6 Upcoming Indie First-Person Dungeon Crawlers

[@2leftthumbs]

Thank you so much for featuring They Speak! We can't wait to show off more of the game, and it's upcoming prequel, They Speak From The Abyss: Zenith!

[@dungeonchill]

I’m looking forward to both! Keep up the great work!

[@Beo__98]

I would love to see a top 10 first person dungeon crawler games that are out now.

[@dungeonchill]

That’s a good idea. I’ll see if I can find time to put that together sometime soon!

[@phaedruslive]

Arx Fatalis is king, imo. King's Field: the ancient city is probably in the second spot.

[@Kijinn]

@@phaedruslive Arx Fatalis is also one of my favorites, so I looked up a gameplay video of King's Field 4, which I hadn't known yet. To be honest, next to Arx it looks rather embarrassing. Maybe I would have enjoyed it somewhat, 20 years ago...but right now I could only call it "geriatric simulator". My impression was as such: You play a naked old man, who can hardly move and takes damage whenever he tries to drop from a height of barely more than 2-3 feet. For whatever reason, you come across a dangerous environment. The first man, a soldier, that sees you is so shocked by your absence of anything that he gifts you a flimsy branch to fight with. After any slowmotion swing of your naked arm or slim stick, you're heavily exhausted and need to catch your breath for 5 seconds, before you can swing in slowmotion again. What helps you, though, is that all monsters in the game are also geriatric, demented, hardly able to move and really just tired of being alive. The game world is suffering from a lack of detail but otherwise interesting. There are seemingly enough scripted events to at least make it feel dynamic and after having skipped through more of the video, I see the appeal. It's horribly dated, though. =)

[@phaedruslive]

The good stuff usually is dated, and the soundtrack is basically proto dungeon-synth.@@Kijinn

[@jordov9398]

@kijinn @phaedruslive Neither of those games are dungeon crawlers, Arx is an immersive sim, Kings Field an Action RPG. If you look at the games in the video, all of them use grid-based movement, and with one exception, they have turn-based combat. It is very common for the games we’re talking about here to have a party system, and for those characters portraits to feature somewhere on the screen during gameplay, classically as a feature in a larger frame, very often paired with basic status information. Maps will be grid based, using glyphs to denote various features on the dungeon, and are often displayed in the aforementioned frame. Classic examples include Wizardry, the gold box Dungeons and Dragons games, the Ravenloft series, and Might & Magic. Japan has a rich catalogue of dungeon crawlers, with games like the Elminage series, the first several Shin Megami Tensei entries, as well as a large number of spin-offs are true dungeon crawlers, including the first 2 Persona games, and the Persona Q games. Many studios have created games that are, at their core, dungeon crawlers, but introduce elements from other genres to create something wholly unique. Heroes of a Broken land is a dungeon crawler with elements of a 4X game, creating something like a combination of Civ II and Eye of the Beholder, giving you a town to manage as well. Zanki Zero is a Japanese dungeon crawler featuring the use of an aging mechanic, killing off characters every 13 in-game days, resulting in an ever changing party composition. Aeon of Sands is a *highly* underrated indie game that is half dungeon crawlers, half “choose your own adventure” book, with overworld traversal akin to the original Fallout games. Very unique in its thematics and presentation. Normally, I don’t care that much about genres, and I certainly wouldn’t rant about them like this, but dungeon crawlers have a deep history that is highly specific, completely separate from other RPGs, and it deserves to be remembered.

[@nocapsbb]

loving your chill style. and i agree, Labyrinth of the Demon King looks dope

[@VisComicaV]

Dude, these look great! AAA stuff hasn't caught my eye much lately, i should be scouring the indie realm

[@Bigmitch256]

Hibernaculum and Labyrinth of the Demon king look like they are going to be really special. Can't wait to watch your videos on them.

[@donaldxavier2056]

First person dungeon crawlers have a special place in my heart. There really is nothing like them.

[@BioPhoenixReviews]

i have a soft spot for dungeon crawlers. i always really liked going through a maze and clearing a map and most of them always have cool looking HUD's and layouts. the first game Islands of the Caliph looks really nice, They Speak From The Abyss and Labyrinth of the Demon King look right right up my ally but Ludus Mortis does have some really awesome art work

[@dungeonchill]

Yeah, I’m looking forward to those two the most. If you like Ludus Mortus’ style, you should also look into their other game Inferno: Beyond the 7th Circle. I played it a couple years ago. It’s really good.

[@phaedruslive]

Is it weird that it just makes me think of some D20 era book art? There were like 1000 indie sourcebooks and settings and it has that style.@@dungeonchill

[@3NC3PH4L0N]

I really like the "SLAP" sound edit! Now its my turn: "SLAP"! (slaps the like button)

[@potentiallyunfunnyguy9716]

With how much I enjoyed the 'late antiquity undead'-style of Battle Brothers' skeleton armies, I'm really pumped for Ludus Mortis in particular. I used to work at an open-air museum as a Roman legionary and the sheer amount of sinister ghost-stories, curses, fables etc. endemic to ancient Roman culture specifically, are something of an untapped wellspring of inspiration to draw from. Definitely checking all of these out. Just got into dungeon-crawling and after Grimrock 2, I have an itch that can't be scratched in third-person.

[@JRHudepohl]

Thanks for the shout out. Glad to hear you're hyped for it 😁

[@dungeonchill]

No problem 👍 I can’t wait to try out a demo or early access or whatever you decide to do with it.

[@vahnn0]

Ah, yep, just commented about Hibernaculum on another video of yours, but looks like you already got to it! Looks great.

[@Frank_Costanzas_Lawyer]

Oh man, a lot of these skipped my radar. Thanks for this!

[@TheFifthKalpa]

Thank you for giving Abyss a shoutout :)

[@dungeonchill]

Of course! I’m planning to cover Zenith in its own video when it drops later this month. Really excited to play it.

[@olafbuddenberg4787]

Very cool video that showed me some awesome games. I have recently started playing AMBERLAND I on Switch and just love the overflowing nostalgia of that title (having played all M&M games back in the day). So, thank you for making me aware of more dungeon crawler goodness!

[@SeaSerpentLevi]

Oh man all of those look amazing!! Just like you said, absolutely going to be checking all of them out!!

[@jakubnovotny1010]

I have never heard of anything you talk about, great job, expanded my horizons

[@cryusratu2573]

I was not expect hard ass beat for this intro 😂🔥

[@MrJimbo-ew9vk]

Downloaded the first Legends of Amberland onto my Switch and really enjoyed it. Am looking forward to the sequel.

[@dungeonchill]

Loved Amberland 1. Really nailed the feel of old M&M and Gold Box games while adding a lot of quality of life improvements.

[@bobschnowski100]

They Speak From the Abyss looks fucking wild, really like the aesthetic of that one

[@humanharddrive1]

I love how islands of the Caliph and Labyrinth Of The Demon King look

[@thedannycage]

Exanima has been in development for almost a decade but a unique take of the dungeon crawler. Third-person physics based combat with a very interesting dark fantasy setting. 0.9 Update was just released a few days ago and might be worth checking out if you haven't previously.

[@phaedruslive]

It's one of a kind.

[@Mizerableklaha]

Hibernaculum looks absolutely brilliant

[@hibernaculum]

Sorry I missed this when it came out - but thanks for the shoutout! :D

[@WellandJoyceArtist]

Isles of the Calif is out now and is absolutely amazing. I thoroughly recommend it to all.

[@MidnightBlackandVictoria]

The original Wizardry is also being remade, and is in early access. The game that started ALL this genre is. And the reimagining looks fantastic.

[@Sonmz]

Wow! "Islands of the Caliph" by its atmosphere reminded me two other games from more or less close genre, I'm talking about "Quest for Glory II: Trial by Fire" and the next part of the same series "QfG III: Wages of War". Yes, they were not three-dimensional dungeon crawlers, but they were the ones I made associations with.😉

[@MikoYotsuya292]

My very first dungeon crawler was Etrian odyssey on original DS. Loved it instantly, and have been a fan of dungeon crawlers ever since

[@KevinShriner]

Might want to check out Labyrinth of Zangestu too! Love this genre. Got me started in gaming.

[@Pridetoons]

Can you talk about Zanki Zero? It's an interesting Dark, Sci-Fi, Survival, Dungeon-Crawler, with Visual Novel elements!

[@badacid8685]

Great video! Cool games to look out for

[@wesleyfilms]

This will fill the Grimrock shaped crater in my soul.

[@charles_carette]

Thank you for this video. I would also add Fallen Dungeons (scheduled for March 2024)

[@wolverinelg]

Labyrinth of the Demon King is right up my alley of King Field's like game.

[@chinadream8030]

path of the abyss comes out later this month, wizardry inspired with grid based movement and real time combat random encounters.

[@BVargas78]

Thanks for the heads up!

[@collinvisser7108]

neat - thanks for the games list

[@MrSrZorro]

There's also a game called Utter Inverse, there is no demo and don't know when's coming out, but it looks pretty good

[@n3r0n3]

of u like darker games have a look at Undernauts, it's great. Also Kowloon High-School Chronicle has been released on switch and maybe on steam too I am not sure and that's an old classic with a dark atmosphere. Undernauts tho is also a game set in the 70s so not the usual high fantasy thing but more something a la Ray Gigant and Experience is the biggest player in Japan when it comes to 1st person dungeon crawlers

[@Alexandragon1]

Thx for the video!

[@macroemicro7843]

Can you recommend any first-person, single-character, grid-based Dungeon Crawler, like Islands of Caliph?

[@bcut2965]

For people who like touhou and/or classic shin megami tensei, Touhou Artificial Dream in Arcadia is a really interesting game. The game has a demo on itch but it's way way behind what the dev has been showing on their Twitter. Seems to be close to finished too

[@akiradkcn]

The demo seems horribly unbalanced and the mandatory shump minigame is terrible tho

[@bcut2965]

Yeah, the demo is pretty lacking imo, it's a very old build. The dev pulled the demo from the steam version and is apparently working on a new one for before release tho

[@jayzind1836]

The 3D environment of Skullstone looks extremely similar to Legend of Grimrock indeed.

[@jorixpalorn3738]

wow this just shows how many grid based dungeon crawlers there are out there. Honestly I wish there were half as many non grid based dungeon crawlers. Less classic might and magic, more Ultima Underworld.

[@Yura-Sensei]

whats the outro song?

[@macdallanzero2145]

I always end up wishing real time crawlers like Skullstone were turn based. Real time just doesn't work well nor does it ever feel right.

[@joshuagorman2191]

I like real time! Although stonekeep was the first one I played so I'm always comparing to that.

[@blazerashbringer2001]

subbed to you like the chill vibe and i love this vid will def check it out, i remember playing dungeon master 2 legend of skullkeep as a kid

[@cheesedish6018]

Do you know if there are any good free or very cheap first person dungeon crawlers. I want to get into the genre without paying too much.

[@ultimatelegend18]

Lunacid deserves to be mentioned if you haven't mentioned it in a prior video already!

[@dungeonchill]

I did a stand-alone preview vid on it as my first video, and I mentioned it in another indie dungeon crawler list I did. It’s fantastic. Glad it’s finally fully released!

[@mainetheoutspoken]

ANy games youve found that are similar to Shining in the Darkness?

[@Kijinn]

My problem with the Grimrock series certainly wasn't the real time combat, but rather that the games didn't do anything to connect the gameplay to the story. Especially in the first part, which I played more than the 2nd, I really could have enjoyed the setup a lot. Playing prisoners sent down into a vast dungeon from which they have to escape is one of my favorites. Yet, Grimrock stopped giving me that vibe, after level 1 or 2. At a certain point it only felt like a tile puzzle game and nothing more. I assume that's a general problem I have with *tile-movement* dungeon crawlers, cause things somehow always revolve around that specific game feature, as if that's the reason why people play these games, rather than the *adventuring* set in a fantasy or sci-fi theme. I believe the game world should always be more important and emphasized than the movement feature or combat system...but I seem to be alone with that opinion.

[@kevinfisher5492]

Loved both Grimrocks but I stopped playing Grimrock 2 when the game degenerated into a race to keep my characters from starving. There is not enough food. The mushroom men did not drop new mushroom pieces when I killed them and the fish stocks ran out. I am not a fan of "food" in RPGs but when it is done, it should only be a challenge for young characters of low experience...not for high level characters. I should not be starving to death when I am of a high level. I blame the inclusion of the "Farmer" class for this, a silly gimmick.

[@Kijinn]

@@kevinfisher5492 I generally think that "day/night cycles" and "food", as gameplay features, are mis-designed concepts that, for some reason, all developers keep adopting without thought or care. It's the idea that, if the game has either of those, they need to cause a challenge that's hard to keep up with. Like the player needs to be kept busy and struggling, by any means. My personal opinion is that these features often just get added to veil the lack of an engaging gameplay loop. You might not notice how empty the game actually is, if it keeps you running for your survival all the time. But, certainly, some games should only add hunger and sleep to deepen the atmosphere and immersion, rather than to punish players.

[@shaunmil]

Do Dungeon crawlers have stories? I wouldn't mind playing some of these if they did.

[@Dhalin]

While it is cool that Amberland is trying to give us a dose of Old School M&M Nostalgia.... I'd have to say, that I really wish someone would try to give us a game like Might and Magic 6-8. Such uniquely awesome games, those were. Free movement instead of grid-based, and a unique blend of real-time and turn-based combat that you could change at any time, seamlessly. It made for a set of games that had really good flow, games that I replay over and over again to this day and to this day, the only way to get new M&M6-8 experiences is to play random peoples' mods that are of varying quality. I'd rather someone just make an entirely new game of similar style for modern computers.

[@Morraak]

Would you consider World of Horror as a 1st person dungeon crawler? It's a pretty cool game but I'm not sure.

[@ncneil2875]

hey im traying to find a game ive play before first person you have 3 rosary but i cant find that first person game on android

[@senditall152]

Yea, I give you some support :)

[@wasfureinbua]

very cool

[@Pridetoons]

Can you talk about Fight Knight the Dungeon-Brawler?

[@dungeonchill]

I’ll check it out and Zanki Zero, the other one you mentioned.

[@PinguinoSod]

Indie dungeon crawlers ftw

[@childofcascadia]

I want to like the 7th Circle and Inferno. Ive tried to play them numerous times. Im an old and really into RT gridders and blobbers. I love 68ks aesthetics and art style. But holy crud those games are obtuse AF. Its not even the difficulty. Im a child of the 80s. I can handle "80s difficulty", but I at least want to know how stuff works. Ludus Mortis looks amazing. But Im afraid its going to be more of the same, the game throwing stuff at you full force before you even understand how anything works.

[@guster2244]

Kah-Leaf for Caliph

[@drshoe7803]

Nothing heard about Skullstone for more than a year, didnt even get an answer from the DEVS regarding any lifesign or a possible release date. It was supposed to get released 2022 already.....

[@Euclidiuss]

Lunacid is the successor to Kings Field.

[@d0nKsTaH]

Where are the creators of Bloodwych? They should be jumping in on this madness. LoL

[@xdesiccatorx914]

No Lunacid???

[@dungeonchill]

This was about upcoming games that weren’t released at the time. Lunacid was already in early access. It’s covered in another dungeon crawler list I did and in its own video on the channel 👍

[@georgeoldsterd8994]

Man, I wish more dungeon crawlers didn't use these same tropes: grid-based movement, turn-based combat, team of protagonists. :(

[@jimneycricket]

you was a hidden gem

[@poppers7317]

Spirital successor to the Grimrock games? No one seems to remember Dungeon Master anmyore :(

[@joshuagorman2191]

Skullstone demo is so awesome, but i think it's vapor ware unfortunately

[@hopduncan7905]

Need more DCs on Xbox

[@davidcardenas4440]

yo me ya conocia el bonus pero pense que no era un juego xd

[@EsperPinion]

Why are there so much fewer real-time dungeon crawlers? Why so much less love for the subgenre ? People get so many Wizardry-likes but games like Legend of Grimrock are few and far between

[@superhetoric]

sorry to be tedious but caliph is pronounced like kay-liff

[@mykytaradko5776]

Dread Delusion? No?

[@penningtonknickernacker921]

LOOKIN TO TRAIN? GOOD JOB GOOD JOB GOO-GOO-GOO-GOO-GOO-GOOD JOB! NOT TODAY! SORRY.

[@KdotLINE]

Pretty sure it's pronounced Kay-Lif. Just an FYI if you cover it again. Good video though.

[@SonySteals]

3; 6 & Bonus got my interest. I’d like to say 1 was cool but I hated the way NPC look. Kinda newspaper comic strip generic characters.

[@dmeobbt]

fallen dungeons

[@vagabundorkchaosmagick-use2898]

I hope the developers of Island of the Caliph add a full-screen mode and also an option to disable the ugly CRT filter. Really, CRT filters don't make the games look good, as though you were using a CRT tv. CRT tvs make games looks fantastic, filters are a poor imitation that only makes it worse.

[@LoudAngryJerk]

No stoneshard?

[@linezgames3893]

seems like labrynth of the demon king took a lot of ideas from monolith with Condenmed 2 Bloodshot in terms of combat/movement, obviously not Artstyle. It has a bit of a weight to it even just by looking at the video and not playing it myself which is a breath of fresh air still. Am I slightly dissapointed, sure? but at the same time at least little by little games are taking inspiration from mechanics from PS2-PS3 Era. PS3 was not a terrible era only idiots believe so, slow movement is not slowmovement nor tank controls, its simply the idea of everything has weight,value, animation behind it. DL2 was a shit game that they took off the little weight they had in DL and just crushed 2 completely.

[@olddeadlemons]

First.

[@bulkvanderhuge9006]

CA-LEEF

[@fakeigniz13]

Can't stand the Grimrock games, just think they're terribly designed and way overrated. Would like to see one that's actually good, so may give that second one a go

[@resu2026]

None of these games are worth Checking out I am afraid. If you want to play really! good Dungeon Crawler Games check out Mods for Legend of Grimrock 1 and 2

[@YouTubePremiumDude]

Grimrock is soulless and fucking boring. Legends of Amberland shits on Grimrock

[@007kingifrit]

these are a little TOO old fashioned

[@UKEYsPOWER]

WoW! They all look so bad

[@penningtonknickernacker921]

The XEEN clone looks good the rest are garbage.

[@dotapark]

What I dreamed 2015 is finally happening after I completely switched to macOS 🥲 indie dungeon crawler boom must feel nice on that side of the world 😂