Abyssal

I usually go into free student games expecting a buggy mess or a half-finished tech demo, but Abyssal actually feels like a complete, thought-out experience. It’s a turn-based tactical RPG that leans heavy into that dark, Eldritch "monks and monsters" vibe, and it honestly hits harder than some paid indie titles.
Why it’s actually worth the download:
- The Story is Solid: You play as Archivald, a monk coming back to settle a blood feud with his brother, Alaric. It’s a classic revenge plot, but the way it’s tied into this infested, rotting city makes it feel way more intense.
- Combat with Consequences: It’s isometric and turn-based, but you aren't just spamming attacks. The mechanic of using magic and minions to fight your way through actually requires some brain power. If you like the tactical positioning of games like XCOM or Divinity, you’ll feel right at home here.
- The "Free" Factor: It’s under 700MB and costs zero dollars. In an era of $70 games filled with microtransactions, playing a tight, focused story made by students who clearly love the genre is a breath of fresh air.
- Killer Atmosphere: The creature designs are genuinely creepy, and the environments look great for an indie project. It nails that "dark fantasy" dread without being too "edgy" just for the sake of it.
The Reality Check:
The biggest "complaint" is honestly just that people want more of it. Since it was built as a senior project, it’s short—you can probably wrap it up in an hour or two. There are some minor pathfinding hiccups where your units might take the "scenic route" to a tile, but nothing that breaks the game.
The Verdict:
- If you’ve got a spare afternoon and love strategy games, there’s no reason not to play this. It’s punchy, it’s dark, and the turn-based combat is surprisingly satisfying. It’s a great example of "all killer, no filler."
Pros:
- Totally free and runs on basically anything.
- Great tactical depth for a short game.
- The story actually keeps you interested.
Cons:
- It’s over before you’re ready for it to end.
- Occasional finicky 3D clicking/pathing.
Final thought: It’s a bite-sized tactical gem. Download it, get your revenge, and keep an eye on these devs—they’re going places.

Steam User 1

Reviewed last year

6/10 TBS with a minions party
TLDR: it's a nice student project with good visuals and audio. Yet the lack of QoL features and the clumsy controls make it hard to play
Good:
+ free
+ nice, even if low-poly models. Nice looks overall
+ thematic music
So-so:
+/- can't rotate the camera or zoom in/out. So it's unclear why this game even have to be 3D if the view is fixed
Bad:
- the cursor has an additional picture above it showing the currently selected ability. It's confusing and often makes you click below the objects you wanted to click because you can't exactly see the hotspot of the cursor. The extra picture should have been shown maybe on the right of the cursor, not above it
- hard to see HP of the characters
- can't see how far enemies can move, what abilities they have, or their attack range. Also, tiles on the ground are only visible within your movement or attack range. So, you can't really plan ahead and take into account the "danger zone" of enemies
- no numbers in tooltips of abilities. What amount of dmg a spell does? How much healing heals? It's not really a strategy game if there are no numbers
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Steam User 0

Reviewed last year

I usually go into free student games expecting a buggy mess or a half-finished tech demo, but Abyssal actually feels like a complete, thought-out experience. It’s a turn-based tactical RPG that leans heavy into that dark, Eldritch "monks and monsters" vibe, and it honestly hits harder than some paid indie titles.
Why it’s actually worth the download:
- The Story is Solid: You play as Archivald, a monk coming back to settle a blood feud with his brother, Alaric. It’s a classic revenge plot, but the way it’s tied into this infested, rotting city makes it feel way more intense.
- Combat with Consequences: It’s isometric and turn-based, but you aren't just spamming attacks. The mechanic of using magic and minions to fight your way through actually requires some brain power. If you like the tactical positioning of games like XCOM or Divinity, you’ll feel right at home here.
- The "Free" Factor: It’s under 700MB and costs zero dollars. In an era of $70 games filled with microtransactions, playing a tight, focused story made by students who clearly love the genre is a breath of fresh air.
- Killer Atmosphere: The creature designs are genuinely creepy, and the environments look great for an indie project. It nails that "dark fantasy" dread without being too "edgy" just for the sake of it.
The Reality Check:
The biggest "complaint" is honestly just that people want more of it. Since it was built as a senior project, it’s short—you can probably wrap it up in an hour or two. There are some minor pathfinding hiccups where your units might take the "scenic route" to a tile, but nothing that breaks the game.
The Verdict:
- If you’ve got a spare afternoon and love strategy games, there’s no reason not to play this. It’s punchy, it’s dark, and the turn-based combat is surprisingly satisfying. It’s a great example of "all killer, no filler."
Pros:
- Totally free and runs on basically anything.
- Great tactical depth for a short game.
- The story actually keeps you interested.
Cons:
- It’s over before you’re ready for it to end.
- Occasional finicky 3D clicking/pathing.
Final thought: It’s a bite-sized tactical gem. Download it, get your revenge, and keep an eye on these devs—they’re going places.

Abyssal

Game Discussion

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Steam User 1

Steam User 0