mechanics to create a hybrid experience.

Post-game content and achievements: The game includes post-game content such as additional fights, fetch quests, and recycled bosses, along with achievements to unlock. This extends the gameplay beyond the main story and offers extra challenges.

Steam Deck black screen issues: Multiple users report a black screen on Steam Deck, often at launch or when transitioning areas. Workarounds include using PROTON EXPERIMENTAL or GE-Proton, but the issue is persistent and affects cutscenes as well.

Long loading times: Several reviews mention long loading times, especially between areas, even on high-spec computers. Some users note that a game update fixed the issue, but others still find it slow.

Game crashes and hangs: A few users report constant crashes, game hangs requiring Alt+F4, and other critical bugs. These issues disrupt gameplay and may require workarounds.

Performance issues with Stalker enemies: One user notes frame drops and lag when fighting Stalker enemies, indicating specific combat scenarios may cause performance problems.

Scenery disappearing due to bugs: A user reports that parts of the scenery disappear due to bugs, which can affect visual immersion and gameplay.

Worth buying on sale: Many reviewers emphasize that the game is worth purchasing, especially when discounted. They recommend waiting for a sale to get the best value.

Definitely worth playing: Several reviewers strongly recommend the game, stating it is definitely worth playing and spending time on. They consider it a worthwhile experience overall.

Recommended for soulslike fans: The game is highly recommended for players who enjoy souls-like mechanics and challenging combat. It appeals to fans of the genre and those who appreciate high difficulty.

Controller recommended for play: A significant number of reviewers advise using a controller for a better experience. They note that keyboard and mouse controls are more difficult and less enjoyable.

Play on normal difficulty: Reviewers recommend playing on normal difficulty for a balanced experience. They caution against the hardest difficulty, which may be frustrating or unbalanced.

Community fair range: $10.00 - $15.00.

Game completion: 9.3h.

Story completion: 6.8h.

Endgame: 0.8h.

Tails of Iron is enjoyable in its opening hours but becomes repetitive and tedious as players progress, leading to a clear drop in fun.

Friction: clunky combat; misleading tutorial; inconsistent dodge timings; tedious backtracking.

Unlock drivers: combat mechanics clicking; learning parry and dodge.

The Completionist Achievement Hunter: Methodical, thorough, often replaying on higher difficulties to unlock all content. Motivation: Achieving 100% completion and unlocking every achievement. Stance: sale.

The Souls-like Veteran: Methodical, precise, often using parry and dodge mechanics, optimizing builds. Motivation: Seeking challenging, skill-based combat and the satisfaction of overcoming difficult bosses. Stance: buy.

The Casual Newcomer: Relaxed, exploring at their own pace, often playing on lower difficulties. Motivation: Enjoying a charming story and world without excessive difficulty. Stance: buy.

Both hardware cohorts report the game running well, with only minor setup caveats on Steam Deck requiring a custom Proton version.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. Runs well even on lower-end GPUs like a GTX 1650, with smooth performance at high resolutions.

Steam Deck / handheld: positive. Works after installing a GE Proton version via ProtonUp Qt; otherwise the game may not display correctly.

Steam Deck: Tails of Iron is advertised as Steam Deck Verified but fails to launch out of the box, presenting a black screen. Users must manually force a specific Proton version (e.g., Proton 8.0-5, GE-Proton, or Proton Experimental) to make it playable. After this tinkering, the game runs well with solid performance and battery life. The main friction is the initial setup and the misleading verification status, which causes frustration and negative reviews despite the game's quality.

Linux and Proton: The game's native Linux build is broken, causing black screens and launch failures. Users must force specific Proton versions (e.g., 8.0-5, GE-Proton, Experimental) to get it running. While many achieve playability, there are reports of freezes, save corruption, and some users unable to launch even with tweaks. Overall, the game requires significant tinkering and is not stable out of the box.

Price value debated: Many reviewers mention the game's price, with some saying it's not worth full price but is a good buy on sale. Others find it worth the price, especially with discounts.

Playtime around ten hours: The game's length is commonly cited as around 10 hours, with some estimates ranging from 8 to 15 hours. This is seen as a moderate playtime for the genre.

Compared to Dark Souls: The game is frequently compared to Dark Souls and other Soulslike titles, with reviewers noting similarities in difficulty, map design, and overall feel. Some call it a 'Souls wanna be' or 'rat souls'.

Compared to Hollow Knight: Many reviewers compare the game to Hollow Knight, noting similarities in movement, difficulty, and overall style. Some feel it's almost the same as Hollow Knight, while others note it's more linear or constrained.

Sequel exists: The game has a sequel, and some reviewers mention purchasing it after playing this game. This indicates a series that continues beyond the first installment.