Caves of Lore Review

Game: Caves of Lore
Genre: Action, Adventure, RPG
System: Steam (Windows), Also available on iOS and Android
Developer|Publisher: Mike Robins
Controller Support: Yes
Steam Deck: Verified
Price: US $ 9.99 | UK £ 8.50 | EU € 9.99
Release Date: January 21st, 2023

A review code was provided, many thanks to Tilt Games.

Caves of Lore: a Fantastic Labour of Love

I sensed something special about Caves of Lore when I read its description on Steam. This is a strategy RPG that was developed by a solo developer, Mike Robins, over the course of 6 years. During this process, Robins would commit at least 5 minutes every day to his game to keep progress on the project ticking forward whilst coping with the challenges of real life. With a lot of dedication Caves of Lore would see its final release. After diving into the deep, dark caves of this RPG, I could really feel all the hard work and passion that went into this project. Caves of Lore is a fantastic labour of love that takes heavy inspiration from the RPGs of old whilst creating an experience that is welcoming to anyone that is dipping into the genre for the very first time.

Gaming Most Deadly Disease

The opening plot follows your starting character, who takes a tumble into a cave and suffers from a severe case of Video Game Amnesia (the deadliest of all conditions in gaming). After teaming up with a dog and a few other folks you find in the cave, you basically seek to find an exit from a very complex cave system while also helping some NPCs and saving the realm along the way.

All dialogue is text-based, but it’s often presented in small bite-sized chunks, making it easy to digest. There are plenty of witty moments that actually earned me a good laugh, something games don’t often do these days. Attention to dialogue is needed at times, as some NPCs will give you vital information on how to proceed in quests. But if you’re having one of those brain-foggy days as I do, the game clearly highlights important prompts so you don’t get too lost with things. Quests are also easily tracked in the menu should you need a helpful reminder.

In-game screenshot from 'Caves of Lore' showing a chaotic battle scene in a pixel-art dungeon. Multiple characters are engaged in combat with spells and arrows flying across the screen. The player's character is in the center, casting a spell that produces a large explosion of fire, targeting a group of spider-like creatures. The user interface at the top displays health, stamina, and other game status indicators, while a selection of characters and equipment is shown at the bottom. Published on: LadiesGamers. — Of course, it had to be spiders

Levelling up and Stats

The general flow of gameplay is taking on quests, engaging in battles, levelling up and enjoying the spoils of some good loot. The experience feels like a return to the old-style RPG similar to classics like the Ultima series, only the controls are much easier to pick up.

Caves of Lore opens with the character creator. You run through a brief tutorial on setting your stats and choosing your starting abilities. The game has no class system, allowing you to build your character just the way you like over time.

There are many perks you can sink points into, such as specializing in specific weapons, making it easier to detect secrets on the map, improving crafting abilities, and many more. This can be done for each of your individual party members, allowing for an immense amount of customization. Then, you have an enormous amount of loot to equip each character with. Weapons, armour, spells, all of which make use of a simple drag-and-drop system in the menus with all the satisfying little numbers and perks to observe. I probably spent many play sessions just messing around in the menus as I did exploring the world.

Exploration

There is plenty to do in exploration segments. You can focus on the main quest, of course, partake in side missions from NPCs or just roam around the map and see what you find. It’s a game that really rewards exploration. You can use the special magic ability to reveal hidden paths, recruit new teammates, pay very close attention, and whisper the right word in the right place to uncover other secrets.

Roaming around the map feels comfortable. Enemies can be seen wandering about and can actually choose to engage them in combat or, if preferred, sneak past them, which is very easy to carry out. It feels like an RPG you can make your own.

In this 'Caves of Lore' screenshot, we see a tranquil night setting in a forest with characters gathered around a campfire. A variety of camp activities are presented as options in the game's user interface, such as 'TEND WOUNDED', 'KEEP WATCH', 'BREAK CAMP', along with options to rest for varying hours or until morning. The user interface displays icons for medical supplies, a watchful eye, and musical notes suggesting the calming effect of music on the party. The warm glow of the fire contrasts with the dark blues and greens of the nighttime surroundings. Published on: LadiesGamers. — Always time to camp and have a sing-song

Turn-Based Battles (and Lively Towns)

Battles will inevitably occur at some stage. These are turn-based and set across a grid system with up to 6 allied party members. I would class these as often short and snappy. Each member of your team can move and carry out an action. This action could be attacking, provided you are in the range of the enemy.

Alternatively, you can cast various spells provided you have the spell book equipped. Then, you can also use various potions to provide extra assistance. As the player, you have an enormous amount of flexibility in how you tackle each encounter. There is a wide variety of enemies and bosses to encounter. One of my favourites was the giant frogs hopping about with mallets. It’s not something you often see in a fantasy game, and there are many more surprises from there.

The Dark Dingey Caves

Caves of Lore adopts a detailed pixel art style. This may be a familiar look in the indie realm of gaming, but the developer really made full use of this design to create something immersive. Character models are detailed, each with a neat little animation when they head into battle, such as swinging a sword around to psych themselves up for battle.

There’s a good use of lighting in the dark caves with your party leaders’ torch-only lighting areas within your line of sight, with the areas gradually expanding as you push further into the darkness. There are additional nice touches and good use of sound, from the creepy ambience in the caves to the sound effects made by the enemies, some of which may give the heebie-jeebies.

I tested the game on PC and Steam Deck, though the latter was definitely my preferred choice. On Steam Deck, Caves of Lore makes full use of touchscreen controls so you can sit back and tap away if that’s your preference.

A detailed inventory management screen from 'Caves of Lore' displaying various in-game items and equipment. The items include armor, weapons, magical artifacts, and consumables, all rendered in pixel-art style. On the right side, the character stats for 'MrPat' are shown, with attributes like level, strength, agility, and more. Health and mana bars are visible, along with statistics for combat such as 'TO HIT' and 'DODGE'. The bottom of the screen shows the currency available to the player. The overall layout is organized and intricate, offering a comprehensive view of the character's current status and inventory. Published on: LadiesGamers. — I spend ages messing with my loot, and I regret nothing

Niggles

Only fair that I highlight a few niggles. Caves of Lore does have a pretty high barrier to entry initially, depending on your familiarity with old-school RPGs. There’s quite a lot to take in with all the various mechanics, and it can seem pretty overwhelming. I’ll be honest, I actually restarted the game twice since I wasn’t too happy with my first two character builds, but after that things clicked.

The other good news is the game offers flexible difficulty settings that can be adjusted anytime you need to get to grips with things. To nitpick further, I found enemy encounters to be a bit excessive in places and wildly varied in difficulty. From stupidly easy to enormously challenging. Of course, the game does have a fix for this, allowing you to learn enemy weakness, and combat can be avoided if preferred. This more niggled when I was having a night trying to focus on level grinding. To assist further, you can save anywhere in the game, making this appealing even for players with little time to spare.

Conclusion: Impressive and Inspirational

Caves of Lore is an impressive RPG in so many ways. If you just judge it by the game alone, it’s a deep and engaging RPG that allows plenty of player choice regarding how to proceed through the experience. Sure, there are rough edges. Battles can feel excessive at times, and it can be tricky to figure out how to progress. However, it’s an experience that is just as enjoyable in small gaming bursts as it is on long, lazy weekends.

Then we get to the price, which is an utter steal for the quality of the product on display here. On top of all this, Caves of Lore is an inspiration to anyone wanting to take on a big project and maybe a little scared to take the first step. Caves of Lore is evidence with a lot of patience and dedication you can get there no matter what your circumstances are in life. I absolutely recommend this, and even if you feel this is not the game for you, be sure to tell a friend about it or just consider gifting it to them on Steam.

Final Verdict: Two Thumbs Up