En Garde! Review Summary

Charming and fun, with simple yet effective gameplay and great environmental combat interactions, but the short story underwhelms, enemy variety is limited, and lock-on targeting is unreliable.

Game is very fun: Players consistently describe the game as fun, light-hearted, and engaging. The humor and lively energy are frequently praised, making it an enjoyable experience.

Charming art and visuals: The game's visuals are praised for being bright, colorful, and vibrant. Art style and character designs are considered charming and well-executed, enhancing the overall appeal.

Simple yet effective gameplay: Gameplay is described as easy to understand and addictive, offering a straightforward experience that remains fun. It is noted for being simple but not boring, with good pacing.

Great environmental interactions: Players appreciate the creative use of the environment in combat and puzzles. The environmental mechanics are considered a major highlight, adding depth and fun.

Fun and varied arena mode: The arena mode is described as enjoyable and replayable, with modifiers adding variety. It is suitable for short sessions and provides extra content.

Game is too short: Players overwhelmingly report the game's short length, often finishing the main campaign in 2-4 hours, making it feel insufficient for the price. This is the most frequent complaint, spanning multiple clusters.

Story lacks depth: The story is often criticized as generic, simplistic, or nearly non-existent, with underdeveloped characters and poor narrative engagement. The backstory of the protagonist is especially noted as unexplored.

Limited enemy variety: The game features only a handful of enemy types, with little variation in attacks or behaviors, which makes combat feel monotonous and fails to keep engagements interesting. This issue is frequently linked to repetitive gameplay.

Gameplay is repetitive: Many reviews highlight repetitiveness in combat, level design, and enemy encounters, which leads to boredom and fatigue, especially in later stages. The lack of variety in gameplay mechanics contributes to this.

Without fulfilling content: The game provides only four levels or missions, repeated elements, and has a general lack of content, making it feel like a demo or proof of concept rather than a full release. This also ties into the short campaign and poor value.

Environmental combat mechanics emphasized: The game heavily integrates environmental interactions into combat, allowing players to use ledges, throwable objects, and hazards to defeat enemies. This is a core mechanic highlighted across many reviews.

Parry and dodge core combat: Combat is fundamentally based on parrying, dodging, and countering enemy attacks. This includes unblockable attacks that require dodging, emphasizing timing and reaction.

Arena mode with roguelike elements: The game features an arena mode that includes randomized modifiers, advantages/disadvantages, and roguelike progression. This mode adds replayability beyond the main story.

Swashbuckling sword combat theme: The game presents a swashbuckling adventure with sword-fighting as the central gameplay. The theme is consistent across combat and overall presentation.

Adjustable difficulty options: Players can select from various difficulty settings, including a challenging hard mode. Difficulty can be customized to suit player preference.

Performance issues on Steam Deck: Multiple reviewers report frame drops and stuttering on Steam Deck, with one noting difficulty maintaining 45 fps on Medium settings and another requiring tweaks on a Bazzite LCD model. However, others found it plays great or runs fine, indicating variability.

No serious technical issues: Several clusters indicate the game runs without major problems, with reviewers praising its stability and lack of bugs or lag. This suggests a generally solid technical state for many users.

Positive performance experiences: Several reviews report flawless performance on Steam Machine, quick loading, and good optimization, highlighting that the game runs well on certain setups. This contrasts with other reports of issues.

Input lag issues: Multiple reviewers experienced significant input lag, particularly with mouse and keyboard, and one noted blurry and laggy camera movement. This affects gameplay responsiveness and is a common complaint.

Crashes during play: Occasional crashes were reported, including one in the post-game and two within five hours of play, plus a general report of occasional crashes. While not widespread, they disrupt the experience.

Buy on sale: Many reviewers recommend buying the game at a discount or during a sale, implying that the full price may not be justified. This sentiment appears across multiple clusters, making it a strong and frequent recommendation.

General recommendation: Several clusters contain straightforward recommendations, stating the game is good and worth playing. This indicates an overall positive reception.

Recommended for short games: Reviewers highlight the game's short length as a positive for those seeking a brief but engaging experience. It is recommended for players who enjoy short, fun games with fast-paced action.

Combat-focused recommendation: The game is recommended primarily for its combat system, with some reviewers noting it is not for those uninterested in combat. This suggests that combat is a standout feature.

Play on hard difficulty: Several reviewers advise playing the game on hard difficulty for a better balance of challenge and fun. This suggests that higher difficulty enhances the experience.

Community fair range: $5.00 - $15.00.

Game completion: 10.5h.

Story completion: 4.0h.

En Garde provides immediate fun with its swashbuckling combat and charming presentation, but the enjoyment quickly wanes as repetition sets in due to limited enemy variety and lack of new mechanics.

Friction: steep learning curve for newcomers; some controls need tightening; early enemy design requiring perfection.

Swashbuckling Adventurer: Agile, improvisational, uses environment and crowd control to create cinematic fights. Motivation: To live out a swashbuckling adventure fantasy in an interactive world. Stance: buy.

Combat System Aficionado: Methodical, tactical, aggressively uses parries, environment, and enemy positioning to orchestrate fights. Motivation: Mastering a deep, interactive combat system that rewards creativity and skill. Stance: buy.

Casual Relaxed Gamer: Relaxed, exploratory, willing to use assists like auto-parry and invincibility, enjoying the story and humor without pressure. Motivation: A short, enjoyable, and low-commitment experience to unwind. Stance: sale.

The game performs well across all Windows VRAM cohorts, with only occasional minor issues reported.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. Mostly positive performance, but some reports of crashes and stutters in later episodes.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: positive. Reported performance is good with no performance complaints.

Windows 8-11GB VRAM: positive. Performance is generally stable and positive, with only minor bugs and crashes that don't outweigh the experience.

Steam Deck: The game exhibits mixed Steam Deck compatibility: while some users report a flawless experience, others face performance instability requiring graphics adjustments and occasional cloud save corruption. Overall, the game is playable but not without tinkering.

Linux and Proton: The game runs on Steam Deck (Linux/Proton) with mixed performance. Several users report smooth gameplay, while others experience frame drops and instability. No major blockers like anti-cheat, crashes, or required tweaks are mentioned. Overall, the game is playable on Linux via Proton with minor performance caveats.

Short but enjoyable experience: The game is consistently described as short, often completable in an afternoon or a single sitting, but reviewers generally do not view this negatively. The brevity is seen as a positive, preventing the game from overstaying its welcome.

Four chapters structure: The game is structured into four chapters or episodes, which is a common observation. This concise structure aligns with the overall short length of the experience.

Low price and discounts: The game is often purchased on sale or at a discounted price, which is seen as good value for the short length. Some reviewers note that it is not worth the full price, but is a great deal when discounted.

Comparisons to Sifu: Many reviewers compare the combat and gameplay to Sifu, noting similarities in style and difficulty. Some find this version simpler and more accessible, while others feel it is less varied and not as polished.

Sekiro-like parry mechanics: The parry and unblockable attack mechanics are frequently compared to Sekiro. Reviewers note the similarities but also mention that the game has lower stakes and a more forgiving approach.