Dungeon Encounters

 Switch
Dungeon Encounters Image
Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
6.6

Mixed or average reviews- based on 16 Ratings

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  • Summary: A new dungeon exploration RPG where you must strategize to survive. An otherworldly labyrinth has suddenly appeared on the outskirts of a quiet town. Make clever use of your abilities to chart the depths, overcome obstacles and defeat your foes in thrilling battles. From some of the keyA new dungeon exploration RPG where you must strategize to survive. An otherworldly labyrinth has suddenly appeared on the outskirts of a quiet town. Make clever use of your abilities to chart the depths, overcome obstacles and defeat your foes in thrilling battles. From some of the key development team behind the legendary FINAL FANTASY franchise, DUNGEON ENCOUNTERS is a dungeon exploration RPG where you must strategize to survive. The streamlined interface gives you the freedom to prepare and manage your party as you strive to reach the final floor.

    During your expeditions, you'll discover rare and powerful items, meet lost adventurers who might just become new allies, and come face-to-face with deadly monsters.

    Do you have what it takes to overcome the numerous trials that await you and discover the dungeon's secrets?

    ■Events
    By uncovering and visiting spaces with white numbers, you may obtain items, unlock and change abilities, restore your party to health, find hidden merchants, and much more.

    Battle encounters, marked with black numbers, are hidden throughout the map. However, they can be revealed with a special ability, allowing you to choose when and where to engage your enemies.

    Previously discovered events will be recorded in the Event Log, a valuable resource that allows you to reference past experiences to tackle future challenges.

    ■Battles
    Test your strategies in thrilling battles, featuring the Active Time Battle (ATB) system made famous by the FINAL FANTASY series.

    Under the direction of Ito Hiroyuki, creator of the ATB system, battles play out in real-time, utilizing a polished and refined iteration of this classic design, which promises exciting, challenging combat.

    ■Map
    The blank map awaits you, and by exploring and investigating every tile on each level, you will be awarded ability points. Navigate obstacles, including secret passages and hidden traps, and conquer the dungeon!
    … Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 13
  3. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. Edge Magazine
    Dec 30, 2021
    90
    There is an abundance of delicious meat on these old bones. [Issue#367, p.117]
    All this publication's reviews
  2. God is a Geek
    Oct 18, 2021
    90
    Dungeon Encounters is a hardcore experience, that some will dismiss as overly simple. More fool them.
  3. Checkpoint Gaming
    Oct 31, 2021
    90
    Remaining addictive and compelling throughout, I’m in love with Dungeon Encounters. Ito, Kato and Uematsu make for an absolute dream, being a key part of what makes this the best and most vibe filled rogue-lite experience of the year. Where its minimalistic design may off-put, it’s more than worth moving past that and exploring the genius and wonder on offer. Level readability is so concise and polished. Puzzle design is clever and stimulating, flexing muscles in the brain I haven’t used in years. ATB combat is back and thriving, being the best it’s ever been. Layers upon layers of depth are offered here. There’s so much magic in Dungeon Encounters. I only pray people find the time out of the heavy influx of games to give this one a shot. If you do, you’re in for an amazing ride.
  4. Metro GameCentral
    Oct 21, 2021
    80
    The Japanese role-playing game stripped back to its bare essentials and yet rather than an exercise in nostalgic pandering this is one of the most compelling and sharply designed dungeon crawlers of recent years.
  5. Nintendo Life
    Oct 25, 2021
    80
    Dungeon Encounters is a masterstroke of game design, character and narrative – it’s storytelling in the way only games can be. It teaches how scale is felt in a game, and it teaches, through their absence, the roles of rich visuals and verbose storytelling. Next time we play an RPG with baroque graphics and forests of text, we will understand a little more deeply where a game’s atmosphere really comes from.
  6. Siliconera
    Oct 21, 2021
    80
    There’s so much to Dungeon Encounters. People might not even notice at a first glance. But the systems at play are so compelling and rewarding. Finding a new item. Beating a party of foes that stumped you before. Managing to track down a wandering adventure. Saving a party of fallen allies that died earlier because you overestimated your abilities. It’s enthralling. And given the nature of the Switch, it is even more satisfying playing Dungeon Encounters there in any situation and taking tons of notes. It’s one of my favorite surprises in 2021.
  7. Gamer.no
    Oct 29, 2021
    60
    An engaging battle system in a slim package, Dungeon Encounters still offers some good hours.

See all 14 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 5
  3. Negative: 4 out of 5
  1. hatlock
    Jan 5, 2022
    10
    I wanted to write a review as this game is under reviewed and it is hard to understand what you are getting into with it. I wanted to helpI wanted to write a review as this game is under reviewed and it is hard to understand what you are getting into with it. I wanted to help people decide if this is the game for them (and it really could be your next gem!)

    This is a dungeon "blobber"/dungeon crawler-type game, very much in the vein of Wizardry, but even though it is a JRPG, it is really a different evolutionary path than most other JRPGs.
    Essentially, this is a camping/hiking simulator, but instead of being outdoors, all of your hiking is a massive 100 level deep dungeon. You will plan, you will consult maps and your guide book. You will delight as your log book fills in with more and more facts and info that help you make fewer mistakes in the future.
    -Supremely high exploration focus. You get a robust set of mix-and-match party-wide abilities and your options expand through exploring the dungeon. You find specific skills in the dungeon
    -Supremely high level of abstraction. Your brain shades in the narrative even more than in a Saga-style game. You'll never "see" the dungeon. There isn't even descriptions of environments or narrative justification of the events.
    -Very low emphasis on luck or really any randomization. More emphasis on problem solving situations and decision making.
    -Emphasis on simple easy to understand rules with many permutations and options.
    -Characters essentially have 2 "abilities" which are equipment/weapons. Some armor gives a passive (like a chance to evade). Combat is much like a game like Fire Emblem in that all the math is very obvious and simple to calculate in your head. e.g. Your weapon does exactly 300 damage and the enemies HP is 301, so you know it will take exactly two hits to eliminate. Weapons either do magic or physical damage (in fixed or random amounts and either to one or all enemies). Magic and physical defense is basically a separate HP pool that is depleted first before true HP can be damaged.
    -Character basically grow in how fancy their equipment can be and total HP, but there are still a ton of decisions to make and ways to differentiate your party. But sadly, it kinda means new characters are really only about what equipment they have or their level.    … Expand
  2. Jaschael
    Dec 5, 2021
    2
    Game is overly grindy. 99 Levels plus battles that you can’t possibly win when you first hit. Can’t run even with skill, forced to start allGame is overly grindy. 99 Levels plus battles that you can’t possibly win when you first hit. Can’t run even with skill, forced to start all over. Basically forced hardcore. 99 levels is already grindy, why oh why add more things to force more grinding?… Expand
  4. ChazMikey
    Jan 17, 2022
    0
    Mediocre. Full of intentionally obnoxious mechanics (petrify) to pass as difficult.

    Not worth 5 dollars, when there are so many games that    Mediocre. Full of intentionally obnoxious mechanics (petrify) to pass as difficult.

    Not worth 5 dollars, when there are so many games that are better and respect the player's time.    … Expand
  5. Hangedman84
    Oct 19, 2021
    0
    This is the most boring and uninteresting game I've ever played!
    I have no words to describe how dull and empty this game is.
    It's a sheer    This is the most boring and uninteresting game I've ever played!
    I have no words to describe how dull and empty this game is.
    It's a sheer disappointment that people who made FF series + FFT, DQ Series, Mana series, Nier series, PE series, Vagrant Story and many other good games, now make this nonsense.    … Expand
  6. SADs-seed
    Jul 25, 2022
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Negative gold. How is it possible. Few hours playing. Encounter a thief. All my gold stolen. Why not. But now I have - 30.000 gold. What a joke. Let's say I can make 100g per fight. Do the math. Stupid mechanic. I'm done with this game. Lost to mist time already. So much boring.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

55
#55 Best Switch Game of 2021

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