Grim Dawn - Ashes of Malmouth Expansion Review Summary

The expansion brings excellent new classes and is praised overall, but technical performance issues, multiplayer incompatibility, map geometry problems, and heavy endgame grinding drag the experience down.

New classes are a highlight.: Players frequently praise the addition of the Inquisitor and Necromancer classes, noting they expand build variety and are enjoyable. The new class combinations and masteries add significant depth to gameplay.

Expansion praised overall.: Many reviewers describe the expansion as excellent, fun, and a great addition to the base game. They appreciate seamless integration and the overall quality of the content.

Level cap increased to 100.: The expansion raises the level cap from 85 to 100, providing players with more progression opportunities. This is a frequently mentioned feature that extends the endgame.

Story continues engagingly.: Reviewers appreciate the continuation of the story, describing it as interesting and a good follow-up. It integrates well with the base game and adds new chapters.

Four new factions added.: The expansion introduces multiple new factions with unique quests, equipment, and branching story choices. Players can choose to befriend or conflict with certain factions, adding replay value.

Technical issues and performance: The expansion has performance issues, including FPS drops and crashes. Localization problems exist, and older settings can cause startup failures.

Multiplayer incompatibility with expansion: Players with the expansion cannot join or host games with those who only own the base game. Deactivating the expansion makes characters inaccessible, breaking co-op experiences.

Map design and level geometry issues: Maps feature tiny winding paths, dead ends, and geometry that gets characters stuck. This makes movement a nightmare and discourages exploration.

Navigation in Malmouth confusing: The city of Malmouth is frequently cited as confusing and annoying to navigate, with maze-like layouts and tiny winding paths. This hampers enjoyment and is a recurring complaint.

Endgame progression and grinding: Progression slows significantly after level 50, with scarce skill points and rare item drops. Grinding for dynamite, skeleton keys, and crafting materials is excessive and tedious.

Adds Necromancer and Inquisitor classes: The DLC introduces two new playable classes, the Necromancer and the Inquisitor. These classes add new gameplay options and expand the game's class system.

Expansion adds new content: The expansion adds substantial content including new areas, quests, items, and story chapters. It expands the game world and provides more to do.

Adds new acts and areas: The expansion adds a new fifth act and a variety of new areas to explore. This includes a city map called Malmouth.

Raised level cap to 100: The expansion increases the maximum level cap to 100, allowing for more character progression. This extends the gameplay and provides a longer-term goal.

Continues story after base game: The expansion's story begins after the events of the base game and includes new story chapters. This provides a continuation of the narrative, with content that can only be accessed after completing the main game.

Crashes Reported During Expansion: Players have experienced complete crashes while playing the expansion, some of which were repeated. This is notable because the base game reportedly never crashed over 80 hours of playtime, and occasional stutters in the base game were less severe than in the DLC.

Performance Drops on Certain Hardware: Specific areas like Ugdenbog cause huge FPS drops, and on weaker computers, the number of enemies and triggered effects can bring the game to a halt. This suggests CPU-bound performance issues in the expansion.

DX11 Mode Causes Crashes with Mods: Using a Japanese translation mod under DX11 causes crashes or transparent text, forcing players to revert to DX9. Similarly, outdated localization files can crash the game, indicating compatibility issues with the new rendering mode.

Graphical Improvements Demand More Hardware: The improved graphics in the expansion require more from the machine, and one player had to lower every setting to medium and disable shadows to maintain playable FPS. This suggests a high performance cost for the visual upgrades.

Specific Weapon Trigger Crash: The two-handed weapon Gutsmasher caused the game to crash after several minutes of use, suggesting a bug tied to that item. This is an isolated incident but indicates potential item-specific instability.

Worth every penny: Reviewers strongly agree the DLC provides excellent value for its price, with many calling it a worthwhile purchase. The content is seen as fairly priced for what is offered.

Essential after base game: The expansion is repeatedly described as a must-have for anyone who enjoyed Grim Dawn's base game. Many reviewers state it is an essential, logical next step that enhances the experience significantly.

Recommended for Grim Dawn fans: The expansion is highly recommended specifically for fans of Grim Dawn who want more of the game. It provides additional content that fits perfectly with the existing experience.

Support the developer: The expansion is worth supporting the developer through purchase, as it represents a true expansion with generous content. Reviewers encourage buying to support Crate's efforts in the ARPG market.

Best DLC to purchase: This DLC is considered the better option if buying only one expansion, and is regarded as the best DLC for the game. Reviewers highlight it as the top choice among available content packs.

Community fair range: $20.00 - $30.00.

Story completion: 12.5h.

Grim Dawn starts engaging for many but becomes repetitive and grind-heavy after extended play, with early expansion zones and co-op complications adding friction.

Friction: First half of expansion is an endless slog with low XP; Co-op partner cannot join unless expansion is manually deactivated; Large repetitive green-brown zones with few landmarks; Malmouth's first districts are hard to navigate; Excessive grind for rare items at endgame.

Unlock drivers: Skipping early expansion content to access late game loot and new classes.

Old-School ARPG Devotee: Enjoys slower, methodical combat, invests deeply in multiple builds, and appreciates the sheer volume of quality content. Motivation: To experience authentic old-school ARPG expansion content with high value and no monetization tricks. Stance: buy.

Hardcore Challenger: Plays on hardcore, iterates through runs, optimizes builds, and embraces the punishing learning curve. Motivation: To conquer high-difficulty content, master hardcore mode, and push their build to its limits. Stance: buy.

Newcomer / Casual Player: Tries different classes, may follow guides, gets stuck on Veteran difficulty, and prefers a more relaxed pace. Motivation: To enjoy the core ARPG experience without being overwhelmed by strict build requirements or excessive grinding. Stance: sale.

Monetization: The user reviews consistently confirm that this Grim Dawn DLC is a traditional one-time purchase with no microtransactions, loot boxes, paywalls, or any real-money in-game shop. Complaints focus only on the base price being raised for some regions, which is not a monetization issue. The DLC is widely praised for its content volume and value.

Comparable to classic ARPGs: The expansion is often compared favorably to classic ARPGs like Diablo 2, Titan Quest, and Path of Exile, with some saying it is a better alternative after Diablo 3 and 4. The same developers as Titan Quest are noted, adding to its credibility.

Expansion offers substantial classic content: The expansion is consistently described as a classic, old-school expansion pack with substantial content, unlike typical small DLC. It is seen as providing more of the base game and is meant to be played after the main campaign.

Better value than Diablo 3: Multiple reviews compare the expansion favorably to Diablo 3's Necromancer DLC, noting it offers more content and playtime for a slightly higher price. The comparison extends to Diablo 3's Reaper of Souls, where this expansion is seen as having five times the content.

Good value for price: The expansion is repeatedly described as offering good value for its price, despite some initial concerns about the cost. It provides a large amount of content at a reasonable price compared to other DLC offerings.

Regional pricing issues: Some complaints mention pricing structure, including price increases due to regional updates and hype from a newer DLC. This is seen as a downside for some players, but it is noted that prices stayed the same in some regions.