Secrets of Grindea

An enjoyable, nostalgic and grindy trip through a style of ARPG seldomly seen anymore nowadays, improved by modern mechanics and quality of life features.

It does sound a bit cringe at first, but the way characters and their background are written is interesting and consistent, and the locations have plentiful lore and solid attention to detail.

Grindea’s combat system is clearly inspired by retro top-down ARPGs; however, it also has several mechanics that make it stand up to modern standards.

Oh, and did I mention, the game is basically fully playable in online co-op as well as a roguelike side mode?

Speaking of difficulty, I played on the Hard setting and that felt adequately challenging at all times, with no issues such as overleveling standing out at any point, even if I cleared all side quests each time before venturing forth into the main story.

Markedly distinct in layout, palettes and geography, each of Grindea’s regions or dungeons feel unique and interesting, and are visually appealing despite their retro graphics.