SKALD: Against the Black Priory

Love the commitment to C64 era graphics. Atmosphere and writing was great.

Awesome retro-inspired RPG with a lot of depth. I find the combat to be fun but challenging. I like that party members don't die if they get knocked out during combat. Fairly certain that if this was released in the 90's it would be considered one of the best RPGs of all time. A true blast from the past, but also fresh enough to stand on its own as a modern RPG.

honestly an amazing game if you love old school DnD like games. Great story, cool combat, and the art style is unique. Definitely recommend if you youre looking for a low commitment game that is enjoyable from all angles

Getting into this game, I am amazed at the detail and replay value that it shows with it's design and story. The combat and story are very intriguing and the graphical style lends the game a very strong sense identity. Would highly recommend, especially since it's length is very digestible. (Would also be cool to have a table top version of this games RPG system. 🙂 )

This game is nostalgic as hell. Classic snes grimdark horror rpg. I loved it, besides a few nitpicks here and there, it's just a fun a weird journey. I just wish it was longer and there were maybe a bit more features and side things to do.

SKÅLD is a story driven cRPG with heavy HP lovecraftian themes.
I adore the visuals; the retro illustrations remind me of the C64 and other systems from that era.

Gameplay wise its a turn based RPG and works well enough. You complete quests and kill baddies to gain XP; nothing new here.
There are story characters and you can hire mercenaries to tailor them to your playstyle.
You run or sail around an overmap and find random encounters or enter specific areas.

The story is alright; could be better I suppse; the ending is a bit of a let down.
Game feels like it had ideas which the devs didn't have time or resources to implement; its missing something.

Ignore my playtime - I have 92.7 hrs on record playtime; Im not sure how long this game is usally but its nowhere close to these many hours.
Most of my playtime is idling for days due to having to take care of my child.

I can recommend this game for those who want a fairly short and simple cRPG with fantastic art and an ok story.

Skald: Against the Black Priory is an old school RPG with lovecraftian themes and atmosphere.

Skald pits you against horrors, maddened villagers and things that should not be, traversing the Outer Isles. You arrive shipwrecked on the Isles in search of Embla, a figure from your past. The combat is turn-based and is set upon a grid. Characters all have skills and feats that can be improved when they level up. Although is may seem quite simplistic, positioning of your party is crucial in the later stages of the game and in areas where you may not have a lot of space.

The story is drenched in lovecraftian vibes, so any fans of the genre will recognise a lot of the influences at play throughout. The writing is fantastic and it made me really search for every piece of lore I could find to try and piece together the mystery myself. The soundtrack is super fitting as well, although I would have liked a bit more variety in combat music especially.

A great RPG that respects your time and a genuinely awesome ending to the story. Damn.

Seriously such an awesome game, the art style alone is reason enough to play this, but the way sub quests and main quests interconnect are so satisfying as a player to accomplish!!! Genuinely such a fun experience I haven't been able to stop playing for two days now lmao. Really solid experience and I'm excited to see what else this developer might make!

very good story and interesting, found a bug or two but its rare.

A very nice game with retro charme and nicely designed achievements.

Wow, what a gem. There were several puzzle moment that required breaking out actual pen & paper to keep notes, and it's been a long time since I've been treated to such wonderfully perfectly nihilistic Lovecraftian gritty grimdark storytelling.

There's reading, so this might not be one for Zoomers - but this is a masterpiece.

Just brilliant, and a balm for my mind and soul after playing Veilguard. True RPG. I love the pixel graphics. Music is beautiful. I don't know if I would play a mage again but just so much fun.

I bought this because it is listed as steam deck verified but the controls on the deck are so incredibly tedious and unintuitive that it is borderline unplayable. Unfortunately I played too long to be able to get a refund. It might be good on keyboard/mouse but if you are intending to play with a controller or on a steam deck avoid this game.

I beat this game in about 18 hours. It's obviously inspired by the old Ultima series, especially V. It is low fantasy and Lovecraftian in tone and plot. It is largely linear and means to tell a story rather than provide a sandbox. Mechanics hearken back to old crunchy, simple systems that didn't give a damn if you weren't high enough level or couldn't figure out a puzzle, but bows to modern sensibilities (and the fact that everyone has options now) to let players enact console cheats. These cheats still allow for achievements, so they're there as a convenience for the player (kind of like the FF VII re-release cheats that let people move faster, skip random combats, etc.).

The story held my interest and I played consistently in my free time for a week or so. Worth it.

Game looks good and plays nice, but you cannot sort, manage or manipulate your large inventory full of items, food trickets and gear. You take auto sort or you go hungry. I just cant have that in a modern Crpg. I can do it in 1994, theres no reason for something that basic. But if it gets updated, ill come back and give this another go, no problem.

Really cool old-school style of RPG with modern enhancements. Sort of reminds me of a smoother version of the old D&D CRPGs.

A classic, oldschool Ultima style RPG with modern quality of life features and interface. This is probably game of the year 2024 for me, as it was the total package!

The storyline is interesting and kept me invested the entire way through. Every town has a situation and story that you want to learn more about, and the worldbuilding itself is just fascinating.

IF you're in it for the combat - there's plenty to enjoy here. You can play this simply and straightforward if you like, but if you're more into the character building, optimising, strategic gameplay - the game lets you go plenty deep into that too.

If you like RPGs of any kind, even if you've never played this sort of RPG before, do yourself a favor and get this! You'll love it!

I would love a physical version for my fav console, so I can take it with me unto me grave.

A fun game with surprising depth. The look is different than what is normal these days, but it is a fun game with approachable puzzles. The game also allows different approaches to work through the various challenges you may face.

Disclaimer - I am not done with the game by a wide margin, but I want to give my two-cents.

Highly recommended to anyone who likes more 'old school' CRPGs!

Whilst it's undeniably 'classic' appearance might initially put some people off, that is, in fact, it's charm and if you give it a try you'll warm to it immensely. And also be horrified by some of the things you encounter along the way. Everything about this game feels dark and forboding, with hints of madness around every corner.

Definitely one to play, just persevere through the deliberately dated interface!

Accessible CRPG with great art, fun class-building, tactical yet easily understandable gameplay, and an interesting story. Campaign will probably last about 15 hours and leave you waiting for the next game from the developer.

This game has reignited my passion for CRPGs, reminding me of their depth and immersive experiences. The intricate storytelling, branching dialogues, and strategic combat make every decision feel impactful, truly bringing the world to life.

Incredible game. It oozes Lovecraftian atmosphere while offering a concise combat and skills system. I only wish there was more of everything involved.

Amazing atmospherics and plays great on Steamdeck. Exploring the world is really fun and there is lots to uncover. Maybe the only downside is that the skill tree is a bit unclear at a glance and could do with some more colors or icons to navigate it quicklier, but that's about it.

This game has a killer story. the ending isn't anything outstanding.
But the story is compelling and steadily draws you in deeper and deeper to the mysteries of the setting.

I found i enjoyed playing this game with a friend who i could read the dialog to, the descriptions and imagery is fantastic, leaving enough for your imagination to fill in the blanks, truly drawing on the power of such an old and outdated art style.

If you love dark stories, i recommend checking this one out.
The world is crumbling, and the only light is what you bring with you.

A retro experience with a story that kept me gripped until the very end, and the gameplay was a solid bonus on top. I'd definitely recommend.

About as good as the graphics are bad! Interesting story, combat you need to think about. A damn good RPG.

This is a really fun retro take on classic RPG's with more modern feeling mechanics. I really enjoy this one.

This is a party-based RPG with a strong emphasis on tactical decision-making and a lot of flexibility on difficulty. It has a pretty excellent plot and great characterization all driven by solid world building.

Now, to the bad. The UI is almost never what is should be. The inventory management is a mess from cooking to crafting, it is just terrible. There's no way to re-order your spell quick-select so you get what you get.

I think the game would also strongly benefit from a respeccing mechanic.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the year! A wonderful tribute to the rpg's of yore, the estethics are well thought out and implemented and this is no mere nostalgia bait but a truly well made classical rpg with an intriguing story and excellent atmosphere.
Don't miss out on this one!

I absolutely loved this. Found this quote in the forums and thought I'd share because it's on point,

todesbart wrote:

I was pleasantly surprised by how it was handled. It was extremely gruesome and graphic and everyone basically lost their minds and/or got slaughtered.

Examined critically for literary technical merit, the story in Skald: Against the Black Priory does have several flaws which are going to be redacted to avoid ruining anything: the pacing is inconsistent, the plot structure is simple and relies too heavily on the reader's interpretation of vague tidbits of backstory as well as the reader's familiarity with various literary and philosophical themes, and the denouement is so abrupt that it leaves the reader feeling cheated by the lengthy journey towards what isn't a climax so much as an anti-climax that raises far more questions than it answers.

Yet, S:AtBP is a work of art that still manages to get players invested enough to finish the story and deftly sorts them into two polarizing camps: those who appreciate some Eternal Recurrence in their cosmic horror and those who came for the oldschool gameplay and cRPG elements but were surprised to find that the 'R' for "role" turned out to be lowercase and in a 2-point font. This isn't a story that you have any influence over aside from the mundane or tactical.

Personally, I rather enjoyed my time spent with this title, although my only real complaint is that I wanted it to be longer, which I feel is a testament to the artistry of this developer. I didn't experience any bugs, crashes, or other issues which would have interfered with my enjoyment of occasionally contemplating what a random neutrophil's existence must be like in a reality of having to struggle against nightmarish foes from incomprehensible places in order to serve a larger existence that has absolutely no regard for you.

If you like CRPGs, Skald is a fairly average, simple offering. It has a nice atmosphere, interesting visuals and good music, but leaves a bit to be desired in gameplay, writing, itemization and story - so, pretty much the most important points in a CRPG. It's not terrible, mind you, but overall, I felt a slight inclination towards voting against rather than for recommending the game, but I'd rate it "Mixed" if Steam would allow such a thing. There is clearly effort put into this, don't get me wrong, but overall, I can't recommend it.

In the Outer Isles, while searching for a specific person you're tasked to find, you shipwreck on one of the islands and essentially have to contend with lovecraftian horrors while finding out what's going on and where they even come from while continuing to search for said person. Like in many other CRPGs, you can create your own character and slowly put together a party of premade / hired adventurers.

The battle system is grid- and turn-based. Before the battle, you can move around your characters to set their starting position and then go to town. There's DnD-reminescent spells, abilities and different classes. Every level up, until the max of 20, you can distribute 3 skill points in a simple skill system. It works, but is nothing fancy.

Now to the nitty-gritty. Let's mention the good things first: the atmosphere, as mentioned, is very good. It's dark, gruesome and fitting for an island full of lovecraftian beasts, cutthroat bandits and so on. There is plenty of gore, maiming, killing and all the good stuff. The soundtrack is good too, if a bit repetitive at times, but I did actually enjoy listening to it. The visuals in their simplicity portray what's going on very well - probably my favorite part of Skald.

The actual battles are mostly on the easy side. You can customize your difficulty at any time, but aside from a few options, I felt that regardless of difficulty, hard battles are still hard and easy battles (most of them after the first few hours) are still easy. What annoyed me most about the battles, though, is how many of them are in cramped quarters. It's hard to make a true ranged character as the only ranged weapon is the bow, which actually consumes arrows, so unless you have spellcasters with a lot of mana in your group, you will mostly attack in melee - which means there will always be characters that can't reach enemies with so many fights being in sewers, houses, caves, tunnels...it happened often enough to get really annoying by the end of the game, and it's hard to work around it. The gameplay stays rather simple as most spells and abilities, aside from those that heal, are never really needed and basic attacks do a good enough job most of the time. Luckily, the game isn't long enough for that to become too repetitive - it took me 13 hours to finish the game doing everything with a few reloads here and there.

The itemization is, frankly, very boring for a game such as this. It's hard to find unique or better items - I could count a handful of interesting or unique weapons, the rest are just "Generic Sword of X" that maybe adds 1 point to Lore or Crafting, but is otherwise the same as every other sword of it's type, of which there are only few. Sure, it's a short game, but the itemization is too simple for a CRPG and there was only rarely an item I was actually happy to find because it was an actual upgrade. Once your party is equipped, you will probably equipped for the rest of the game, with only few exceptions. Merchants don't add much to that lack of excitement, selling that same equipment anyway.

My biggest complaint, and which ultimately made me not want to recommend the game, was the story. It never really goes anywhere until the very end, where it suddenly escalates in a way that makes me think that the developers didn't know how to properly finish the game. It doesn't help that there are barely any decisions to be made throughout the game - again, very atypical for a CRPG - and the story is almost entirely linear. It's very mundanely lovecraftian, until it suddenly isn't, but it comes so late and out-of-nowhere that it just feels weird. Overall, I felt bored with the plot and then the ending was just a sudden slap in the face.

Skald is, honestly, "just fine". For what it is, it is a visually interesting simple little CRPG with not too many options in itemization and gameplay, focusing on atmosphere instead. But with the disappointing, way too linear story and little to no variation beyond choosing your own class and the class of one or two people you may hire that aren't premade, it just didn't feel all that satisfying to play, and then the ending just made me upset. The first half imo was very good, but it fell off from there. If you do like CRPGs, then get it on sale if you want to check it out - but, let's be real, there are a lot of better games like this on Steam. As an intro to this genre, Skald might serve well enough, but I'd probably recommend Tyranny over it if you want a fairly small, easy to get into CRPG.

Very fun so far!

Strengths: does the old school vibe really well. The music, minimalist graphics, and quality of writing really make for a great experience. The lovecraftian horror seems excellent so far. Getting gear and crafting both feel rewarding and exciting.

Early on, combat and certain statuses feel a bit tough to understand. There are tutorials but will need to play more to better understand vitality, wounds, what the results of wounds actually are, etc.

Very impressed so far!

Incredible game.

I know i'm just 12 hours in but this game is the best i've played this year so far.

The atmosphere is top notch, music plays a big role for sure. The world is dark and the Lovecraftian setting is spot on. I'm a huge fan of HP Lovecraft's short stories and this game contains many themes you can read in the books.

Writing is very good.

Combat is fun, inspired by DnD.

I would not change much of the game except maybe some UI improvement. I'd like to have skills/spells icons more creative. You don't really know what they mean unless you right click on them and read the description.

Anyway, great great game crafted with a lot of love. I can't wait to see how the game unravels.

I'd take a game such has this one any day over any AAA CRPG we get these days.

Yo, this is hands down the sickest Lovecraft-inspired game I’ve ever played. It’s got that retro RPG vibe straight outta the EGA/VGA era but with a cosmic horror twist and a dash of aliens for extra spice. If you’re into RPGs or Lovecraft, this is a must-play. Absolute fire. 🔥👾💀

Great vibe and really inspired and wonderfully done retro graphics! Reminded me a lot of playing Ultima back in the day (though with a much more adult and grim tone). Only knock is the UI/controls are a bit finicky (which, honestly is also like those old dos games haha). Thumbs up to the makers of this little gem.

I am really enjoying this game. I am so glad that I bought this instead of Dragon Age Veilguard. They actually have adult themes and a dark world to explore. I have enjoyed the writing and it really reminds me of Lovecrafts works. Really is a good game.

Nearly at the end of this game (I think!) and have to say I've had a really great time thus far! Love the vibe and artwork and it keeps drawing me back into its dark world and storyline. The turn-based combat can be a bit clunky at times, especially in confined spaces, but its a small quibble. If you love party-based RPGs, a gorgeous 8 bit-but-modern aesthetic, then this will be right up your street. Get on it!

The story and especially the writing of this game hooked me from start to finish.

Early in the game, you'll notice that the story is not what it initially seems, getting much deeper and darker as the game progresses.

I played as a guild-magos and my experience was good overall, but the beggining of the game can be very brutal and frustrating, because you don't have enought attunement (mana) or spells to do the bare minimum in combat without having to rest after every 1-2 fights.

Maybe I'm a little biased, but my only gripe with the game is that, in my opinion, the guild-magos should do more damage with most spells, especially the "core" ones. To name a few, I think that magic missile, fireball and lightning strike should do at least double the damage that they do now.

Yes, you can break the combat with one specific crowd control spell later in the game, but I feel like adding more damage into some "core" spells would collaborate to concretize that power fantasy of the glass canon DPS mage, hurling fireballs and lightning at their enemies.

Overall, an awesome game. I definitively recommend it,

I really liked it. The story and characters grew on me as the game went on, despite the beginning being a bit too slow and too generic for my taste. Fighting is fun for most of the game, the end is a bit spongey, but my party still managed to get through. I think it takes some courage to do an old-school game like this in todays time as such I would even recommend it on full prize.

So, I finally got around to finishing my first playthrough of SKALD after taking a break over the summer. I wish I hadn't put it down temporarily, though perhaps the ending wouldn't have had as big of an impact on me that way?

Either way, I am not all too familiar with the "Cosmic Horror" genre (I cannot think of any other game off the top of my head that I've played that fits that description, though maybe Mass Effect comes close), as some would describe it, so I will not focus on the narrative and story much more than simply saying that it does a good job at keeping my interest and it has left me wanting more.

With that out of the way, I will speak on the topics that I am far more familiar with when it comes to gameplay, and that is to say that the art style, overall look and feel of the game, are S-tier. I am a sucker for old skool games and pixel graphics anyway, but for me, SKALD takes these elements to a level that goes well above and beyond what you get in most games with this type of look and field. The sound design, music and atmosphere go a long way to make the combat feel crunchy and meaty, and it leaves me wanting more--it satisfies a cathartic itch inside of me, though perhaps that is just my inner neanderthal who just wants to wield an axe and smash things? Either way, the game checks a lot of boxes in that arena for me, and I could play this game again and again just for the combat alone.

The characters are great, the game does an excellent enough job at giving you a taste and an overall feel for their differing personalities without it feeling overbearing. I personally would have liked to see the character development pushed a little further, maybe something closer to a Dragon Age: Origins with the whole romancing option and the +/- approvals depending on your actions throughout the game, but that may distract from what is a very good game at its core and it certainly would take away from that old skool feel.

I sincerely hope we get another title from this developer built on the exact same engine, with an entirely different story and universe that focuses largely on the combat, has a great story, and maybe 2x - 4x the content. Honestly, my only real complaint about SKALD is that it was over too soon (35 hours for me, and I did take my time). I know this won't be an issue for some gamers, but when it comes to any sort of RPG, I tend to long for a huge world to explore and many ways in which to do it. SKALD offers me a very satisfying bite of the pie, but leaves me wanting for more!

That said, SKALD is also the type of game I can easily find myself picking up and playing again to explore playing different class combinations and to try to create an even more coordinated team of characters. That's another thing I like--SKALD does the whole party based RPG right, and allows me to create my own characters, not just my primary character. You do have to slip into the game a little bit before that option presents itself, but it's almost a requirement for me to be able to create my own--so I am very happy to have it.

A+ experience from me. I highly recommend giving it a go if anything I described above is even remotely interesting to you.

Great game. dont play mage or battle mage they're awful.

Overall, the experience feels very harmonious. There is no filler content, no sudden difficulty spikes, and no half-abandoned ideas, with the exception of magic. The developer is self-aware enough to focus on what he is capable of and delivers a well-put-together game based on his original vision. The end result is a fun and enjoyable short adventure, although at times it may feel overly simplistic and predictable. Recommended for any RPG player who can overlook somewhat shallow underlying systems, such as character development and combat.

Full review: https://rpghq.org/forums/viewtopic.php?p=112649-skald-against-the-black-priory

What a great and fun game, a must have for all old C64 school RPG types. Lots of Ultima IV, pool of radiance feels about it. Cant recommend this enough to any one. Familiar story, lots of D&D type monsters and spells etc. Oh and the thief character can steal just bout anything, its great. My only issue is that i think i used all the arrows in the entire land lol.

I'm always a fan of cosmic horror and old-school rpgs, and Skald combines the two perfectly. I wish there were more games like this, but Skald hits a very particular niche with me. Combat is simple but engaging and does not drag on too long, the atmosphere, music, and world-building are top-notch, and the pixel art is beautiful.

Overall the atmosphere is great, the visuals are good if you're into that sort of thing, and the story holds together fine.

The combat is absolutely mediocre, however. This is not a satisfying little dungeon crawler and there's no depth or variety for character builds.

I had an overall positive experience playing SKALD. I was looking to play a party based RPG on my steam deck and this one fit the bill. Overall I would give it a 3/5. The story is really well written and has some fun lovecraftian themes to explore. There are a lot of tedious mechanics that bring the score down for me. The combat was fun up to a certain point. Probably around the 60% - 80% point all the encounters started to feel the exact same. Overall it was a good experience. I'm glad I got it.

Good Things:
- Really lovely art and graphics. I don't mind pixelated graphic styles. I even prefer stylized graphics to realistic ones. Allows the game to run smoother and better without causing my hardware to melt down.
- Well written and fun story. Main quest is great, but the side quests are fun too.
- Large 6 member party with a good variety of classes. Can really customize your combat experience.
- More content than you realize at first. I would say pretty worth the price point.

Bad Things:
- Ammunition is extremely hard to come by. Especially in the early game. If you want multiple rangers in your group or even multiple party members that specialize in bows its hard to keep up with arrow demands.
- Magic based users follow a D&D like system where their mana only regens through potions or resting in a safe area. This means you have to either: One, quickly discover the mana potion recipe and farm ingredients to make a bunch of potions. Or two, tediously go back and forth between areas where your party can rest before fighting again. Makes magic users feel bad to use. I know a lot of people like a system like this because it encourages "careful" use of magic but for me it just pads game time. I will just consistently return to a safe area and rest so I can use the spells I want. I wish games would abandon this D&D adaption. Its not fun.
- One of my favorite classes was the thief. Essentially a rogue based class. Flank the enemy and do massive damage. Thing is, this game has very little space to maneuver in a lot of the fights. I found myself having party members in narrow 1-2 spaced gaps or with enemies against the wall. Made the thief class useless in a lot of scenarios.
- Dice rolls. I hate dice rolls in games. If its some background calculation (like for combat rolls), that's fine. But I dislike when I have to roll actual dice on screen to determine some sort of event or outcome in the story. Just not my thing. Let me choose what I want to do and if it requires previous preparation to determine a certain outcome, let it be deterministic. Luckily, the dice rolls in this game are pretty minimal in how they actually affect you. It's not a huge negative.
- Some of the environment can be walked through (stepped on) but a lot of it can't (some bushes, ferns, trees, barrels, etc). The stuff that can't is used as walls and barriers to guide the player in the environment. Problem is that it's hard to visually distinguish which one is which. I found myself bouncing up against terrain features all the time. Made map exploration a little frustrating. Even more so on the steam deck because the analog controls were a little sensitive and would cause your character to rapidly bounce on a terrain object multiple times before you could disengage.

I will say that the game has a built in console command that you can use to modify the game in numerous ways. You can use it to cheat, or modify how you want to play. So yes, you can use this console to mitigate the annoyances you may have with systems in the game but I didn't want to use it. I would rather play the game as it was meant to and beat it with the constrictions than cheat. Kind of defeats the point of playing the game in the first place. But if you like that ability to customize your experience then its a big positive.

This is quite simply one of the best RPGs I've ever played, for several reasons. 1. The story/writing/world are amazing and memorable. 2. Turn-based combat is quite strategic (though it can get repetitive in some instances). 3. The combat/level ups/things you can do/mechanics/etc are deep enough to give you a lot of freedom, but light enough that they don't become a chore. 4. It is open world, but, importantly, it is a small and engaging world with limited silly side-quests. All in all, a brilliant game and a lesson to other devs that less can sometimes mean more. More quests, more characters, more secondary crap is not always good and the basics (i.e. the story, the atmosphere and the simple mechanics) are as, if not more, important.