Info about Esoteric Ebb:

Official game description:
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About the Game
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**Esoteric Ebb** is an isometric, Disco-like, TTRPG-turned-CRPG set in a bizarre post-Arcanepunk fantasy setting. You are _The Cleric_, an expert in esoteric events, and a glorified government goon. Inspired by classic CRPG games, Esoteric Ebb features deep and branching dialogs with a staggering amount of choices.
Create the world’s worst cleric. Take on the city through tense TTRPG dice rolls. Struggle to maintain control with your Stats chiming in at every moment. Let the voices guide you into insane encounters and hit that natural 20 right when you need it. Become the most interesting player at the table and completely ruin your DM’s day.
_Five days until the first-ever election, a tea shop explodes in the heart of the city. They send you to deal with the mess._
You wake up in a morgue with half the river in your boots, surrounded by ten thousand rotting apples, several corpses, and one zombie. Out of your depth and with no official backup, you delve into your beloved city to investigate the impossible mystery no one wants you to solve. Juggle factions and play them against each other. Explore the streets and tunnels of a fantasy metropolis. Debate devils, drunk sphinxes, and all manner of fantastical fools in a world where mythological creatures sell newspapers at corner shops and ideologies overtake the ramblings of dead gods.
Don’t forget the most important question: _What are you voting in the election?_
**MAKE CHOICES THAT WILL COME BACK TO BITE YOU.** Shifting alliances! Risky dungeoneering! Complete open-ended quests, low and high-stakes alike, set in the streets, towers, and dark tunnels of Norvik. Become the city’s savior, its demise, or bumble your way into absolute power.
**TRUST THE DICE.** Let chance guide you! Roll to wrestle dwarves, steal anything in sight, or to keep yourself from looking like a complete fool. But remember, in true TTRPG fashion, failure can often be way more interesting.
**IT'S ALL IN YOUR HEAD.** Debate yourself! Each Ability Stat has a conflicting viewpoint and loves to interrupt important conversations. No matter whose side you fall on, you'll complete quests in wonderfully ridiculous ways.
**WIELD REALITY-SHAPING MAGIC.** Use The Cleric’s power for unique narrative choices. Control minds for fun and profit. Detect secrets in the tunnels below or in the thoughts of your enemies. Speak with anyone, living or dead, just to see how they insult you.
**TURN-BASED ENCOUNTERS.** Clerics in Norvik are taught to use violence as a last resort. When the need does arise, a roll of the dice determines life or death. But you always have a bizarre solution to any problem, don’t you?
**THE QUESTING TREE.** Your quest log, skill tree, and mind map all at once. Each Quest Branch can take root in your mind and alter The Cleric’s playstyle through game-changing feats.

Release date: Mar 3, 2026

Categories: Choice-based Narrative, Character Customization, Dialogue-based Gameplay, Political Simulation, Dark Humor, Fantasy, Turn-based Combat, Narrative-driven Gameplay


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics:
  - Game completion: 50.0h
  - Story completion: 14.0h
  - Session length: 8.0h
  - Endgame: N/A
  - Reasoning: The evidence provided includes several mentions of playtime, both in terms of single sessions and total playtime. Many users reported spending significant amounts of time playing the demo, with some mentioning 8, 14, and even 50 hours. These quotes suggest that players are highly engaged and willing to invest substantial time into the game. The typical session length can be inferred from mentions of playing for several hours in one sitting. The game completion and story completion times are harder to pinpoint but can be estimated based on the total playtime reported by users.
- Time-to-fun:
  - Summary: Esoteric Ebb is instantly engaging and fun from the beginning, with players enjoying the game's writing and mechanics within the first hour.
  - Stance: Fun immediately
  - Anchor: N/A
  - Time to anchor: 0h 0m
  - Friction: N/A
  - Unlock drivers: N/A
  - Conditions: exceptionally written; engaging gameplay mechanics
- Player Archetypes:
  - D&D Rule Enthusiast (buy)
    - Motivation: Exploration and interaction within the D&D universe
    - Playstyle: Enjoys turn-based combat and narrative-driven gameplay
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: D&D fan; RPG enthusiast
    - Reference games: Dungeons & Dragons; Disco Elysium
  - Narrative-Driven RPG Fan (buy)
    - Motivation: Engaging storytelling and character dynamics
    - Playstyle: Enjoys narrative-driven gameplay and character development
    - Experience: familiar
    - Purchase stance: buy
    - Labels: RPG fan; Story enthusiast
    - Reference games: Disco Elysium; Planescape: Torment


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:
- High praise for gameplay (weight 0.48): Many players expressed enjoyment and satisfaction with the gameplay, describing it as great, delightful, and very good. The gameplay is complemented by an excellent soundtrack and sound design.
- Captivating and intricate world (weight 0.44): The game's world is described as captivating, beautiful, unique, and intricate. Players appreciate the deep and interesting world-building.
- Spiritual successor to Disco Elysium (weight 0.43): The game is seen as a spiritual successor to Disco Elysium, filling the void left by it and replicating its unique elements while being different.
- Exceptional writing quality (weight 0.38): The game's writing is highly praised for being exceptionally good, well-written, and intelligent. Players appreciate the competent and engaging writing style.
- Lighthearted charm and humor (weight 0.34): The game has a lighthearted and goofy charm, with good humor and jokes about the fantasy genre, video games, and tabletop gaming.
- Amazing soundtrack and music (weight 0.29): The game's background music and soundtrack are highly praised for being amazing, beautiful, and excellent, enhancing the overall experience.
- Appealing and gorgeous art style (weight 0.29): The art style is described as appealing and gorgeous, contributing to the game's visual appeal and unique identity.
- Engaging and fun interactions (weight 0.28): The game features engaging and fun interactions, with dialogue serving as a key gameplay element. Players enjoy the funny and imaginative interactions.
- Deep lore and story (weight 0.28): The game offers a deep lore and story, with a spectrum of emotions and a balanced handling of serious topics.
- Unique and interesting characters (weight 0.26): The game features unique characters with a distinct flair and interesting personalities. The art style and character design contribute to this uniqueness.
- Unique take on CRPG style (weight 0.2): The game provides a unique take on the modern CRPG style, with a narrative-focused approach and a mix of D&D and Disco Elysium elements.
- Engaging character creation (weight 0.18): The character creation process is engaging and enjoyable, contributing to the overall fun and satisfying character interactions.
- High replayability (weight 0.17): Players express a willingness to replay the game, indicating a high replay factor and enjoyable gameplay experience.
- Multiple ways to play (weight 0.12): There is no one way to play the game, offering many ways to experience it and enhancing its replayability.
- Emotional and satirical elements (weight 0.12): The game includes emotional, satirical, and absurd elements, with a comedy aspect that adds to its charm.
- Fun and surprising encounters (weight 0.12): Players enjoy fun surprise encounters and the overall fun and engaging gameplay experience.
- Standalone unique experience (weight 0.11): The game does its own thing and stands on its own legs, offering a unique experience that is not just a copy of other games.
- Absurdity of D&D system (weight 0.11): The game puts the absurdity of the D&D system on the main stage, adding a humorous and engaging element to the gameplay.

Common complaints:
- Lack of voice acting (weight 0.22): Players have expressed disappointment over the lack of voice acting in the game, which affects their immersion and overall experience.
- Irritating game mechanics (weight 0.21): Players find the dice rolls irritating and the lack of a turn back button frustrating. Additionally, the game forces political themes and has a rushed feeling due to the in-game clock.
- Language and translation issues (weight 0.21): Non-English speakers face language barriers, and there are calls for Chinese and Portuguese translations. Some translations have small errors.
- Gameplay and atmosphere concerns (weight 0.16): The game's atmosphere is considered sillier and lighter than Disco Elysium. The lore is dumped much faster, and the detective nature is not as gradually deployed.
- Save system issues (weight 0.12): The game lacks a save feature and players cannot delete or clean up old saves, which is inconvenient.
- Limited character options (weight 0.12): Players are disappointed that they cannot play a high charisma character and talk their way through everything. The lack of additional modifiers is also noted.
- Graphical and combat concerns (weight 0.11): The graphics seem a bit weird to some players, and there is a lack of battles, which affects the gameplay experience.
- Marketing and character issues (weight 0.11): Players feel the marketing was hyped, and the game uses character tropes that are not well-received.

Gameplay feedback:
- Blends Disco Elysium and D&D (weight 0.37): The gameplay and mechanics blend elements from Disco Elysium and Dungeons & Dragons.
- CRPG with narrative focus (weight 0.34): The game is a narrative-driven CRPG with a dark comedy tone, reminiscent of classic CRPGs.
- Character interactions and NPCs (weight 0.32): Interactions with NPCs and dialogue choices are a significant part of the gameplay.
- Character customization and builds (weight 0.29): Players can create and customize their characters with different builds and attributes.
- Dialogue and choices (weight 0.26): Dialogue is a core gameplay mechanic, with choices affecting the narrative and character interactions.
- Political themes and intrigue (weight 0.16): The game features political themes and intrigue, adding depth to the narrative.
- Dice-roll mechanics (weight 0.12): The game uses dice-roll mechanics to determine the outcomes of certain actions and interactions.
- Multiple problem-solving approaches (weight 0.12): The game offers various ways to solve missions and problems, enhancing replayability.
- Deep fantasy world (weight 0.12): The game is set in a deep fantasy world with a richly detailed city setting.
- Humorous and comedic elements (weight 0.12): The game includes humorous elements and comedy writing, adding a lighthearted touch to the narrative.
- Reading-heavy gameplay (weight 0.11): The game involves a lot of reading, which may appeal to players who enjoy narrative-rich experiences.

Performance notes:
- Zero performance issues (weight 0.07): Several players have noted that the game runs smoothly without any performance problems.
- Loading games gets laggy (weight 0.07): Some players have reported that the game experiences lag during the loading process.
- Plays great on SteamDeck (weight 0.07): Players have found that the game performs well and is enjoyable on the SteamDeck platform.

Recommendations:
- Great for D&D and CRPG fans (weight 0.34): This game is particularly recommended for fans of Dungeons & Dragons and classic role-playing games (CRPGs). It offers good character dynamics and a vibe similar to Disco Elysium.
- Recommended for Disco Elysium fans (weight 0.22): This game is highly recommended for those who enjoyed Disco Elysium. Players who loved the style and gameplay of Disco Elysium will likely appreciate this game as well.
- Try the demo first (weight 0.13): Players are advised to try the demo before purchasing the full game. This suggestion indicates that the demo provides a good representation of the full game experience.
- Recommended for general enjoyment (weight 0.12): The game is recommended for general enjoyment, suggesting that it has broad appeal and is worth trying for a wide audience.
- Highly recommended overall (weight 0.07): The game comes with a strong general recommendation, indicating that it is well-received and worth playing.
- Recommended for Korean players if translated (weight 0.07): The game is highly recommended if it is translated into Korean, suggesting that language support is important for its enjoyment.

Other player notes:
- Supports Chinese localization (weight 0.08): The game includes Chinese language support, making it accessible to Chinese-speaking players.

Emotions:
- Excitement (weight 0.23): Players are thrilled about the game's engaging gameplay, storylines, and the unique blend of D&D and Disco Elysium elements. The anticipation for future playthroughs and the game's potential success also contribute to this excitement, along with the depth and complexity of the game world.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.12): Players enjoy the game's unique events, story, and the overall positive experience it provides. The enjoyable character interactions, soundtrack, art style, and writing are also significant contributors to this emotion.
- Amusement (weight 0.11): The game's humor, wacky interactions, and entertaining gameplay scenarios are the main reasons for this emotion. Players find the character creator, battle process, and humorous dialogues particularly amusing.
- Engaged (weight 0.07): Players feel highly engaged due to the game's narrative and mechanics. The gameplay experience and the narrative-driven CRPGs are the main factors contributing to this engagement.
- Admiration (weight 0.05): Players admire the game's world-building, characters, and production value. The intelligent design, writing, and unique features of the game are also highly appreciated.
- Joy (weight 0.04): The game's magical experience, music, art design, and gameplay bring joy to players. The game's ability to capture the essence of DnD on a PC and the enjoyable community are also sources of joy.
- Disappointment (weight 0.03): Players feel disappointed due to forced politics, bad writing, and the game not meeting the standards set by Disco Elysium. The writing quality and character tropes are also significant contributors to this emotion.
- Love (weight 0.03): Players love the game's variety and enjoyable art style. The overall experience and the game's unique features are the main reasons for this emotion.
- Appreciation (weight 0.03): Players appreciate the game's humor, ideas, writing, and character implementation. The art, soundtrack, and font QoL are also highly valued.
- Happiness (weight 0.02): Players are happy with the game's comic moments and its status as a worthy successor. The enjoyable gameplay and constant smiles while playing contribute to this happiness.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.02): Players enjoy the overall pleasant gaming experience, interesting dialogues, and gameplay mechanics. The fun interactions and the game's unique features are the main reasons for this emotion.
- Satisfaction (weight 0.02): Players are satisfied with the game's appearance, gameplay, and development. The ability to transfer demo saves also contributes to this satisfaction.
- Frustration (weight 0.02): Players feel frustrated due to losing progress in an unfunny way and encountering language barriers. These issues hinder the overall enjoyment of the game.
- Anticipation (weight 0.02): Players are looking forward to new playthroughs and have been anticipating the game since the first playtests. The excitement for future updates and content is a significant contributor to this emotion.
- Gratitude (weight 0.02): Players are grateful for the authors creating narration-focused games and the game's impact on personal growth. The appreciation for the game's unique features and storytelling is also a significant factor.
- Hope (weight 0.02): Players hope that the game sells well and that future updates include voice acting. The anticipation for the game's success and continued development contributes to this emotion.
- Disappointment (weight 0.02): Players feel disappointed due to insufficient writing and character development. The central puzzle not being engaging enough is also a significant contributor to this emotion.
- Enthusiasm (weight 0.02): Players are enthusiastic about the game and plan to finish it multiple times. The gameplay mechanics and the overall enjoyable experience are the main reasons for this emotion.
- Surprise (weight 0.02): Players are surprised by unexpected gameplay elements, such as the Angel jumping scare by switching languages. The enjoyable experience that exceeds expectations is also a significant factor.
- Sadness (weight 0.01): Players feel sadness due to emotional storytelling moments that made them cry. The game's ability to evoke strong emotional responses is a significant contributor to this emotion.}