SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech

TechRaptorDan Hodges

9/10

SteamWorld Quest may be Image & Form's finest game yet, presenting a charming tale and a nuanced combat system wrapped up in a wonderfully cohesive style.

COGConnectedAnthony Bacchus

86/100

You can’t talk about SteamWorld Quest without first recognizing its genre-hopping developer, Image & Form. Not only have they kept the SteamWorld name and steampunk aesthetics intact since the original SteamWorld Dig (and to a lesser extent, SteamWorld: Tower Defense on DSiWare), they aren’t afraid to branch the franchise out into new and exciting genres. 2015’s SteamWorld Heist saw them flex their muscles at strategic turn-based shooting while SteamWorld Dig 2 is a near-perfect Metroidvania. So enter SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech, the newest entry in the series that also, predictably, s...

Pure NintendoHarrison Milfeld

8.5/10

Developer Image & Form is certainly no stranger when it comes to experimenting with different genres. Since 2010, the Swedish indie dev has dipped their toe

GameSpaceBill Gallon

8.5/10

All in all, SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech is a very good, if short, game.  Every fight will be different depending on your party composition, equipment, and deck setup, with each fight having multiple ways you could overcome them.  With a combination of luck, skill, and planning, each fight was both a chance to gain exp before the next boss, and an opportunity to try out combos before the big fight, fulfilling a card game player’s dream.

TwinfiniteAndrew McMahon

At first glance, SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech shouldn’t work. Not only does the title’s genre vastly differ from its predecessors, with SteamWorld Dig 2 being a Metroidvania and SteamWorld Heist a tactics title, but it also does so by existing in the niche space that is RPG card games.

GamereactorGR Staff

8/10

Image and Form has prioritised cleverly when creating this game. The studio has established a massive audience over the years, widening the horizon of the SteamWorld franchise and showing that the studio can make games in any genre you can care to think of. We wouldn't be surprised if the developer were to give us a serious survival game with Guitar Hero-like mechanics next, and we're guessing we'd give that a high score as well.

RPGFanJonathan Logan

80/100

In the end, SteamWorld Quest feels much more like a polished mobile game than a console RPG. This game is not too long, pleasant, and fun to play in short bursts. But those looking for deep character growth, an explorable world, and a compelling story should look elsewhere (possibly at the other SteamWorld games). Despite the eye-catching graphics and character design, there just isn’t enough here to keep me coming back. It’s a rare misstep from Image & Form, but given their past output, I suspect it is one that they will learn from. SteamWorld Dig 2 took everything great about the origina…

VG247Nadia Oxford

Pack lightly for a jolly trip.

– Matt S. Editor-in-ChiefFind me on Twitter: @digitallydownldPlease help keep DDNet running: Running an online publication isn’t cheap, and it’s highly time consuming. Please help me keep the site running and providing interviews, reviews, and features like this by supporting me on Patreon. Even $1/ month would be a hugely appreciated vote of confidence in the kind of work we’re doing. Please click here to be taken to my Patreon, and thank you for reading and your support!

GameSpotAlessandro Barbosa

7/10

Under pressure.

RPGSiteJosh Torres

7/10

Image & Form's latest SteamWorld entry dips its toes into the realm of RPGs as it delightfully integrates a deck-building card game into a turn-based RPG.

Metro GameCentralGameCentral

6/10

The weakest of the recent SteamWorld games but still an enjoyable, if rather unfair, mix of role-playing game and card-battler.