Evoland

 PC
User Score
6.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 210 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 88 out of 210
  2. Mixed: 89 out of 210
  3. Negative: 33 out of 210

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  1. IronSavior
    Apr 5, 2013
    0
    Please understand me: There is no game here. There are no goals or adversity. There is absolutely no story and no message--that is unless the story is that the author has played a few RPGs over the years and he also remembers some of the mechanics from those games. The experience can be described as "walk a little and then we mention something RPGs used to have". Evoland fails toPlease understand me: There is no game here. There are no goals or adversity. There is absolutely no story and no message--that is unless the story is that the author has played a few RPGs over the years and he also remembers some of the mechanics from those games. The experience can be described as "walk a little and then we mention something RPGs used to have". Evoland fails to deliver, or even propose, as much as a single aesthetic other than this.

    What's more is that the creators of Evoland have managed to reference this list of RPG mechanics and then fully divorce them from the reason we played the games that originally used them. Sure, these mechanics were present In the original works that inspired Evoland. However, in those works, we had a reason to fight the random battles, we had a reason to pick up the first sword, we had a reason to visit a village. In Evoland, these mechanics serve no purpose other than for the sake of listing them.

    A lot of game makers have made the mistake of analyzing a successful game and concluding that the game's success is only due to the mechanics that make up the game. When a game maker tries to follow a "formula" in this manner but also fails to adequately serve any aesthetic, then you have a guaranteed bad game because the audience will not have a reason to engage in any of those mechanics. I thought since Evoland was supposed to be a nod to the history of RPG mechanics, that it would naturally avoid this pitfall by using those mechanics as a means to remind us why we played those old RPGs in the first place. Sadly, it's just a rote list of disembodied RPG mechanics.    … Expand
  2. CatHatMan
    Jul 20, 2013
    1
    This feels like it was more of an interactive report on the history of video game rpgs rather than an actual game. There is so much wasted potential in the concept, Too bad they had to turn it into a 2 hour long tutorial stage with no game.

    Also $10 is crazy high for this game.
  3. TitaniumDragon
    Jun 1, 2016
    0
    Evoland is basically every bad old RPG rolled up into one. Boring enemies, boring combat, excuse plot, character who dies who you just don’t care about at all (or indeed, care about any of the characters at all), ect.

    The game is meant to poke fun at old RPGs, including Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Zelda, Diablo, and others, but frankly, it falls flat. All of the “humor” in the game is    Evoland is basically every bad old RPG rolled up into one. Boring enemies, boring combat, excuse plot, character who dies who you just don’t care about at all (or indeed, care about any of the characters at all), ect.

    The game is meant to poke fun at old RPGs, including Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Zelda, Diablo, and others, but frankly, it falls flat. All of the “humor” in the game is basically the game pointing and saying “isn’t this dumb?” It is basically explaining the joke, except there is no joke, just a reference to an older game which isn’t very funny.

    The game seems to suggest that you’re going to gradually move through various eras of games, but by about a third of the way into the game, you’re already up to 3D graphics, and it doesn’t really go beyond that. The game feels almost as if it has to rush through to unlock all the earlier stuff and then get to 3D for some reason, even though, quite frankly, the 3D gameplay isn’t very good (but then, neither is the 2D gameplay).

    Ultimately, the game is meant to be funny, but isn’t, and is meant to be fun, and also isn’t. The gameplay is as tedious as any old, poorly designed game with very little content; the JRPG overworld encounters happen every five steps or so and are pointless and tedious, while the dungeon Zelda-type movement is very basic, containing very little variety of monsters, none of which are particularly interesting to fight. The game contains three bosses, two of which are pretty boring; one of them is basically “stand there and hit it until it dies”, and another is a standard “dodge the charge and hit them” boss. Only the final boss shows any signs of real gameplay, and even there, it was kind of tepid.

    There’s just nothing here for anyone. If you’re looking for humor, the game isn’t funny; if you’re looking for a game which is fun to play, this isn’t. It doesn’t even feel original, as literally everything in it is referential, meaning any “originality” it might have from the whole idea of evolving into the modern day of gameplay is basically dead on arrival, buried under a pile of old video game references.    … Expand
  4. speedfrizzle
    Sep 2, 2013
    2
    I understand Evoland is supposed to just be a simple homage to older games such as zelda and final fantasy but Evoland itself is an unbearably frustrating and bland experience which barely re-sparked my love for the older titles. Evoland is not enjoyable. The few times you get a sense nostalgia for your childhood games it is often quickly squashed out by Evoland's over simplicity andI understand Evoland is supposed to just be a simple homage to older games such as zelda and final fantasy but Evoland itself is an unbearably frustrating and bland experience which barely re-sparked my love for the older titles. Evoland is not enjoyable. The few times you get a sense nostalgia for your childhood games it is often quickly squashed out by Evoland's over simplicity and frustrating mechanics.… Expand
  5. MrSelatcia
    Nov 11, 2013
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The idea behind this game is solid and seems fun, but the execution was lacking. The game is short, I beat it in one sitting, but even at only 2-3 hours it dragged. The game continually upgrades into different types and styles of varying classic rpgs, but for some reason it can't decide on the overworld and in dungeon style to stay with. HP and XP Final Fantasy style in the overworld, diablo style fighting without leveling in dungeons. I wanted more story, more towns, more shops, more upgrades, more consistency. It's as if the devs grew tired of the concept and cut it short with their half assed ending.

    I bought this at full price because my interest was piqued when I heard about it. It wasn't worth half.

    Hopefully somebody else takes the idea and runs with it.    … Expand
  6. Datamari
    Nov 15, 2015
    4
    It's not as good as it presents itself.
    The main concept of Evoland is that every time you collect a chest, you upgrade the game itself, such as new graphics or different style gameplay. It's a really good concept, but the lack of challenges makes this game more of a reminiscent of games like Zelda or Final Fantasy. There is no story to this game, and it is super short, being only 3    It's not as good as it presents itself.
    The main concept of Evoland is that every time you collect a chest, you upgrade the game itself, such as new graphics or different style gameplay. It's a really good concept, but the lack of challenges makes this game more of a reminiscent of games like Zelda or Final Fantasy. There is no story to this game, and it is super short, being only 3 hours long. The evolution idea is great, but the execution is not as good as it wants to be.

    Evoland gets a 4/10.    … Expand
  7. Meanwhile
    Apr 19, 2013
    4
    Not so much a game as a series of jokes and observations about the genre. There are a few "gamey" elements, such as the occasional boss battle, and the card mini-game, but even those are quite shallow and require very little thought or skill. Even so, there are times when you have to grind pointless trash fights to get all of the achievements; this is made all the more tiresome becauseNot so much a game as a series of jokes and observations about the genre. There are a few "gamey" elements, such as the occasional boss battle, and the card mini-game, but even those are quite shallow and require very little thought or skill. Even so, there are times when you have to grind pointless trash fights to get all of the achievements; this is made all the more tiresome because for the most part there is absolutely no chance of failure unless you are just really, really incompetent. On top of all that, it's pretty darned short (which in retrospect may be a blessing). You can tell the creators put some thought and effort into it sadly, it turns out they are clearly game FANS, not game designers. I bought this while it was on sale for 10 percent off, and I still feel like I paid way too much for it.… Expand
  8. miked007
    May 12, 2013
    2
    Horrible game really, if you are under 21 or so and do not remember all the flaws and how terrible and annoying the game play of early 90s- late 90s rpgs could be, then give it a shot just to see how good you have it, and be thankful you dont have to play garbage like this. If you do remember those games, well, thats what it is, that annoying as hell pop-up battle crap, can only move 4Horrible game really, if you are under 21 or so and do not remember all the flaws and how terrible and annoying the game play of early 90s- late 90s rpgs could be, then give it a shot just to see how good you have it, and be thankful you dont have to play garbage like this. If you do remember those games, well, thats what it is, that annoying as hell pop-up battle crap, can only move 4 directions etc etc, everything i hated about those games.… Expand
  9. Hakaze
    Apr 7, 2013
    1
    Can't recommend this game. It's crap. Don't buy it.

    It got no depth, few options, few enemies/attacks, the rules are inconsistent, the world is small (maybe a good thing) and the difficulty are random. Sometimes cakewalk, sometimes impossible deathtrap. I love Zelda, Final Fantasy, Mario and Diablo and this is pissing on them to earn a few dollars from sentimental players. Also: looks    Can't recommend this game. It's crap. Don't buy it.

    It got no depth, few options, few enemies/attacks, the rules are inconsistent, the world is small (maybe a good thing) and the difficulty are random. Sometimes cakewalk, sometimes impossible deathtrap. I love Zelda, Final Fantasy, Mario and Diablo and this is pissing on them to earn a few dollars from sentimental players. Also: looks bland, sounds bland, got no character. Makes me see some un-skippable cut-scene over and over again because badly designed boss fight. Lousy controls...

    Pros: You can get the Bustersword and the (one) summon you can get is fun (once)    … Expand
  10. lightshadow3939
    Apr 8, 2013
    3
    Personally... I'd rather just play some older game for nostalgia. I won't go on about how the gameplay wasn't fun for me at all, because the actual games they wanted us to remember were better.
  11. EL1TE
    Dec 23, 2013
    0
    There was I having fun with all the graphical upgrades when finally got into the story (can i even call it story?) when suddenly the game's finished in less than 3 hours where at least 2h is finding treasures that upgrade the graphics, sounds and gives access to basic things such as the menu, even tho i bought it at 75% off the base value is a ripoff for a game, (i mean demo) with thisThere was I having fun with all the graphical upgrades when finally got into the story (can i even call it story?) when suddenly the game's finished in less than 3 hours where at least 2h is finding treasures that upgrade the graphics, sounds and gives access to basic things such as the menu, even tho i bought it at 75% off the base value is a ripoff for a game, (i mean demo) with this duration.

    It's ridiculous how someone charges 10€ for such basic game (i mean demo) and where most of the names are pretty much taken from other games and even movies with just a letter change (such as Noria Mines, which is Moria from Lord of the Rings) and then worst, the duration of the game is pathetic at best and to think i was kinda hyped when i got the game (i mean demo).

    Basically i feel like this is a "tech" demo for a great potential game, turns out the author just threw the demo at us and that's it.

    If i want nostalgia there's plenty of games i can play (i can go play Final Fantasy 7, 8, 9, Chrono Trigger/Cross, Pokemon and so many others) with at least 50+ hours of duration each, and that's just doing the main story and some exploration for better gear).

    Overall i do NOT recommend buying this game (i mean demo) unless you pay 2.5 for it instead of the base 10.    … Expand
  12. obake21
    Aug 18, 2013
    0
    Do not buy this game, its nothing more than a Frankenstein of references to older games. There is little to no strategy involved in playing the game, most of the time you're just walking around talking to a person who will ask you to talk to another person.

    The game is short, the challenges are so bland, a five year old can complete the game, and you couldn't even call the story-line a    Do not buy this game, its nothing more than a Frankenstein of references to older games. There is little to no strategy involved in playing the game, most of the time you're just walking around talking to a person who will ask you to talk to another person.

    The game is short, the challenges are so bland, a five year old can complete the game, and you couldn't even call the story-line a real story.

    save your money, buy something else.    … Expand
  13. x2495iiii
    Dec 16, 2013
    1
    It really could have been great, but it isn't.

    First, it's very poorly coded. Want to see if you can beat the game without autoscrolling? Well, hope you like guessing where your character is, since he'll be spending much of his time off camera wandering around trying to trigger the invisible scroll points. Don't pick up mode-7 either, since without auto-scrolling, it make all graphics    It really could have been great, but it isn't.

    First, it's very poorly coded. Want to see if you can beat the game without autoscrolling? Well, hope you like guessing where your character is, since he'll be spending much of his time off camera wandering around trying to trigger the invisible scroll points. Don't pick up mode-7 either, since without auto-scrolling, it make all graphics in the overworld completely misaligned. On the plus side though, you can move while doing the "got item" animation after opening a treasure chest, which isn't possible with autoscrolling. A good coder assumes all possibilities and accounts for them when making a game. Obviously, they assumed every player would play the same way they did and didn't bother to test the alternatives. To put a little icing on the cake, there's plenty of typos too. It's almost like there wasn't any QA at all.

    Second, even if the game was great, it's like a demo version of the games it's trying to pay homage to. It reminds me of FF, A link to the Past, and Illusion of Gaia, but what made those games memorable wasn't their turn-based combat or use of mode-7, but their combination of engaging (well-coded) gameplay, deep storylines, and memorable characters. Lacking any real storyline or characters, and only offering a thin imitation of the gameplay, Evoland doesn't come close to having the same effect those games did.

    If it was a free flash game, the quality and shallowness would be a lot more fitting, almost endearing. But since it's the same price as considerably better made and more thought out games, it's practically a scam.    … Expand
  14. SpongyTwinkies
    Apr 8, 2014
    4
    I have a problem with this game - it is constantly reminding me that it is a game. Throughout play, the game 'evolves' the technical and play mechanics. It is this persistent reminder, and the jokes the game makes at its own expense, that irk me, jar me out of the experience and sometimes confuse the issue of what the goals are during play. Am I seeking the next chest to unlock a newI have a problem with this game - it is constantly reminding me that it is a game. Throughout play, the game 'evolves' the technical and play mechanics. It is this persistent reminder, and the jokes the game makes at its own expense, that irk me, jar me out of the experience and sometimes confuse the issue of what the goals are during play. Am I seeking the next chest to unlock a new mechanic?

    Because it was reminding me it's a game, I continued noting the evolution of play and spoting inconsistencies as things updated. The game can't help but do this. And after awhile, I began to miss playing Zelda because Evoland might as well have said, "Hey, I'm not Zelda, but this is sort of how that game works and we are imitating something already created." In fact, I stopped playing and turned on that great NES classic.

    Buy this if you're curious but wait for it to go on sale. Evoland is not a game that seems to want to stand on its own merit except for novelty.    … Expand
  15. araithiel
    Apr 3, 2015
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Evoland made me really excited (when I saw it on sale on Steam...$10 bucks? Ha!) because conceptually, it seems quite exciting. Being able to play through an action-RPG that changes and evolves to match the different mechanics we've seen over the years would be amazing, provided the game itself was also there to deliver.

    The problem with Evoland is that it doesn't stand up alone as a game. They intended to create a series of references and then put them in order. It doesn't play like a game at any point, it makes no sense, and it doesn't try to engage you at all. Because the concept is so strong and the idea of nostalgia pulls at us all, Evoland neglected to make a challenging, entertaining, or even remotely fun game. It's these kinds of indie games that will bury a really great trend over the past few years when it comes to experimentation. If they had actually created a story and game and then simultaneously had you building the world, you might have had something here.

    I've played a number of RPGs over the year where you actually had to build up the world around you. They're not much different than Evoland, except that they still brought a story and gameplay to stand alongside their gimmick. Evoland will make you smile once or twice, not because you're enjoying the game, but because you'll go "Oh yeah, monochrome games were pretty fun" or "Yeah, Diablo is a great game." You're just smiling because you were reminded there are great games out there you played before and many of them are still pretty easy to get your hands on.

    There is a brief moment in Evoland where you have switch between "time," and in doing so, you change between old 16-bit gameplay back to 3-D, and it changes how you can interact with the map. This is ingenious. This is the kind of thing that the game should be doing. Puzzles based on its gimmick. Early on, when you switch from monochrome to colour or from no health to hearts, there's no reason and no bonus to your progression. It just happens. So the gimmick isn't actually doing anything to boost the game, to pull you in, or to make it fun, it's just kind of happening in the background. You go through one forest, now it's a more detailed dungeon, now it's a 3D forest, now its an "HD" final boss fight. It doesn't change the gameplay much.

    As many have mentioned, the evolution pacing is terrible. For me, most of the greatest RPGs I Played are going to be from a 2D era. So when I started in monochrome, super excited to explore in this throwback world, and was almost instantly booted to colour, I was incredibly disappointed. The rush to 3D happens pretty much right away as well, meaning you play half the game as monochrome/16-bit/2D, and then you just flatline at 3D. The game also forgets there are modern RPGs that didn't have pre-rendered backgrounds, but apparently that's where evolution stops here.

    So, moving past the disappointing gimmicks is combat. It's awful. Any of the Zelda-esque levels have almost no puzzles, and if you were playing Zelda for the thrilling combat...look, nobody plays Zelda for thrilling combat. You play for puzzles and level-design and awesome bosses. When you play the FF-style stuff, you deal with incredibly frequent random encounters, and for a while, it's just your one character, and the only action you have is Attack. That's it. Pile on the excitement though, because the second character you get brings the first spell in the game (Heal) and does no damage when attacking, so you're just going to hit attack and heal between your two party members. That's all. Later in the game she learns a new damage spell, but it doesn't do much either. That's all there is to it. The Diablo sections also strip you of any skills, leaving you with only attack. That's all you'll do the entire level. Careful not to break your space bar.

    This game frustrates because it had so much potential, and they really only get one shot at this. Nobody had done this specific gimmick before, and now anyone trying it in the future will have Evoland's taint hanging around it. Plus it'll be a "Yeah, we saw it" feeling, so we'll never get a really interesting RPG that is both a throwback, and modern game at the same time, while still being original. Instead we got a demoreel for a game these guys could probably make if you gave them money. You're pretty much just watching the code be read and that's all.

    And don't collect things. Anything. Don't. Those chests don't contain optional evolutions. All the stars doesn't do anything. All the cards doesn't do anything. The card game is fun, and would be kind of nice if you had any additional say over your deck or anything, but its basically evolved tic-tac-toe, so I guess you can pay some money to get your hands on that?    … Expand
  16. Tilt1k
    Aug 11, 2019
    4
    The concept and idea of this game is something fresh and briliant, but it kinda fails in delivery. There is no actual gameplay. Its just a 3 hours of jokes and poking at other things as LOTR, Zelda, League of legends, Diablo etc. I was smiling throughout the game at some of these things, but you dont even need to play it just look at some youtube letsplay and you will gain the sameThe concept and idea of this game is something fresh and briliant, but it kinda fails in delivery. There is no actual gameplay. Its just a 3 hours of jokes and poking at other things as LOTR, Zelda, League of legends, Diablo etc. I was smiling throughout the game at some of these things, but you dont even need to play it just look at some youtube letsplay and you will gain the same experince, This game is jsut a huge troll, i am giving extra points for the first part of game when you are actually upgrading and it keeps you kinda entertained after a while, huge downfall.… Expand
  17. fijay43k
    May 20, 2023
    4
    Игра мне не понравилась.
    Причины: нет цели, нет почти никаких препятствий, игра зачем то, не начиная сюжет, добавляет его в конце и даже его не заканчивает.
    Итог: игра может вызывать ностальгические чувства, но она не совсем закончена, еще хотелось бы полноценого сюжета. Не стоит воспринимать игру всерьёз потомучто она просто расказывает нам о эволюции rpg, игровых клише разного времени    Игра мне не понравилась.
    Причины: нет цели, нет почти никаких препятствий, игра зачем то, не начиная сюжет, добавляет его в конце и даже его не заканчивает.
    Итог: игра может вызывать ностальгические чувства, но она не совсем закончена, еще хотелось бы полноценого сюжета. Не стоит воспринимать игру всерьёз потомучто она просто расказывает нам о эволюции rpg, игровых клише разного времени и развития графики и визуальных эфектов.
    Игра просто ничего не делает чтобы быть интересной, например можно было поэксперементировать с жанрами, сделать все динамичнее.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

89
#89 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
61

Mixed or average reviews - based on 27 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 27
  2. Mixed: 17 out of 27
  3. Negative: 4 out of 27
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Jun 13, 2013
    70
    Evoland is a frustrating affair. Its premise is great and it has potential to spare, but instead of an inspired retro journey all you get is a combination of lazy jokes, bland Zelda-esque gameplay and numbingly tedious JRPG battles. [June 2013]
  2. Riot Pixels
    Jun 10, 2013
    40
    As an introduction to old-school classics, Evoland is just too boring, and most veterans are not that nostalgic to blindly forgive its shoddy attempts at game design.
    Read full review
  3. PC Master (Greece)
    Jun 5, 2013
    74
    The old-school approach of the gameplay is not that fresh anymore and the steep price cannot justify the overpriced sentimentality. [May 2013]
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