Exanima Review Summary

While its realistic physics combat and arena mode are great, infrequent updates, tough controls, and brutal difficulty may frustrate and deter casuals.

Game is highly enjoyable: Players consistently praise the game as fun, engaging, and unique. Many mention it is easy to get into and offers a satisfying experience overall.

Arena mode is praised: The arena mode is highlighted as a standout feature, offering fun, practice, and additional challenges beyond the main story. It is often described as addictive and worth the price alone.

Physics-based combat impresses: The physics-driven combat system is repeatedly lauded for its uniqueness, realism, and satisfying mechanics. Players find it groundbreaking and immersive, with meaningful weapon movement and footwork.

Unique gaming experience: The game is considered one-of-a-kind, innovative, and unique in its gameplay and overall experience. Players emphasize its distinctiveness and immersive quality.

Combat improves with mastery: Combat becomes more satisfying as players master it, offering a challenging but rewarding experience. The learning curve is seen as part of the appeal.

Infrequent updates frustrate players: Players report that updates are rare, sometimes years apart, and often add little content. This pattern spans clusters 2, 3, 7, and 8, indicating a widespread concern about the game's development pace.

Controls are difficult initially: Many players find the controls unusual and hard to master, especially in combat, leading to a steep learning curve. This is a common complaint across multiple feedback entries, suggesting a significant barrier to entry.

Camera and combat controls issue: Specific to combat, the camera controls are described as terrible, and the control scheme interferes with gameplay. This makes fighting feel like a struggle, adding to the game's difficulty and frustration.

Game may be abandoned: There are signs that development may have ceased, with no updates for years in some cases. This leads to the perception that the game is abandoned and unlikely to receive future improvements.

Game difficulty is brutal: The game is widely considered extremely difficult and often unfair, causing frustration and causing some players to quit. This high difficulty level may not be suitable for all players.

Combat is physics-driven and realistic: Players consistently highlight the physics-based nature of the combat system, which relies on realistic movement and interactions rather than pre-scripted animations. This approach adds depth and complexity to the gameplay.

Arena mode available for practice: The game includes an arena mode that players can use for practice, rank climbing, and participating in tournaments. It is frequently mentioned alongside other game modes, with a focus on learning combat and movement before tackling the story mode.

Dungeon exploration is core: Dungeon delving is described as a core experience, involving exploration, key-finding, and progression, positioning the game as a dungeon crawler RPG. This mode emphasizes thoughtful exploration and puzzle-solving.

Multiple game modes available: The game offers various modes, including a story campaign and an arena mode, providing players with diverse gameplay experiences. Additionally, a separate dungeon crawler mode adds variety to the game's content.

Combat has a learning curve: The combat mechanics are considered unique but require practice and mastering movement while fighting. This learning curve is often mentioned as significant, requiring time for players to effectively engage in combat.

Excellent performance on various hardware: Multiple clusters highlight that the game runs exceptionally well on Steam Deck, old laptops, and integrated GPUs, with stable framerates and good optimization. Players report smooth gameplay at high settings even on modest systems.

Bugs cause stuck and death: Several clusters mention bugs that cause the character to get stuck or fall to death due to physics issues, broken companion AI, and map loading failures. These are frequent enough to affect gameplay significantly.

Crashes and freezes occur: Random crashes after arena matches, frequent glitches, and freezes lasting a full minute are reported, even on high-end hardware like an RTX 3090. These issues indicate instability that needs addressing.

Lag and fps drops in specific situations: Heavy lag is triggered by holding a torch, and framerate fluctuates wildly between 30 and 200 FPS. The garden update is poorly optimized, and level 8 causes frame drops, suggesting targeted issues.

Optimization praised on high-end systems: Players with high-end GPUs like RTX 2080s and 3090s report constant high framerates at ultra settings, with stable performance and low GPU load. This highlights that the game scales well on powerful hardware.

Game is worth buying: Multiple reviews highlight the game as worth its price, with several noting it's an absolute steal and worth every penny. The low cost combined with content makes it a strong recommendation.

Recommended for hardcore players: The game is highly recommended for players who enjoy hardcore difficulty, challenges, and punishing combat without hand-holding. It's particularly suited for fans of difficult games and those seeking a serious challenge.

Avoid due to unpolished state: Some reviews strongly advise against buying the game because it is incomplete and needs further polish. These reviewers cannot recommend it in its current state.

Use arena practice mode: A common tip is to use the arena practice mode to get accustomed to combat before starting the campaign. This is especially recommended for new players to build confidence and skills.

Best for dungeon crawler fans: The game is highly recommended for fans of dungeon crawlers, roguelikes, and mechanically challenging dungeon exploration. Players who enjoy slower, methodical dungeon crawls will find it appealing.

Community fair range: $5.00 - $15.00.

Story completion: 20.0h.

Session length: 3.0h.

The game has a notoriously steep learning curve due to physics-based combat and lack of tutorial, but once players master the controls, it becomes highly satisfying and addictive. Most players report that enjoyment clicks after several hours of practice.

Friction: steep learning curve; lack of tutorial; unintuitive controls; repetitive early gameplay; tedious exploration; punishing difficulty.

Unlock drivers: mastery of physics-based combat; completing practice mode; watching tutorial videos; persistence and practice; understanding controls; completing arena challenges.

Physics Simulation Enthusiast: Experimental, methodical, uses physics creatively during combat and exploration. Motivation: Immersive physics simulation and mechanical mastery of unique combat. Stance: buy.

Hardcore Purist: Patient, strategic, treats failure as a learning tool and values permadeath. Motivation: Fair but punishing challenge and skill-based progression. Stance: buy.

Disillusioned Critic: Hesitant; often gives up after frustration or waits indefinitely for improvements. Motivation: Desire for polished controls, clear tutorials, and consistent development. Stance: no buy.

Performance varies by VRAM: lower VRAM cohorts show mixed to negative stability, while high VRAM appears positive but has sparse evidence.

Windows <8GB VRAM: mixed. Performance is mixed; some users report good frame rates after updates, while others experience lag with torches and crashes.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: negative. Most reports indicate persistent crashes that prevent play, leading to a negative performance outcome.

Windows 16GB+ VRAM: positive. Limited data but all sampled reviews are recommended, though performance details are not discussed.

Steam Deck: The game's unique control scheme and steep learning curve frustrate many players, but the core Steam Deck concern is conflicting verification: some users cannot pick up items or encounter a camera orbit bug, while others report flawless Proton performance. The overall experience requires manual controller remapping and occasional restarts, placing it in a 'tinkering required' zone.

Linux and Proton: User feedback indicates the game runs almost flawlessly through Proton on Linux, with only a minor camera orbit bug that is fixed by restarting. No other Linux-specific issues, anti-cheat blockers, or performance problems were reported.

External guides: The game presents significant barriers due to lack of in-game guidance. Players frequently resort to external wikis, walkthroughs, and map mods to understand quests, mechanics, and navigate the world. This creates a high dependency on external resources, primarily driven by instructional and spatial data needs.

Lengthy early access period: The game has been in early access for around 10 years or more, with many reviews noting its unfinished state after a decade of development. This is a major recurring concern among players.

Slow update cadence: Updates are infrequent, with gaps ranging from two to three years between major patches. Players express frustration over the slow pace of development and lack of consistent communication.

Game remains unfinished: The game is still in an unfinished state, with some noting it is incomplete but still worth playing. The lack of a full release after many years is a common issue.

Comparison to other games: Players compare the game to Half Sword for physics-based combat and to Dark Souls series for difficulty and satisfaction, although some note achievements are less rewarding. These comparisons highlight both strengths and weaknesses.

High cost-value ratio: The game is priced at $15 and offers many hours of gameplay, making it a cheap and worthwhile investment for many players despite its shortcomings.