Dwerve is a captivating blend of retro art dungeon crawling RPG and tower defense combat, enveloped in a high fantasy narrative featuring Dwarves, Elves, and Trolls. Recently released for PC, with a mobile version on the horizon, I had the opportunity to test the demo version called Dwerve: Prologue.

The gameplay in Dwerve is straightforward yet involves the player strategically. Players traverse the land, engaging in battles against monsters and solving puzzles along the way, in some occasions navigating maze-like levels and activating levers to open gates. The map design exhibits cleverness in multiple aspects, notably in minimizing the need for excessive backtracking during quests. However, the standout feature that sets Dwerve apart from other retro RPG games lies in its combat system.

The combat is infused with tower defense combat system that is tantamount to the Dwerve’s survival. Using his magical stones, he can place structures from a current lineup of four, on any empty tile on the land, significantly increasing his defensive and offensive capabilities. These structures range from spin blade turrets, dealing devastating melee damage in an area of effect, to crossbow turrets, capable of delivering precise, long-range attacks.

As the game progresses, additional structures and turrets can be unlocked, further expanding players’ tactical options. While these structures possess limited health or duration, they can be seamlessly recalled and rebuilt in an instant, as long as the player retrieves back the magical stones. As he progresses, the protagonist also acquires coins that can be used to purchase upgrades for his towers, such as increased damage or durability.

The gameplay is interesting, however it’s not without its flaws. From the PC to mobile controls, the touchscreen controls have some form of unresponsiveness. I’ve experienced being unable to move multiple times already while in combat and frantically building turrets, leading to an unwarranted death multiple times. It doesn’t help that the checkpoint/save system is bound to frustrate players too, which doesn’t allow for manual saving and restarts the entire level if ever you decide, or accidentally leave the instance.

Read the Full Review here on Taptap!

Read the Full Review here on Taptap!

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