Chronicon (2020)

Chronicon seems to be well loved based on Steam reviews and reddit recommendations, but I'm really just not feeling it after 4 hours. I'm a big fan of Diablo-style ARPGs, but I rarely grind out the end game. I'm more in it for having fun building a character and playing through the story. I usually move on when I start having to repeat content, and I really don't have that much interest in end game gear grinding and whatnot.

All this is to say, Chronicon feels like it skips right to the most monotonous, grindy part. There's really nothing differentiating one area from the next, it's just killing one group of monsters after another, as quickly as you can to maintain a kill combo. There's somehow even less story than most ARPGs, and there's not much in the way of interesting set pieces or anything to really spice the game up.

It's frustrating, because the character builds are actually pretty cool. All of the systems involved in making your character feel really well done. I was excited to unlock new skills, level up, get some equipment to support my build, and all of the other aspects of progressing in this sort of game. It's just, there's nothing to really hold it all together. On top of the enemy/level design mentioned earlier, the combat is also just very chaotic and claustrophobic, making it so you can't really feel the impact of your skills. I don't think there's any reason to play the game other than to watch numbers go up.

In the end, Chronicon is a niche game for a an audience that finds character building and grinding to be enough to sustain a game. I just need a little something else these days.