Moonlighter

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 110 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 69 out of 110
  2. Mixed: 25 out of 110
  3. Negative: 16 out of 110
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  1. nachtgiger
    Jun 5, 2018
    5
    The game is basically just one big grind. The problem is, as your equipment gets better by making more money, only your stats actually change, which makes the gameplay rather repetitive. Not a truly bad game per se, it's just very mediocre.

    + awesome music
    + great looking art style

    - boring combat
    - repetitive
  2. illegalmonkey
    Jun 14, 2018
    5
    Moonlighter is a cute and simple little game but I have a few problems with it.

    For starters with one of the primary goals being inventory management I feel like they just didn't know what else to put in this game. It comes off as too cumbersome. "Item to the right disappears upon returning to town" These kinda mechanics are just silly in my book. How about add more substance to the    Moonlighter is a cute and simple little game but I have a few problems with it.

    For starters with one of the primary goals being inventory management I feel like they just didn't know what else to put in this game. It comes off as too cumbersome. "Item to the right disappears upon returning to town" These kinda mechanics are just silly in my book. How about add more substance to the dungeons or a leveling up system along with farming for upgrades.

    My second problem with this has been the buggy nature of the game itself. I have gotten stuck in walls somehow and I had to fight the plant boss three times to properly beat him because the first two times the game became extremely bogged down as if it were dumping memory and eventually froze. I've had it freeze while I was inside a slime monster. I could move fine but everything else was frozen. This is on the PS4 also. How could such a simple game have such huge errors? I'm almost about to give up on it if this is the crap I'm going to run into playing the rest of it. No clue if the devs plan to patch this or what. I don't even get freezing and crashing this bad on huge AAA games like Fallout, and games like that are notorious for having problems. Anyways I'm getting pretty sour about playing this now which is the opposite of what a fun game is supposed to do.    … Expand
  3. kasparius
    Jun 5, 2018
    7
    I love the concept and this game is right up my (Stardew) Alley. However, the game is about 8-15 hours depending if you take your time or not, with little reason to go back to it (unless you are an achievement fan, in which case there is a lot of them). When you think of the arc of a game like Stardew Valley, or a similar dungeon crawler like Isaac, it's a real shame that the devs couldn'tI love the concept and this game is right up my (Stardew) Alley. However, the game is about 8-15 hours depending if you take your time or not, with little reason to go back to it (unless you are an achievement fan, in which case there is a lot of them). When you think of the arc of a game like Stardew Valley, or a similar dungeon crawler like Isaac, it's a real shame that the devs couldn't find a way to make the game longer and more compelling.

    The shop portion of the game is decent, especially once you start upgrading your shop, however the amount of things to do is super limited. You stop people from stealing, put up items in the expensive section for certain customers, and determine the right price for each item. When you think of similar sim games like Diner Dash, that have so many things to do, it's a missed opportunity.

    The dungeon portion is fun, but the amount of secret rooms and different aspects every time you go in feels sub-par when compared to Binding of Isaac for instance. The combat is good, but the different armors and weapons don't really change it that much, so it's fairly repetitive, and there is no real incentive to change styles. The bosses are very easy, and you can only fight them once each.

    The village is also a let down, because besides the few shops you unlock (potion and armor especially), you will find that there is very little reason to interact with NPCs. There are side-quests later in the form of customers asking you to get a certain item with a time limit, but they feel tacked on, and are not very compelling.

    On the technical side, I like the way the game looks, and the music was good too, although a tad repetitive. I did run into some game glitches near the end, but I assume those will be ironed out, and they weren't game breaking.

    I hope they update the game, or make a sequel that address these short comings, because there is definitely the potential for a great game here.

    7/10    … Expand
  4. Hermaeus
    Jun 23, 2018
    7
    I had a lot of fun with Moonlighter for quite some time. There's a pretty great reward loop, and while it eventually gets old, it's fun to ransack dungeons and outfit your shop for a while. My biggest problem was that it just kind of sputtered out at the end. The final dungeon, if you can call it that, was a letdown, and I never truly felt rewarded for diligently running and upgrading myI had a lot of fun with Moonlighter for quite some time. There's a pretty great reward loop, and while it eventually gets old, it's fun to ransack dungeons and outfit your shop for a while. My biggest problem was that it just kind of sputtered out at the end. The final dungeon, if you can call it that, was a letdown, and I never truly felt rewarded for diligently running and upgrading my shop.

    Still, Moonlighter was a great diversion which I enjoyed. I'd love to play a bigger, better, more involved and more customizable sequel.    … Expand
  5. destinyfan1
    Oct 7, 2018
    6
    Moonlighter is a good indie game ,with good visuals and great music with original ideas,sadly some are executed poorly ,i play mmorpg's and rpg's like diablo,but moonlighter is just very repetitive.There is just simply not enough variety with limited equipment and weapons,the combat could have also been better,it is definitely a fun ride in the first hours ,but it just get boring fastMoonlighter is a good indie game ,with good visuals and great music with original ideas,sadly some are executed poorly ,i play mmorpg's and rpg's like diablo,but moonlighter is just very repetitive.There is just simply not enough variety with limited equipment and weapons,the combat could have also been better,it is definitely a fun ride in the first hours ,but it just get boring fast
    Sad,because i expected more    … Expand
  6. BITESCREEN
    Dec 18, 2018
    7
    Wer schon immer einmal wissen wollte, wie der Job eines Rollenspiel-Ladenbesitzers wirklich aussieht, spielt Moonlighter – denn hier seid Ihr kein Held, sondern der schnöde Shopkeeper selbst. Um Euer Lager zu füllen und die Kunden zufriedenzustellen, schnetzelt Ihr Euch in der Ur-Zelda-Obenansicht durch zufallsgenerierte Dungeons und nehmt alles mit, was später Profit macht. Den PreisWer schon immer einmal wissen wollte, wie der Job eines Rollenspiel-Ladenbesitzers wirklich aussieht, spielt Moonlighter – denn hier seid Ihr kein Held, sondern der schnöde Shopkeeper selbst. Um Euer Lager zu füllen und die Kunden zufriedenzustellen, schnetzelt Ihr Euch in der Ur-Zelda-Obenansicht durch zufallsgenerierte Dungeons und nehmt alles mit, was später Profit macht. Den Preis bestimmt Ihr dann in der Oberwelt selbst und investiert das gemachte Gold in den Ausbau von Theke und Ausrüstung. Das ist befriedigend und sehr motivierend – vor allem aufgrund der extrem komfortablen Spielmechaniken: Ist etwa im Verlies mal das Inventar voll, verhökert Ihr noch dort entbehrliche Items zu einem niedrigen Preis, ein praktisches Amulett bringt Euch gegen kleines Geld zudem jederzeit zurück an die Oberfläche. Das muss auch so sein – denn die Kämpfe sind knackig und die Bosse gnadenlos. Etwas schade: Die zufallsgenerierten Level unterscheiden sich zwar untereinander, einzeln fehlt es jedoch deutlich an Vielfalt – und Rätsel gibt es ebenfalls keine. Außerdem zieht Moonlighters Midi-Gedudel im Vergleich zu Genrekollege Stardew Valley klar den Kürzeren. Dafür passen seine Knuddeloptik und die meist kurzen Sessions perfekt zur Nintendo-Switch-Version des Indiespiels.… Expand
  7. ZXSth
    Feb 4, 2020
    7
    Moonlighter was a solid adventure and a great time. And overall, that is often enough - however, I was let down by the game's short length.

    For most of my time playing Moonlighter, I ended up wishing for more in many ways. When it came to the weapon upgrade system, I thought "Wow, give me more of this!" When I began to fight some of the various enemies found in the four dungeons, I    Moonlighter was a solid adventure and a great time. And overall, that is often enough - however, I was let down by the game's short length.

    For most of my time playing Moonlighter, I ended up wishing for more in many ways. When it came to the weapon upgrade system, I thought "Wow, give me more of this!" When I began to fight some of the various enemies found in the four dungeons, I thought "Wow, this combat is pretty stellar - give me something more!" And when I entered each of the four dungeons - the main highlight of the game, in my eyes - I thought "Wow, more of these would be great!" Unfortunately, I think this is Moonlighter's singular (but all-encompassing) flaw.

    I suppose it might seem like more like an asset than a flaw when I claim I want more of what a game already delivers on. However, it isn't just more of what this game brings that I wanted. When it came to the combat, I wanted something slightly more nuanced and complex; I wanted a crafting and weapon upgrade system that had a little more meat to it than a mere four upgradeable weapons, with only two possible upgrade branches for each upgrade; and I wanted more than the four dungeons they gave us. Overall, I think the simplicity of Moonlighter was what really bogged down the experience for me. The schtick of going through the dungeons and proceeding to sell whatever I didn't need got old a bit faster than I'd have preferred.

    Overall, this is a nice little game with some great ideas that I would have loved to see become more fleshed out. The music and art design are solid, the gameplay is simple but enjoyable, and the game has a charm to it that is undeniable. I had a great time with it despite its simplicity.    … Expand
  8. Yojimbo2015
    Jun 9, 2023
    7
    Combination of rogue-like dungeon crawler and trading game, Moonlighter is a little lightweight but there's something quite hypnotic and soothing about its unashamed RPG lite level-grinding thanks to the pretty graphics and chilled out attitude.

Awards & Rankings

55
#55 Best PS4 Game of 2018
30
#30 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2018

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 28
  3. Negative: 0 out of 28
  1. Cubed3
    Nov 12, 2018
    80
    Like all the finest indie titles, Moonlighter has such a simple premise but is done so masterfully it becomes fantastically addictive - from the basic combat, to the Resident Evil style bag management, to upgrading the shop, to selling the goods; every aspect feels great. Combine this with the charming old-school art and you have got a clear winner on your hands. The only real negative is how short the game is and how the story feels a little lightweight. Moonlighter also feels like it would be even better on Switch, so keep an eye out for Cubed3's review of that version soon!
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  2. RPG Fan
    Sep 4, 2018
    85
    Though it comes with some bugs, ample load times when entering or leaving a dungeon, and an English localization that shows some evidence of the developer's Spanish roots, Moonlighter presents well. While some may shy away from the repetitive formula, I am certain fans of the roguelike genre will find a lot to play with in Moonlighter. That being said, the scant story is not so demanding that players need commit fully to it in one continuous playthrough. Thus, Digital Sun has developed Moonlighter into something that feels as timeless as its role models and will welcome back players delve after delve.
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  3. Gamers Heroes
    Aug 26, 2018
    90
    Moonlighter is an exciting action adventure-shop simulator game that shouldn’t be skipped. If you have any interest in running a shop and dungeon diving, then this game is for you.
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