Fiche du jeu / ROGUE BY ROGUEBelow the Crown
Texte original · AnglaisExplore the dungeons Below the Crown, in this love letter to Roguelikes, Dungeon Crawlers, and Chess. Prepare for strategy, game-changing spells, psychological tests, and challenges from your fellow players. From the award-winning creators of Duskers & A Virus Named TOM.
Notre note
Classé après évaluation des cinq critères
Jeu répertorié. Évaluation à venir.
Ce jeu n’a pas encore été évalué selon nos cinq critères. Consultez ses informations et les documents externes en attendant.
Critiques vidéo
Critiques et analyses sur YouTube et Bilibili, dans toutes les langues. Ouvrez la vidéo originale pour la regarder.
D’autres voix, à titre indicatif.
Les critiques tierces et documents communautaires archivés peuvent concerner différentes versions. Les avis et notes externes sont présentés séparément. Consultez les vidéos originales pour leur contexte complet.
Synthèse des discussions
Texte original · AnglaisA chess-flavoured roguelike puzzle/dungeon crawler from Misfits Attic (Duskers, A Virus Named TOM) where you control a wizard-king, summon and upgrade chess-style pieces, and clear room-sized tactical puzzles.
Texte original · AnglaisPlayers are very positive: Steam shows Very Positive at roughly 94-96 percent across about 110 reviews (103 positive, 6 negative in the local snapshot). It entered Early Access on Nov 10, 2025 and reached 1.0 on Apr 21, 2026 at $14.99, Windows only. The one critic review found (GameGrin, 80/100 or 8/10) calls it creative and fairly balanced but more of a side-activity puzzler than something for long sessions. It is a small, niche title with thin critic coverage, so most of the signal is Steam user reviews. Early Linux crashes and some puzzle-state bugs were reported and at least the Linux crash was later reported fixed. Note: web search quota ran out during research, so Reddit and outlet coverage could not be checked; this summary relies on Steam and one critic review.
Ce que les joueurs apprécient
- Texte original · AnglaisApproachable even for people who are bad at or indifferent to chess: moves are explained, and a danger-tile button shows which squares are threatened
- Texte original · AnglaisFair, well-designed puzzles: failures usually feel like your own mistake rather than cheap unfairness (echoed by reviewers and players)
- Texte original · AnglaisFresh take on chess roguelikes: you start with no pieces, must move the wizard before placing pieces or casting spells, forcing long-term planning instead of just building an overpowered board
- Texte original · AnglaisPieces stay mostly standard with a few restrictive variants, so the game feels 'not too chess but enough chess', with spells, hazard tiles and non-chess pieces adding variety
- Texte original · AnglaisRetro neon vector/scanline presentation, hum of old electronics and a tense-but-relaxing atmosphere inherited from Duskers
- Texte original · AnglaisDaily challenge leaderboards, shareable replays and community challenges give short-session replayability
- Texte original · AnglaisShort runs that can be resumed anytime and multiple win conditions (capture everything or checkmate, board shrinks over time) keep pace brisk
- Texte original · AnglaisInteresting meta layer: odd psychological-assessment questionnaires and a mysterious emperor narrative that some compare to Inscryption
Ce que les joueurs critiquent
- Texte original · AnglaisSome players find it shallow or just 'worse than playing chess with generic roguelike mechanics bolted on' (mostly short-playtime negative reviews)
- Texte original · AnglaisTechnical problems at launch/EA: a Linux crash with heavy memory use, invalid game states, a hopper capture not ending a level, a boss turn that would not end, and achievement tracking glitches
- Texte original · AnglaisBoard can feel chaotic once more than about five pieces are in play
- Texte original · AnglaisPerformance issues mentioned in an early negative review
- Texte original · AnglaisNo mid-puzzle restart: failing means leaving the room without bonuses or upgrades (per GameGrin)
- Texte original · AnglaisMinimal animation; the presentation is stylish but sparse
- Texte original · AnglaisNarrative is light, especially in the early access build
Caractéristiques distinctives
- Texte original · AnglaisYou are a wizard who starts each level with zero pieces and summons them within the wizard's line of sight, unlike drop-anywhere chess roguelikes such as The Rookery
- Texte original · AnglaisShrinking board and alternative win conditions remove the need to actually orchestrate a checkmate
- Texte original · AnglaisPsychological-test questionnaires interleaved with play that affect the runs
- Texte original · AnglaisUndo tokens, a good-move hint and saved/shared replays make it puzzle-forward and forgiving
- Texte original · AnglaisDungeon-crawler framing with RPG-style piece upgrades and spells layered on real chess tactics (forks, pins, skewers)
Points qui divisent
- Texte original · AnglaisChess as foundation: fans love that chess knowledge is optional, while a few critics say it is simply worse than playing chess
- Texte original · AnglaisDepth vs shallowness: long-playtime players find deep synergies and builds, short-playtime negative reviewers call it shallow
- Texte original · AnglaisSession length: praised as bite-sized and flexible, but criticised by the critic as unable to hold focus for a full session
Répétition et contraintes
- Texte original · AnglaisLosing a room means losing the run's upgrades from that room with no mid-puzzle restart
- Texte original · AnglaisCrowded boards with many pieces can become hard to read and calculate
- Texte original · AnglaisSome situations are perceived as unfair, particularly at the highest difficulty
- Texte original · AnglaisPlayers who dislike chess-like thinking find the core loop not engaging
- Texte original · AnglaisNot a game for long single sittings; better as a second-monitor or between-chores game
Améliorations espérées
- Texte original · AnglaisController support was requested on Steam discussions
- Texte original · AnglaisA campaign mode built around the Hopper King character was suggested
- Texte original · AnglaisA way to restart a puzzle mid-room without forfeiting rewards
- Texte original · AnglaisBug fixes for stuck boss turns, level-completion triggers and achievements
- Texte original · AnglaisMore depth or content so it holds attention beyond short sessions
- Texte original · AnglaisLinux stability: early Linux crash with heavy memory use (reported fixed later), although the store page lists Windows only
Texte original · AnglaisEarly Access launched Nov 10, 2025 to strongly positive feedback from fans of Duskers and chess games, with praise for the daily challenge leaderboard. 1.0 launched Apr 21, 2026 (publisher Shochiku alongside Misfits Attic) and sentiment stayed Very Positive. A Linux memory/crash bug present in early builds was reported fixed a few weeks after launch by a user. Also distributed in a Humble bundle (Checkmate! A Chess Games Collection) per a Steam review. Metacritic shows no Metascore yet (only one critic review, needs four) and OpenCritic had no findable entry. Steam owner estimate is tiny/unknown (SteamSpy 0-20k). Windows only; Steam Deck/controller support was a player request.
Sources communautaires
- Texte original · AnglaisTop helpful positive and negative English Steam reviews (local file) ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisLocal Steam metadata: appid 1883920, release, price, review counts, SteamSpy owners ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisSteam store page: features, EA and 1.0 dates, review summary ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisSteam top-rated reviews page, recurring praise and criticism ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisSteam discussions: bugs, controller support and campaign requests ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisMetacritic page: no Metascore yet, GameGrin 80 is the only critic review ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisGameGrin review: 8/10, pros and cons ↗
- Texte original · AnglaisOpenCritic search, no entry found ↗
Commentaires archivés du créateur 1
Ces synthèses tierces reposent sur des sous-titres automatiques et peuvent contenir des erreurs de transcription ou d’interprétation.
Texte original · AnglaisTier list Part 5 (2026)
Texte original · AnglaisBelow the Crown is a small, strategy-focused chess roguelike where you command a wizard who summons pieces onto a board inside dungeons. He feels it is the first chess roguelike that truly captures real chess, since good chess play matters more than wild mechanics. Roguelike elements are tiny per-encounter boosts that never overshadow the core chess thinking. He admits he would not play it a lot himself and it may feel repetitive, but he recommends it to chess fans and places it at high B.
Ce que le créateur apprécie
- Texte original · AnglaisCaptures the feel of real chess better than other chess roguelikes; chess skill genuinely makes you better
- Texte original · AnglaisTutorials teach basic chess tactics like pinning, so players learn something
- Texte original · AnglaisSmart AI, with gold rewards for strategic plays like checkmates and pins rather than just clearing pieces
- Texte original · AnglaisSmall, simple roguelike elements (easier placement, one-time freeze, one-time transform) fit the game's goals
- Texte original · AnglaisLimited pieces and a sparse board keep turns slow and deliberate
- Texte original · AnglaisUnexpected story with fourth-wall-breaking elements
- Texte original · AnglaisRooks look like frogs
Problèmes relevés par le créateur
- Texte original · AnglaisGameplay can feel repetitive, like chess itself
- Texte original · AnglaisSlow turns and long individual encounters due to heavy thinking
- Texte original · AnglaisNot a game for everyone; requires careful step-by-step play
- Texte original · AnglaisHe would not personally play it a ton since he is not a strong chess player
Observations sur la conception
- Texte original · AnglaisRoguelike upgrades stay modest so the run is still about playing chess well, even at the final boss
- Texte original · AnglaisRewards strategic chess play (checkmate, pins) with gold
- Texte original · AnglaisAvoids the common trap of piling on crazy rules that erase the chess feel
