Hell Clock: Cursed War Review Summary

New Act 4, tiered endgame, more builds, and 80+ relics add depth, but the DLC lacks content for its price and veteran modes spike sharply.

New Act 4 setting: The DLC introduces a fourth chapter set during the Paraguayan War, adding a unique historical backdrop. It also brings new favorite biomes and engaging characters from Pajeu's past.

Endgame loop enhanced: The expansion adds significant value to the endgame gameplay loop, giving players more reasons to continue playing. It refines the endgame experience to a sharp point.

More viable builds: The expansion makes many more character builds viable, increasing gameplay diversity. New skills such as Tupa's Wrath and Jaguar Spear further expand customization options.

Over 80 relics: The DLC adds over 80 relics and unique items, significantly increasing loot variety. Relics also provide skill variations for deeper customization.

DLC story praised: The DLC's story is well written and engaging, drawing players into its narrative. It is considered fantastic and adds meaningful context to the game world.

DLC lacks content for price: Many players feel the DLC is too short and adds too little new content to justify its price, especially compared to the base game. They say it feels like an extra layer rather than a substantial expansion.

Pricing complaints and publisher anger: Players are frustrated by the DLC's price, including a price change after purchase and unfair regional pricing. Some call it a money grab and are annoyed at the publisher for ignoring complaints.

Difficulty spikes in veteran and NG+: Veteran mode becomes extremely difficult from the second miniboss, and the huge difficulty gap in new game+ remains unadjusted. This has caused suffering and numerous community complaints that were ignored.

Item management and labeling issues: Storage is a nightmare with too many relics and no quick sorting, and new Uber uniques and nightmare relics are not labeled. There is also no way to favorite items.

New content feels repetitive and similar: The new patch content is repetitive with same zones, same shrines, and only a couple new enemies. The DLC's new area feels very similar to base game dungeons, and act four can feel aesthetically fatiguing.

DLC adds new chapter and story: The DLC introduces a fourth chapter that continues the narrative, including Pajeu's past and the Paraguayan War. It adds new story content and refines the endgame.

Endgame tiers and constellations system: The endgame features tiers 12 through 16 and a system called constellations. Act 4 refines the endgame experience, adding depth to the gameplay loop.

DLC adds new skills and relics: The DLC introduces new skills, relics, and unique items for character customization. Specific new skills include Tupa's Wrath, Jaguar Spear, and Lead Sermon.

Game is a Diablo-like action roguelike: The game is an action roguelike with Diablo-like mechanics, featuring an ARPG style. It includes room clearing and minibosses as part of its core gameplay.

Veteran and casual difficulty modes: The game offers a Veteran mode for hardcore players and a casual mode available in settings. There is also a new game+ mode with a difficulty gap.

DLC performance issues: Players report that the downloadable content performs poorly. This suggests optimization or compatibility problems specific to the DLC.

Severe stuttering post-update: A recent update introduced major stuttering, significantly affecting gameplay smoothness. This indicates a regression in performance that needs urgent attention.

DLC not worth full price: Feedback frequently criticizes the DLC's price-to-content ratio, calling it a rip-off or money grab. Reviewers advise against purchasing at full price.

DLC only worth on sale: Many reviewers say the DLC should be bought only at a discount or skipped entirely at full price. The common recommendation is to wait for a sale.

Little content for cost: The DLC is difficult to recommend because it offers very little content relative to its price. This low value is a recurring complaint.

Essential for completionists: Some players consider the DLC essential if they want to experience all available content. This view contrasts with criticisms about its value.

Only for main game fans: Reviewers suggest buying the DLC only if you already enjoy the main game. It is not recommended as a standalone purchase.

Community fair range: $2.00 - $5.00.

Story completion: 0.2h.

Hardcore Veteran Build Crafter: Runs hardcore Veteran characters and optimizes unusual weapon builds such as plague ricochet shotgun. Motivation: Mastering hardcore Veteran runs through specialized weapon builds and overcoming punishing miniboss difficulty. Stance: buy.

DLC Value Skeptic: Completes base-game builds, enters Act 4 DLC content, and weighs continued play against repetition. Motivation: Getting enough worthwhile new content and endgame progression to justify continuing after the base game. Stance: deep sale.

Lore-Driven Diablo-like Fan: Plays through new DLC chapters for narrative, worldbuilding, and strong build progression. Motivation: Experiencing the prequel story and new content while enjoying Diablo-like roguelike build power. Stance: buy.

Monetization: The available feedback focuses only on the price and regional exchange rate of a paid DLC. Reviewers complain that the DLC costs too much for the amount of content offered, but there is no direct evidence of in-game microtransactions, loot boxes, gacha pulls, battle passes, paid currency, or pay-to-win systems. Per the scoring rules, traditional DLC pricing complaints alone cannot push the score above 20.

Expansion sold as separate DLC: The expansion is sold as a separate DLC following a previous supporter pack. This indicates it is treated as distinct paid content rather than part of the base game.

DLC explores Paraguayan War prequel: The DLC story is set in the Paraguayan War and explores Pajeu's origin story. It serves as a prequel covering the Paraguayan War.

DLC adds skills and story content: The DLC adds skills and story content to the base game. This enriches the existing experience with new abilities and narrative elements.

Expansion includes fourth act: The expansion content includes a 4th act. This adds a substantial new chapter to the game's storyline.

DLC priced compared to base game: The DLC is priced in comparison to the base game. This suggests players are evaluating whether the additional content justifies the cost relative to the full game.