Info about En Garde!: Official game description: From the forgotten pages of history, comes **Adalia de Volador**! Legendary swashbuckler. Dashing adventurer. Hero of the people. Play as Adalia in her daring escapades full of sword-fighting, satire and shenanigans. Challenge the cruel Count-Duke and oppose tyranny with **panache**! Beautifully painted locations, charismatic characters, and an astounding amount of battle banter will transport you to the golden age of **swashbuckling comedy**! So, sharpen your sword, grab your boots and hat, and embark on a hilarious, action-packed spectacle! Fencing With Flair ------------------ Parry, riposte and lunge your way to victory! Fight with style to fill your Panache Meter and unlock special skills! But you’ll need more than your sword to win the day… Adapt and Improvise ------------------- Challenging, ever-changing fights push you to rely on your cunning and acrobatics to disturb your enemies. Learn their weaknesses to toy with them and express your fighting style. Experiment with the Environment ------------------------------- Combat areas are playgrounds full of opportunities to create mischief and gain the upper hand. Surprise, stun, or evade enemies with a variety of objects - from rolling barrels to falling chandeliers. Arena Mode ---------- Unlock zany game-changing modifiers and new fight situations in the arena mode. Play and replay randomized scenarios to test your skill against waves of enemies! Theatrical Characters --------------------- A flamboyant cast dazzles the screen! Adalia and her rivals react to each of your actions, exchanging witty one-liners during the flow of the fight. Story Episodes -------------- Discover the tales of Adalia, with unique challenges to complete and secrets to uncover. Fight through marketplaces, dungeons and palaces: the world's a stage for your epic duels! Award-winning Passion Project ----------------------------- The game was first prototyped as an award-winning and much-loved student project. The original team has reformed and expanded as Fireplace Games to increase the scope, sweep and grandeur of _**En Garde!**_. Release date: 16 Aug, 2023 Categories: Single-player Story, Soulslike Combat, Roguelike, Linear Progression, Environmental Combat, Swashbuckling Combat, Strategic Combat - Hardware Profile: No data Feature extractions: - Community Price: No data - Playtime Metrics: No data - Time-to-fun: No data - Player Archetypes: No data Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category. Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews. What players like: - Highly Fun & Engaging Experience (weight 1): Players overwhelmingly found the game to be incredibly fun, engaging, and charming. The fast-paced, dynamic combat, coupled with its light-hearted tone and humor, contributed significantly to a highly enjoyable experience that many found addictive and replayable. - Innovative & Satisfying Combat System (weight 0.45): The combat system is a major highlight, praised for its unique blend of parrying, dodging, and especially the innovative use of environmental interactions. It's described as fluid, satisfying, and challenging, often compared favorably to Sekiro but with a more forgiving and whimsical approach. - Gorgeous & Charming Art Style (weight 0.16): The game's art style received widespread acclaim for being gorgeous, vibrant, and charming. Its colorful, cartoony aesthetic, often compared to Disney or Pixar, is seen as a perfect fit for the game's lighthearted tone and enhances the overall visual appeal. - Witty Humor & Engaging Dialogue (weight 0.15): The game's humor, dialogue, and character banter are consistently praised for being witty, silly, and genuinely funny. This lighthearted approach, especially the protagonist Adalia's interactions, adds significant charm and personality to the experience. - Concise & Polished Design (weight 0.15): The game is appreciated for its concise, focused, and linear design, avoiding common open-world bloat. Its short length (around 3-5 hours) is seen as a strength, ensuring the experience remains fresh, polished, and respectful of the player's time, with minimal bugs. - Excellent & Replayable Arena Mode (weight 0.07): The Arena Mode is a well-received addition that significantly boosts replayability. It offers challenging wave-based combat with fun modifiers, allowing players to further experiment with mechanics and extend their enjoyment beyond the main story. - Charming & Well-Voiced Characters (weight 0.05): The characters, including the protagonist Adalia and the supporting cast, are consistently described as charming, charismatic, and well-written. Their personalities and excellent voice acting contribute significantly to the game's overall appeal. - Fitting & Pleasant Soundtrack (weight 0.04): The game's music is praised for being good, fittingly adventurous, and enhancing the overall atmosphere. It complements the game's cheerful rhythm and Spanish flair, contributing to a pleasant auditory experience. Common complaints: - Game too short for price (weight 0.48): Many players found the game's main campaign to be excessively short, often completable in 3-5 hours, which they felt did not justify the full price. This brevity also contributed to a feeling of lacking content and depth. - Overwhelming enemy numbers in combat (weight 0.38): The combat system, particularly in later stages and boss fights, is heavily criticized for relying on overwhelming the player with too many enemies. This leads to frustrating, repetitive encounters where parrying and dodging become ineffective, forcing players to resort to kiting or environmental exploitation. - Weak and unengaging story (weight 0.09): The game's story is widely considered generic, thin, and unengaging, with many players finding it forgettable or even skipping dialogue. Characters are often described as bland and lacking depth, failing to provide a compelling narrative experience. - Lack of enemy and ability variety (weight 0.08): Players desired more variety in enemy types, abilities, and overall gameplay mechanics. The limited progression system and lack of character customization or a skill tree contributed to a feeling of shallowness and missed potential. - Poor camera and targeting system (weight 0.06): Frequent issues with the camera and targeting system significantly hinder the gameplay experience. Players reported difficulty in accurately targeting enemies, especially in crowded fights, and frustrating camera movements that led to unfair hits or obscured views. - Combat system feels clunky (weight 0.06): The core combat system, while having potential, is often described as clunky, unengaging, and monotonous. Players felt it lacked the depth and responsiveness expected from a modern action game, especially when dealing with multiple opponents. - Technical and animation issues (weight 0.06): Several technical and presentation issues were noted, including static character models in cutscenes with no mouth movement, occasional FPS drops, and minor glitches. These issues detract from the overall polish and immersion of the game. - Enemy health regeneration mechanic (weight 0.05): A highly frustrating mechanic where enemies, particularly those with 'yellow bars,' instantly regenerate their health or posture if the player makes a minor mistake (e.g., wrong parry/dodge, not attacking continuously). This punishes players severely and makes combat feel unfair. - Frustrating and repetitive Arena mode (weight 0.05): The Arena mode, intended as additional content, is criticized for being repetitive, unfair, and frustrating. Issues include bad modifiers, softlocks, and the requirement to restart entire arenas upon dying in later waves, making achievement hunting particularly tedious. - Unbalanced difficulty and progression (weight 0.04): The game's progression and difficulty curve are often described as unbalanced, with sudden spikes that lead to frustrating and repetitive grind. The lack of side objectives or meaningful progression further contributes to a dull experience. - Tedious achievements and challenges (weight 0.03): Many achievements and challenges are perceived as tedious and designed to artificially extend playtime. Requirements like no-hit runs or finding hidden points of interest, combined with a restrictive save system, lead to frustrating and time-consuming replays. - Over-reliance on environmental combat (weight 0.03): Players felt that combat too heavily relied on environmental interactions (kicking objects, throwing items) rather than direct swordplay. This shift, especially in later stages, made combat feel less like a skilled duel and more like a resource management or kiting exercise. Gameplay feedback: - Fluid Combat & Environmental Use (weight 0.43): The core combat system is a fluid and satisfying blend of parrying, dodging, and basic attacks, often compared to Sekiro or Batman Arkham. It emphasizes precise timing and strategic use of environmental interactions to manage multiple enemies and create one-on-one dueling opportunities. - Short, Linear Story Campaign (weight 0.24): The game is relatively short, with the main story typically completed in 3-5 hours across 4 linear chapters. The narrative is simple and lighthearted, serving primarily to progress the player through combat arenas. - Flexible Difficulty & Assist Options (weight 0.2): The game offers robust and granular difficulty settings, including an 'Assist Mode' with options like invincibility and auto-parry, making it accessible for casual players. On higher difficulties, the combat provides a challenging experience that requires mastery of mechanics. - Engaging Roguelike Arena Mode (weight 0.17): After completing the main story, an Arena Mode is unlocked, offering significant replayability. This mode features wave-based combat with roguelike elements, including random modifiers and increasing difficulty, providing additional hours of gameplay. - Varied Enemies & Crowd Control (weight 0.11): The game features various enemy types, each with specific attack patterns and vulnerabilities. Difficulty often scales by increasing enemy numbers, forcing players to prioritize targets and utilize environmental tools for effective crowd control, as direct one-on-one combat is rare. - Boss Fights & Difficulty Spikes (weight 0.09): Each level culminates in a boss fight, with a total of 3-4 unique bosses. While some bosses are extensions of regular enemy types, the final encounters often involve multiple enemies, increasing the challenge and requiring strategic crowd management. - Replayability via Challenges & Secrets (weight 0.06): Beyond the main story and Arena Mode, replayability is enhanced by hidden challenges, secrets, and collectibles within each level. These encourage replaying chapters to achieve 100% completion and extend overall playtime. - Overall Enjoyable Gameplay (weight 0.03): The game is praised for its overall fun and enjoyable gameplay experience, with fluid controls, good pacing, and effective utilization of its core mechanics. The combat system is highlighted as particularly satisfying and well-designed. - Souls-like Combat Comparisons (weight 0.03): The combat system is frequently compared to 'Souls-like' games, particularly Sekiro, due to its emphasis on parrying and posture breaking. However, it's generally considered a more accessible or 'lighter' version, often with a cartoony or swashbuckling tone. Performance notes: - Mixed performance and optimization (weight 0.08): Player feedback on performance is mixed. While some users report excellent framerates and smooth gameplay on various setups, including Steam Deck and high-end PCs, others experience significant stuttering, frame drops, and generally poor optimization, especially on Steam Deck. Hardware requirements also seem inconsistent, with some finding it light and others demanding. - Graphics quality and TSR dependency (weight 0.02): Graphics quality is generally considered good, especially for an independent title, but it's highly dependent on TSR (Temporal Super Resolution) being enabled to prevent flickering. Some distant structures can appear blurred even at high settings, and while not graphically groundbreaking, the overall visual presentation is clean. - Ultrawide display support (weight 0.01): The game supports 21:9 ultrawide displays, which is a positive for players with such setups. It's also suggested that a wider screen can improve the field of view, potentially reducing motion sickness and enhancing the visual experience. - Aggressive enemy AI (weight 0): Enemies in the game are described as quite aggressive. This indicates a challenging combat experience or a need for players to be prepared for frequent engagements. - Relies on asset streaming (weight 0): The game utilizes asset streaming during gameplay. This is a technical detail that might impact loading times or performance in certain areas, though the direct impact on player experience isn't explicitly detailed in the reviews. - Good controller support (weight 0): One reviewer noted that this was the first game they played entirely with a controller, suggesting good controller support or an intuitive control scheme that made it a comfortable experience. Recommendations: - Buy on sale for value (weight 0.27): Many players recommend purchasing the game during a sale due to its short length and perceived value. While some found the full price acceptable, the consensus leans towards waiting for a discount to maximize satisfaction. - Sequel or more content desired (weight 0.18): Players overwhelmingly express a desire for a sequel or more content, praising the game's core mechanics and potential. Many are eager to see what the developers create next, hoping for a larger scope and expanded features. - Great for parry-based combat fans (weight 0.1): The game is highly recommended for fans of parry-based combat, especially those who enjoy titles like Sekiro or Sifu. Its fast-paced, dynamic fights and focus on environmental interaction are key selling points for this audience. - Highly recommended overall (weight 0.09): Overall, the game receives strong positive recommendations, with many players finding it to be a fun, engaging, and worthwhile experience. It's often described as a 'gem' or 'excellent' indie title. - Play on hard difficulty (weight 0.04): There's a strong recommendation to play the game on hard difficulty for a more engaging and worthwhile experience. However, some suggest starting on easier modes or adjusting settings to avoid frustration. - Ideal for Zorro game (weight 0.02): Several players feel the game's combat and swashbuckling theme would be perfectly suited for an official Zorro game. They express a desire for the developers to create such a title. Other player notes: - Short but enjoyable experience (weight 0.17): Players generally enjoyed the game but felt it was too short, often completing the main story in 3-5 hours. While some appreciated the concise experience, many expressed a desire for more content, suggesting a sequel or DLC to expand on the mechanics and story. - Unique Spanish swashbuckling theme (weight 0.12): The game's unique Spanish swashbuckling theme, reminiscent of Zorro and Monkey Island, was highly praised. Its lighthearted, whimsical, and comedic tone, combined with a distinct visual and cultural aesthetic, made it stand out. - Excellent voice acting and soundtrack (weight 0.04): The voice acting was frequently highlighted as excellent, immersive, and well-crafted, elevating the simple cutscenes. The sound design and soundtrack, featuring flamenco and baroque influences, were also highly praised for fitting the setting and enhancing epic moments. - Impressive student project origin (weight 0.03): Many reviewers noted that the game originated as a university student project, expressing surprise and commendation for its high quality given its humble beginnings. This background was seen as a testament to the small studio's talent. - Well-designed, simple levels (weight 0.02): The game's levels were generally considered well-designed, albeit simple and linear. Players found the slight platforming segments interesting and appreciated the varied levels with beautiful lighting. Emotions: - Satisfaction (weight 0.32): Players felt satisfied by the game's engaging and fluid combat system, often highlighting the parry mechanics and environmental interactions. The charming art style, witty dialogue, and overall polished presentation also contributed significantly to a positive and enjoyable experience, often perceived as good value for money, especially on sale. - Disappointment (weight 0.14): Disappointment primarily stemmed from the game's short length and perceived lack of content, especially given its full price. Players also expressed frustration with repetitive combat, limited enemy variety, and issues with late-game balance and boss design, leading to a feeling of unfulfilled potential. - Joy (weight 0.11): Joy was frequently caused by the game's lighthearted and humorous tone, including funny dialogue, character interactions, and environmental shenanigans. The fun and engaging combat, combined with the charming art style and overall positive atmosphere, contributed to a delightful and uplifting experience for players. - Frustration (weight 0.11): Frustration was largely driven by combat mechanics, particularly issues with target lock, camera control in group fights, and overwhelming enemy numbers. Difficulty spikes, especially in later levels and boss encounters, along with repetitive enemy design and certain tedious achievements, also contributed to player annoyance. - Excitement (weight 0.07): Excitement was generated by the game's unique and dynamic combat system, often involving environmental interactions and strategic improvisation. Players also expressed excitement over the challenging gameplay, beautiful visuals, and the anticipation of future games or sequels from the developer. - Enjoyment (weight 0.07): Players enjoyed the game's fun and engaging gameplay, particularly the combat system and the entertaining arena mode. The humor, charming characters, and overall stylish presentation also contributed to a highly positive and amusing experience. - Appreciation (weight 0.03): Appreciation was shown for the game's concise and focused design, which avoided unnecessary bloat and respected player time. The charming art style, humor, and the developers' evident passion and attention to detail, including thoughtful difficulty options and localization efforts, were also highly valued. - Amusement (weight 0.02): Amusement was primarily derived from the game's humor, including witty dialogue, funny character interactions, and comical environmental shenanigans. The lighthearted tone and silly moments consistently brought smiles to players. - Desire (weight 0.02): Players expressed a strong desire for more content, including additional abilities, interactive objects, and longer gameplay experiences. Many also wished for a sequel or similar games from the developers, indicating a strong positive impression of the core mechanics and style. - Admiration (weight 0.02): Admiration was directed towards the game's gorgeous art style, fluid combat, and overall polished execution, especially considering its origins. Players also admired the charming characters, witty writing, and the developers' clear passion and achievement in creating a high-quality experience. - Hope (weight 0.01): Hope was consistently expressed for future content, particularly a sequel or more games from the developer. This indicates a strong positive impression of the game's core experience and a desire for its continued evolution. - Mild disappointment (weight 0.01): Mild disappointment stemmed from the game's relatively short main campaign length and some repetitive elements. Minor issues with narrative and boss fight recycling also contributed to this feeling. - Boredom (weight 0.01): Boredom arose from repetitive gameplay, particularly in combat encounters and level design, which some players found monotonous towards the end. The lack of variety in fights and environments contributed to a loss of interest. - Challenge (weight 0.01): Players experienced challenge primarily from difficult boss encounters and situations involving multiple enemies ganging up. The arena mode and later levels were also noted for their increased difficulty. - Annoyance (weight 0.01): Annoyance was caused by minor but persistent issues such as problematic camera behavior, repetitive character chatter, and specific frustrating elements in the final fights. The auto-aim system in crowded combat situations also contributed to this feeling. - Anger (weight 0.01): Anger was triggered by critical bugs, particularly a saving bug, and a strong negative perception of overall game design and repetitive content. Some players also expressed anger due to perceived visual 'scams' or feeling forced to continue playing a disliked game. - Mild frustration (weight 0.01): Mild frustration was caused by minor technical issues, limitations in the combat system, and some tedious aspects like achievement hunting. Small design flaws and a feeling of missed potential also contributed to this sentiment. - Relief (weight 0): Relief was felt when players could overcome difficulties, such as through the use of an assist mode or trainers, or when experiencing smooth performance. The absence of a grind for achievements also contributed to a sense of ease. - Gratitude (weight 0): Gratitude was expressed towards the developers for their work and dedication, particularly for the inclusion of Ukrainian language support. This highlights an appreciation for the effort and inclusivity shown by the development team. - Mild annoyance (weight 0): Mild annoyance was caused by minor recurring issues such as camera problems, frequent loading screens, and some repetitive elements in the gameplay. Certain controversial elements also contributed to this slight irritation.}