Info about Athenian Rhapsody:

Official game description:
  
**Athenian Rhapsody** is a fresh comedic **RPG** game in which you'll **explore the World of Athens!** Your goal is to **build your very own Rhapsody,** the story of you (the player) and your **epic tale** in this world. Your story will unfold **based on your decisions**, to the degree of which **cannot be replicated** by any other player.  
ARhap is a **turn based RPG** which includes **intense and fast paced real-time-dodging**. You'll be faced with **many challenges**, and you'll have to fight your way through the world by either **fighting, or awkwardly trying to make friends with your opponents** through pick-up-lines, mean jokes, memory games, and other strange and funny interactions.  
*   **16 Potential party members for you to interact with!** - Each of these characters has a **bold personality**, and a **large amount of depth** for you to discover. You can **choose to adventure with whoever you'd like!** There truly is a favorite for everyone to bond with, I promise.
*   **Tons of enemies for you to FIGHT or BEFRIEND!** - This world has no shortage of **intense battles** with opponents that range from weird, wacky, tough, cute, and outright goofy!
*   **Varying battle mechanics to always keep the action fresh!** - Many characters will switch up the tactics of battle, you'll be faced with **various minigames based on the scenario** you find yourself in.
*   **Absolutely hilarious.** - This game is **fast paced, action packed, and full of zany and ironic humor** that anyone can have a nice laugh at.
*   **Lots of rabbit holes, secrets, and suspicious endeavors!** - You will **NOT** run out of things to do. If you do, you probably **haven't seen the sunlight** in quite some time!
*   **Choose your own adventure!** \- Nothing substantial in this game is up to RNG. You choose your pathway from start to finish, creating an extremely specific pathway which will then be recorded into your playthrough's Rhapsody!
*   **Vigorous mental challenges, and intense puzzles!** - You may face mind-bendingly difficult challenges such as "Spell Richard" and "Feather Carry" throughout your Rhapsody. Would you dare come face to face with the infamous 3x3 slide puzzle?
*   Last but not least... **An Online Social System and Event System!** - You'll be able to share Rhapsodies between your friends. Share, combine, read through, and maybe even delete your friend's Rhapsodies! Timed events will be coming out after the game's release, so that you'll have the chance to continue your Rhapsodies. More on this later...
Throughout each playthrough, **every decision, action, and event that takes place is recorded into your Rhapsody**! Athenian Rhapsody holds so much variability that no two adventures will ever be the same, making each Rhapsody truly unique! The information contained in a Rhapsody ranges from **each character you've interacted with** as well as **how many times your protagonist has farted.**  
Each time you complete a playthrough, you'll **receive a Rhapsody**. Each Rhapsody acts as a way to **take something tangible** from your experience with your playthrough, and hold onto it forever. There are even **ways to create new Rhapsodies by combining them,** to multiply their complexity and create something **absolutely insane**!  
You'll be able to **use these Rhapsodies in various ways** such as **socializing with friends, accessing special timed in-game event adventures,** and maybe even something outside of the game one day. Who knows! **The sky is the limit**!  
Well, it might **not** be the absolute coolest ever, but it's definitely a game! Maybe even **the game ever**!  
There's no dearth of adventures for any player, no matter what your play style is. Whether you prefer **intense battles**, **rich dialogue**, **hunting for secrets**, or **aiming for completionism**, you're sure to have a blast in Athens.  
The ultimate goal of Athenian Rhapsody is to provide a real, impactful experience for everyone who plays it. There's something for everyone and I hope that every player can relate to their story somehow, and maybe even reflect on their own lives. Remember to have fun, it's a game!  
No, the developer of Athenian Rhapsody **cannot** do a backflip. Maybe one day, but for now he is **too scared**!

Release date: May 14, 2024

Categories: Turn-based RPG, Comedy Adventure, Multiple Endings, Character Progression, Mini-game Collection, Rhythm Game, Puzzle Solving, Social Simulation

Feature scans:
- Proton/Linux: score 35; verdict: Playable with limitations; summary: The game is playable on Steam Deck, but users report that online play, DLC, and achievements do not work properly, indicating a partial compatibility issue on Linux/Proton.

- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price:
  - Community fair range: $10.00 - $20.00
  - Reasoning: The reviews consistently express that the game provides strong value, with humor and gameplay being the main highlights. Players recommend paying full price after trying the demo, indicating the current price is considered fair. Since the game is an indie title similar to Undertale (which is typically priced around $10-$15), the community sentiment supports a base-game price range of $10-$20, with $10-$15 being the most likely sweet spot.
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 10.0h
  - Story completion: N/A
  - Session length: N/A
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The '10 hour-ish' quote directly estimates the total game length, and the '7+ hours' quote corroborates a minimum content duration. The '9ish hours' quote indicates a major story beat around that time, but not necessarily completion. The 'day-off' quote suggests a playthrough can be finished in a single long session, consistent with a roughly 10-hour completion time. Therefore gameCompletion is estimated at 10 hours. No precise numeric evidence supports storyCompletion, sessionLength, or endgame, so those remain null.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: The game is enjoyable at the start but becomes less fun as difficulty and repetition increase, though some players report it improving over time.
  - Stance: Fun then drops
  - Anchor: Game start
  - Time to anchor: 0h 0m
  - Friction: N/A
  - Unlock drivers: N/A
  - Conditions: enjoy surreal comedy; enjoy personal progression; enjoy meaningful relationships; enjoy hybrid battle system
- Player Archetypes:
  - Undertale Humor Enthusiast (buy)
    - Motivation: To enjoy a funny, lighthearted RPG experience with Undertale-like mechanics.
    - Playstyle: Plays through the game, likely on pacifist or exploring routes, focusing on the comedic writing and characters.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: N/A
    - Reference games: Undertale
  - Critical Undertale Veteran (sale)
    - Motivation: To experience a well-crafted RPG, but they are disappointed by execution issues.
    - Playstyle: Attempts different modes, may give up or push through, but often feels the game falls short.
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: sale
    - Labels: N/A
    - Reference games: Undertale
  - Route Completionist (buy)
    - Motivation: To uncover all endings and routes, fully exploring the game's content.
    - Playstyle: Plays through multiple times, trying different choices and approaches, often without assist modes.
    - Experience: veteran
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: N/A
    - Reference games: N/A
  - Casual Chill Mode Player (buy)
    - Motivation: To enjoy the story and characters without being blocked by difficulty.
    - Playstyle: Uses chill mode, likely plays pacifist routes, and appreciates the relaxed experience.
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: N/A
    - Reference games: Undertale; Deltarune


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:
- Game is fun and charming (weight 0.64): Players consistently describe the game as fun, silly, and charming, with enjoyable humor and comedic moments. The overall experience is entertaining and makes players smile throughout.
- Excellent music and soundtrack (weight 0.45): The music and soundtrack are highly praised, with players calling it magnificent, incredible, and full of great tracks. The tunes are a standout feature of the game.
- High quality and polished (weight 0.35): The game is praised for being well designed, polished, and of high quality, with clever mechanics and great audiovisual presentation. It leaves a very positive impression on players.
- Multiple endings and replayability (weight 0.34): The game features multiple endings and routes that depend on player interactions, making it highly replayable. Players are encouraged to play through multiple times to see different outcomes.
- Creative and unique gameplay (weight 0.24): The gameplay is described as creative, inventive, and unique, with challenging battles and clever mechanics. The game does things in a distinctive way that sets it apart.
- Personal story with Rhapsody system (weight 0.11): The Rhapsody system records every choice and event, creating a unique personal story that players can share with friends. This feature adds a distinctive layer to the narrative.
- Befriend enemies option (weight 0.11): Players can choose to befriend enemies instead of defeating them, offering a unique gameplay choice. This adds depth and variety to how encounters are handled.
- Does not take itself seriously (weight 0.11): The game maintains a lighthearted tone without straying into parody territory. It balances humor and sincerity effectively, appealing to players who enjoy self-aware comedy.
- Challenging gameplay (weight 0.11): The game is described as challenging, with hard gameplay that tests players' skills. The difficulty is seen as a positive feature that adds to the satisfaction of overcoming obstacles.
- Impactful and emotional ending (weight 0.11): The ending is praised as impactful and emotionally resonant, providing a strong conclusion to the story. Players find it really good and memorable.
- Meaningful player choices (weight 0.11): Every choice in the game is important, with decisions affecting the outcome. This emphasis on player agency is appreciated and adds to the game's depth.
- Extensive side quests (weight 0.1): The game features side quests that span the whole game world, offering additional content and exploration opportunities. This adds depth to the overall experience.

Common complaints:
- Humor is overwhelming and repetitive (weight 0.85): The humor is frequently described as over-the-top, low-brow, and repetitive, with many jokes falling flat or becoming grating after a short time. The constant memes and absurdity can overshadow any serious moments.
- Combat hitboxes feel unfair (weight 0.59): Players frequently complain about oversized hitboxes for both the character and projectiles, making dodging feel cheap and unfair. The lack of invincibility frames after being hit can lead to rapid multi-hits and frustrating deaths.
- Characters are underdeveloped and annoying (weight 0.54): Many characters are seen as flat, one-note gags with little depth or connection to the main plot. Their constant joking and lack of meaningful reactions to player choices make them unlikable and forgettable.
- Gameplay is repetitive and boring (weight 0.5): The combat, encounters, and backtracking are frequently called repetitive, with few enemy attack patterns and simple mechanics. The game's pacing and lack of variety lead to boredom and frustration.
- Too derivative of Undertale (weight 0.49): Many players feel the game borrows heavily from Undertale and Deltarune without adding originality, making it feel like a lesser copy. The lack of unique moments and serious tone compared to its inspirations was a common complaint.
- Story lacks substance and originality (weight 0.46): The narrative is often described as nonexistent, confusing, or too similar to Undertale, with emotional moments failing to land. The story's moral and tonal shifts are seen as unearned and disconnected from the player's actions.
- Leveling up makes game harder (weight 0.34): Enemy damage scales with player level while defense remains static, and healing items don't scale with max HP, making progression feel counterproductive. This balance issue makes leveling up feel worthless or even detrimental.
- Boss fights are tedious and unfair (weight 0.31): Bosses often have scripted turn counts or tanky health, making fights feel like a chore rather than a challenge. The lack of invincibility frames and chaotic attack patterns contribute to a sense of unfairness.
- Technical issues and bugs (weight 0.28): Players report various technical problems, including softlocks, missing content, and issues on Steam Deck. These bugs can break the game and ruin the experience.
- Chill mode is a band-aid fix (weight 0.23): The easy mode doesn't truly address the underlying combat issues, and the game can still be difficult even with it enabled. Players feel it's a temporary solution rather than a proper rebalance.
- Dialogue is too long and unskippable (weight 0.22): The game is overly wordy with jokes that often miss, and there is no skip button for dialogues, making the experience drag. The intro and help menu are particularly verbose and annoying.
- Mercy system is frustrating (weight 0.19): Sparing enemies takes too many turns and the options can change randomly, making the pacifist route tedious. The system discourages non-violent play and adds unnecessary difficulty.
- Healing items are inefficient (weight 0.16): Healing items waste a turn and don't scale with higher health totals, making them nearly useless in later battles. This design choice adds to the game's difficulty and frustration.
- Graphics and art style may not appeal (weight 0.13): The graphics are described as strange and surreal, which may turn off players expecting a more traditional or serious aesthetic. The character designs are also compared unfavorably to Pokemon.
- No mute or volume options (weight 0.11): Players cannot mute or lower the music volume, which is a significant accessibility and comfort issue. This lack of audio settings is a common complaint.

Gameplay feedback:
- Multiple endings and routes (weight 0.48): The game features pacifist, neutral, and genocide-like routes, with multiple endings depending on player choices. This is a common point of comparison to Undertale.
- Rhapsody system records choices (weight 0.31): A unique 'Rhapsody' system tracks all player choices and experiences, providing a record at the end and enhancing replay value. This feature is mentioned in several reviews.
- Mix of Undertale, Earthbound, Pokemon (weight 0.3): The game is often described as a quirky RPG blending elements from Undertale, Earthbound, and Pokemon, appealing to fans of those franchises.
- RPG with party members (weight 0.25): The game is a role-playing game featuring party members with varied skillsets and an interchangeable partner system.
- Comedic and satirical tone (weight 0.22): Compared to Undertale and Deltarune, the game has a stronger comedy focus and satirizes the genre, while maintaining high difficulty and humor.
- Various minigames included (weight 0.22): The game includes minigames such as basketball, rhythm games, and quizzes, and battle mechanics switch up with different minigames.
- Choices and variables (weight 0.1): The game features many variables and decisions, allowing players to shape their experience.

Performance notes:
- Steam Deck online issues (weight 0.07): The game cannot be played online on the Steam Deck, limiting its portability and multiplayer accessibility. This is a significant drawback for Steam Deck users.
- Low PC requirements praised (weight 0.06): The game has low PC requirements, making it accessible to a wide range of players with modest hardware. This is a positive aspect that broadens the potential audience.

Recommendations:
- Try the demo first (weight 0.35): Reviewers advise trying the free demo, which is a separate campaign called 'Athenian Rhapsody: Thunder Goober's Personality Dungeon', before purchasing. They suggest that liking the demo indicates you'll enjoy the full game.
- Strong overall recommendation (weight 0.34): Multiple reviewers give the game a high recommendation, with some giving a 100% recommendation. They encourage players to try the game and enjoy it.
- Quirky RPG appeal (weight 0.25): Reviewers recommend the game to players who enjoy unusual, humorous, and quirky indie RPGs. It is described as a fun, wacky adventure with strange characters and lighthearted humor.
- Challenge and difficulty (weight 0.15): The game is noted as not being an easy RPG, and it may not suit players who dislike rhythm games or memorizing attack patterns. Using story mode is acceptable if the difficulty becomes too high.

Other player notes:
- Heavily inspired by Undertale (weight 0.9): Many reviewers compare the game to Undertale and Deltarune, noting it follows a similar style and is directly inspired. Some say it is wackier, more polished, and funnier, while others find it less touching or more boring.
- Ambitious first game (weight 0.24): Reviewers note this is the developer's first commercial game, which is ambitious. The game was mostly made by one person, with another handling the soundtrack.
- Event system with DLC (weight 0.23): The game has an event system with timed downloadable events and DLC coming in the future. Event Rhapsodies are released slowly over time, and there are promises of more new events.
- Content length varies (weight 0.15): Reviewers report 7+ hours of content, while others say it is about 10 hours long. The game is short but replayable, offering different routes and events.
- Controller and keyboard support (weight 0.1): The game supports controller and keyboard and mouse, and works on Windows 11. This ensures accessibility for different play styles.
- Compared to Earthbound (weight 0.1): The game is compared to Earthbound, a classic RPG, indicating its nostalgic and quirky style. It is also compared to Omori and found more enjoyable by some.

Emotions:
- Enjoyment (weight 0.18): Players consistently praise the game's humor, characters, and music, often noting that it stands on its own despite comparisons to Undertale. The fun combat, vibrant world, and replayability contribute to an overall positive experience.
- Frustration (weight 0.16): Combat issues such as oversized hitboxes, lack of invincibility frames, and unfair attack patterns are major sources of frustration. Additional annoyances include the inability to mute music, tedious backtracking, and a problematic mercy system.
- Disappointment (weight 0.1): Players feel the game tries too hard to imitate Undertale and lacks original emotional depth. Disappointment also stems from underdeveloped characters, a weak story, and the inability to access certain content or endings.
- Appreciation (weight 0.06): The game is appreciated for its superior art style, well-developed characters, and magnificent music. Players also value the polished gameplay, the Rhapsody system, and the meaningful message of the True Route.
- Amusement (weight 0.05): The game's humor and dialogue consistently amuse players, with many finding the writing chaotic, goofy, and well-crafted. The funny characters and transformative references add to the overall amusement.
- Love (weight 0.05): Players love the game for its silly characters, humorous writing, and engaging story. The party building system and the game's overall ridiculousness are also highlights that foster affection.
- Excitement (weight 0.04): Excitement arises from the game's replayability, the anticipation of future updates, and the desire to explore the world of Athens. The game's surreal content and its comparison to Deltarune also generate enthusiasm.
- Annoyance (weight 0.03): Annoyance is caused by the constant joking and memes, the pacing, and the lack of a skip feature for the intro. The game's humor can become grating, and certain characters or jokes are seen as annoying.
- Amused (weight 0.03): Players are amused by the game's goofy nature, hilarious writing, and funny characters like the rabbit cowboy. The jokes consistently elicit grins and chuckles.
- Boredom (weight 0.02): Boredom stems from repetitive gameplay, long battles with limited enemy attacks, and constant backtracking. The game is considered more boring than Undertale by some players.
- Admiration (weight 0.02): Admiration is directed at the game's creation by mostly one person, its great soundtrack, and its status as a masterpiece. Players also admire the unique indie experience it provides.
- Surprise (weight 0.02): Surprise comes from the game exceeding low expectations, turning out to be glorious rather than a cheap Pokemon rip-off. One player also mentions receiving irritable bowel syndrome as a reward, which is an unexpected outcome.
- Interest (weight 0.02): The game's unique differences and intriguing story keep players interested enough to continue playing and even replay. The weirdness adds to the interest rather than detracting from it.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.02): Satisfaction is derived from victories, figuring out fight patterns, and the overall positive impression the game leaves. The challenge of mastering battles contributes to a sense of accomplishment.
- Anticipation (weight 0.01): Players anticipate the upcoming game 'tales of tuscany' and expect to play this game as much as Elden Ring. The excitement for future content and experiences is high.
- Discomfort (weight 0.01): Discomfort is caused by initial character designs that resemble Pokemon and dialogue that is cringey to an extreme degree. These elements make players feel uneasy.
- Dislike (weight 0.01): Dislike arises from the ease of falling into a neutral ending and the overall message about getting on with life despite abusive people. These aspects are not well received.
- Emotional impact (weight 0.01): The ending has a significant emotional impact on players, leaving a lasting impression. This suggests the narrative culminates in a powerful and moving conclusion.
- Happy (weight 0.01): Happiness is derived from the fun gameplay, funny dialogue, and the creator's project coming to fruition. The game brings joy to players.
- Frustrated (weight 0.01): Frustration is caused by the lengthy process of befriending monsters and the repetitive, groan-worthy character writing. These elements hinder the overall experience.}