Caves of Qud

Release Date: December 5, 2024

RPG, fantasy, science fiction, roguelike, post-apocalypse, sandbox, 2D, top-down, indie games, singleplayer

9.4

OpenCritic

95%

Steam

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Caves of Qud is a game combining mechanics of RPGs and roguelikes. We end up in post-apocalyptic world with salt deserts, which is partially generated. It's up to us how we will use our environment and how our story in each session will play out.

Videos and Screens

[0:46] Caves of Qud - 1.0 Launch Trailer

[1:37] Caves of Qud Caves of Qud 1.0 - Announcement Trailer

9.4

OpenCritic Rating

Game is Recomended by 100% of Critics. There are 6 Critic Reviews.

OpenCritic

GamingTrend: 90 / 100

Caves of Qud is a game that will reward you more and more for putting in the time and effort to learn about it. Even just from scratching the surface, however, I am absolutely entranced by the worlds the game can create.

Full Review

PC Gamer: 94 / 100 by Jonathan Bolding

Caves of Qud is a genre-defining achievement in play, story, and roleplaying freedom.

Full Review

Eurogamer: 5 / 5 by Christian Donlan

Densely imagined and as complex as you fancy, this roguelike RPG is brilliant.

Full Review

95%

STEAM Score

All Reviews: Overwhelmingly Positive (8,514)

STEAM

User Reviews Summary generated by AI

The main pros of the game

Deep and Expansive World: Players praise the richly detailed, procedurally generated world filled with lore, unique biomes, and a sense of exploration. The atmosphere is described as immersive and captivating.
Complex Gameplay Mechanics: The game offers a high level of complexity with numerous character customization options, including mutations and cybernetics. Players can experiment with various builds and strategies, leading to unique gameplay experiences.
Emergent Storytelling: The game encourages players to create their own stories through interactions with the environment and NPCs, resulting in memorable and often humorous scenarios.
Strong Writing and Atmosphere: The writing is noted for its depth and creativity, enhancing the overall experience. The soundtrack complements the game’s atmosphere, making it feel alive.
Replayability: With multiple gameplay modes (including permadeath and a more forgiving roleplay mode), players can enjoy different experiences with each run, ensuring that the game remains engaging over time.

The main cons of the game

Steep Learning Curve: New players often find the controls, UI, and mechanics overwhelming, which can lead to frustration. Many reviews mention difficulty in understanding the game initially.
Permadeath Can Be Punishing: The permadeath feature can be daunting for some players, leading to repeated failures that may discourage casual gamers.
Graphics and UI Issues: While the simplistic graphics are a stylistic choice, they can be off-putting for players used to modern visuals. Some users also reported that the UI could be clunky and confusing.
Inconsistent Quality of Procedural Generation: Some players expressed disappointment with the quality of procedurally generated content, feeling it could lead to repetitive experiences.

The features or elements that are missing from the game according to users

Better Tutorials and Onboarding: Players suggested that the game could benefit from more comprehensive tutorials to help new users acclimate to its complexity.
Improved UI/UX Design: Many reviews highlighted a desire for a more intuitive interface and clearer signaling to improve overall usability.
More Unique Items and Encounters: Some players felt that the game could include more unique artifacts and interesting encounters to enhance the variety and excitement during runs.
Expanded Story Elements: While the lore is rich, some players would like to see more structured quests and narrative-driven content to deepen the story experience.

Summary

In summary, Caves of Qud is celebrated for its depth, complexity, and unique storytelling, making it a standout title in the roguelike genre. However, its steep learning curve, permadeath mechanics, and UI challenges may deter some players.

Summary generated on: December 30, 2024

Caves of Qud is an indie roguelike RPG with a partially randomly generated open world. From 2015 to 2024, the game was available in early access, during which the creators expanded the narrative layer featuring a rich sci-fi universe. The game was made by the Freehold Games studio, which has a similar genre product in its portfolio, titled Sproggiwood.

Plot

The action of Caves of Qud is set in a post-apocalyptic world full of salt deserts. The game features intricately simulated political systems and partially procedurally generated tasks.

During each session, sets of historical events and relationships between a set of five random ancient rulers, called sultans, are generated. The initial location where we start our adventure is the city of Joppa. We can alternatively choose one of the procedural cities.

Gameplay

Before we get caught up in the whirlwind of adventures in the world of Qud, we use an extensive character creator, in which we design our hero. We have two significant paths to choose from in creating our character. Our hero can be an unmutated human or a mutant.

The first choice offers a character with higher base stats and access to dozens of cybernetic enhancements. In turn, the mutations are based on both physical and mental, which we combine from 70 to choose from.

Additionally, we have the opportunity to belong to one of the 24 social castes. The character creator also offers 9 ready-made characters, which will allow to start the game without delving into the details.

The core of the game is the story mission system, which includes those prepared by the creators and those procedurally generated in each session.

Additionally, the authors allow for fun without major limits, meaning we can dig a tunnel anywhere, every wall and blockade can be destroyed or even clone ourselves and by using mind control be our own enemy.

Gameplay and exploration are based on a turn-based system, which offers many move types depending on mutations, implants, artifacts, and abilities.

Game modes

We can choose from four game modes. The first three affect the level of difficulty and type of experience.

The Classic mode offers an extra challenge based on roguelike mechanics, including instant death. In Roleplay, the game is closer to a traditional RPG, with the possibility of saving in settlements. In turn, Wander mode focuses on exploration, and experience is gained solely through discovering new locations.

The fourth Daily mode gives us the opportunity to play a session with a defined character and a specific world. The challenge is to survive as long as possible.