The Vagrant

I have to give the developers credit for the effort. They had an interesting concept and lots of potential. However, the game is linear, repetitive and it is more “inflated” than the protagonist’s massive chest.
Since I’m going to criticize a lot I will start with the “conclusion”.
Despite all the flaws and repetitive gameplay, I enjoyed the game for what it is.
Is it worth the price? Absolutely
Is it worth your time? Probably not, if you have other games to play.
If you want to pass time after a hard day’s work, enjoy the beautiful art and just trash monsters left and right, then go for it.
Maps
Most of them are filler maps making the game look bigger than it is. There is little side-tracking. You just follow markers. In some areas you find keys to unlock doors and special chests. The maps are very similar, with a bunch of traps here and there and little platforming (thank god).
Combat (normal difficulty)
Combat is – despite the RPG elements – very rudimentary. Hack-and-slash turns into button-mash. The boss fights are fun and require strategy. Pretty much all of the other enemies can be steamrolled.
Controls
In addition to attacking and jumping you can dodge, do aerial attacks, special attacks, use potions in combat. However, throughout most of the fights it’s more than enough to just spam attack.
RPG Elements
There are abilities you can unlock. There are skills – special attacks – to choose from. Armors and weapons can be upgraded. It doesn’t feel rewarding though. You just get a stronger, tougher and whatnot and you will be able to plow through enemies even faster. The one ability you need is double jump.
Unlocking abilities is grindy. There are two currencies, gold and mana. Yes, mana is a currency only, used for unlocking abilities and upgrading your gear. And you need A LOT. Money is mostly useless, since you pretty much get all your gear as drops.
There are notes about the story, some tutorial information and even a “monsterpedia” which I quite enjoyed as an RPG fan.
Oh, and there is cooking for the sake of having it. You can learn recipes from NPCs and use them at campfires to get permanent buffs.
Art Style
Very beautiful, inspired by Vanillaware games. Can’t go wrong with that.
Music
There are some tracks that might be a bit on the generic side, but they fit the whole feel and style of the game. Then there is rock music, some techno stuff and maybe some other tracks which don’t fit the game at all. They are also a bit too loud for my liking.
Story
It’s a reason to go from checkpoint to checkpoint.

While it wouldn't be totally wrong to call this the Odin Sphere we have at home, it'd be a little more accurate to say that it's halfway between Odin Sphere and Muramasa by way of Rambo on the NES. Not quite a Platventure with its heavy focus on combat and very rudimetary platforming, it does work surprisingly well. It leaves a poor first impression, but after an hour or so, it gets to being really good. I found myself remapping the buttons, but combat was competent, and the skill trees were fun to fill out. It is a bit grindy, since I found exactly one room where I could consistently get a decent amount of mana (used to unlock perks and upgrade weapons and armor), and it's on the later side, so I was starving for upgrades in the beginning, and overpowered at the end. Not a dealbreaker for me, but important to keep in mind. Boss fights were mostly good, even if a few were annoying.

What drew you in, though, was likely the artwork, and it's beautiful throughout; definitely reminds me of something Vanillaware would put out. Like Vanillaware, the story was also surprisingly good, with some interesting characters; maybe not a masterpiece, but certainly above average for something like this. The soundtrack was pretty good, too, and surprisinly varied. Overall, a great title, especially for such a low price!

Fun game, lots of bang for your buck.
For a dirt-cheap indie-game this had plenty of content and I enjoyed it.
The storybook art style it has straight down to the large men and busty women is a tribute to Vanilla Ware games.
The gameplay itself is a metroidvania, you can collect armor and swords that you can level up and place runes on to change their stats, and you also have a leveling system where you spend mana to increase your abilities.
The game encourages exploration, some maps have high ceilings that hide loot and need some abilities to reach, other maps have hidden sections that attach. The game has 2 true endings, multiple false endings, and 5 difficulty levels.
Plus you get to play as a buff muscle mommy.
The only issue I really encountered was that as a forign indie game, some of the text translation is off, but you can still tell what they mean. It's mostly just clumsy wording or grammar and primarily just in popups and tooltips, the story dialog is fine.

To me, this seems like a great forgotten RPG metroidvania. I don't see it cited as one of the greats in metroidvania lists, but it certainly should. And it's not quite an old game, perhaps it's kinda easy for hardcore players or people barely consider it a metroidvania? Anyway, I don't mind that, I liked the story and gameplay, the graphics influenced by Vanillaware games that give it a unique aspect and the soundtrack fits good the atmosphere.
Verdict: Great game
Linux: Works fine on Proton
Para mim, esse jogo é um ótimo RPG metroidvania esquecido, não o vejo citado como um dos grandes nas listas de metroidvanias, mas certamente deveria. E nem é um jogo tão velho, quem sabe é meio fácil para jogadores hardcore ou mal o consideram um metroidvnia? De qualquer forma, nem ligo para isso, eu gostei da estória e jogabilidade, os gráficos influenciados pelos jogos da Vanillaware que dão um aspecto único e a trilha sonora se encaixa bem na atmosfera.
Veredito: Ótimo jogo
Linux: Funciona bem no Proton

Came in for the b00bs, stayed for the cool combat and story. More a beat em' up than a metroidvania, but still pretty fun to complete in about 10 hours of gameplay.

Beat'em up side scroller inspired by Vanillaware games, so highly stripperiffic character designs are a given. Beautiful hand painted graphics with a matching soundtrack and a straightforward story which grant the entire experience a fairy tale vibe.

The final boss is a huge difficulty spike, though. It can easily one shot you. What's worse, it's placed directly after two other bosses, without any checkpoint between them. The best solution is to spend 30 minutes to an hour grinding for the best armor in the game. If you do so, you might as well complete all optional encounters, including a dungeon which rewards you the best weapon in Vagrant, as the armor is overpowered. At the very least there's an NG+ mode, and some achievements are much easier in said mode, so it's not time entirely wasted.

I enjoy The Vagrant as it's an obvious passion project from a tiny team of developers. I'm glad it garnered a small following over the years. It deserves it.

The Vagrant is a 2D action RPG that draws inspiration from classic titles like Odin Sphere and Muramasa: The Demon Blade. It follows Vivian, a traveling sellsword searching for her lost family and answers about her past. The game’s visual design stands out immediately, featuring hand-painted environments and fluid, anime-style character animation that gives every battle and landscape a sense of motion and energy.
Combat is the heart of the experience. It’s fast, combo-driven, and responsive, blending light and heavy attacks, dodges, and skill abilities. As you progress, you unlock a deep upgrade system that allows you to customize weapons, abilities, and stats to suit different playstyles. Boss fights are frequent and demanding, requiring good timing and situational awareness rather than button mashing.
Exploration rewards curiosity. Hidden areas, optional challenges, and gear drops encourage backtracking and experimentation. The level design balances linear storytelling with small open segments that make revisiting earlier zones worthwhile. Loot and crafting systems are simple but satisfying, providing a consistent sense of growth and progression.
The story is modest but serviceable, mixing mystery and personal tragedy. The writing isn’t exceptional, but it fits the tone of a lone warrior’s journey through a cursed land. Voice acting is minimal, yet the soundtrack does a strong job of setting the mood—melancholic in villages, tense in combat, and atmospheric in ruins.
Technically, The Vagrant runs smoothly and loads quickly, though there are occasional hitbox quirks and animation bugs. Still, its strengths outweigh its minor flaws. The game offers a rich action-RPG experience on a small scale, ideal for players who appreciate skill-based combat and artistic presentation without excessive complexity.
Overall, The Vagrant is a hidden gem—beautifully drawn, mechanically sharp, and surprisingly engaging for its low price. It captures the spirit of classic action RPGs while maintaining its own identity through strong combat and visual charm.