Deathtrap
Deathtrap
Game
Game2013
Deathtrap Dungeon
Ian Livingstone's Deathtrap Dungeon is an action-adventure video game developed by Asylum Studios and published by Eidos Interactive for PlayStation and Microsoft Windows in 1998. It is based on the adventure gamebook Deathtrap Dungeon (the sixth in the Fighting Fantasy series) written by Ian Livingstone, and published by Puffin Books in 1984. Due to its employing a similar 3D game engine, it was often compared to… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
174 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Oct 18, 2026 · last updated Oct 18, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
48
Mixed
57 positive · 62 negative
95% range 39–57%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 57 | 62 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 8 | 8 | 35 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Mixed
63 of 132 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
48% recommend · 58 yes, 64 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 122 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Mixed (110 of 215 positive).
Several reviewers criticize the controls and camera as clunky and unresponsive. [1][2][3] Technical issues like broken music and cutscenes are common complaints. [4][5][6]
Liked
Representative posts
- [7]
Ian Livingstone's role playing classic is brought to life in 3D. This is a game from thge depths of a retro treasure trove. It's dark and sadistic, with many monsters, traps and obstacles making this game insanely challenging. Sometimes it's seemingly impossible but it has that trademark replay value like modern classic Dark Souls which keeps you playing again and again.
- [15]
Why the bloody hell is this a mixed review game? This game is amazing. Slightly clunky control? Sure, but you can put a controller in and map it real quick ingame, it works with my 3rd party 360 pad. The combat is simple but satisfying, you really chop goblins into bits. Platforming is on par with Tomb Raider, and the difficulty is fantastic. I nearly finish the first level, and in my dumb excitement I rush out of …
- [4]
*sigh* oh, i used to love this game. In fact, i still do, but this steam version is just a joke. First of all, the intro cinematic don't even play. The resolution is 800x600 and, the worst part, the soundtrack is bugged and plays the same song on all the levels. I still have the original cd, and the game is pretty enjoyable, but they should not sell a game full of flaws such as this. If they ever fix all those …
- [1]
It's like dark souls except instead of fighting enemies, you fight the controls and camera.
- [6]
What a pathetic attempt to port this game. Virtually everything about it is broken in some way. They shouldn't even be allowed to charge money for this it's so broken. The Eidos bundle this came with is one of the poorest values I've ever purchased on Steam even while it was on sale. There's so many things wrong with it I can't even be bothered to list it all. --- Even if you do manage to get the game working (and …
Summarised from 34 of the 176 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Players who liked Deathtrap Dungeon talk about challenging and rewarding gameplay reminiscent of Dark Souls; those who didn't talk about controls and camera are very clunky and unresponsive. Which matters more to you?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Deathtrap Dungeon received mostly negative reviews on both platforms, though the PC version saw a larger share of mixed reviews than the PlayStation version did. Criticisms were levied at the bland environments, overly simplistic puzzles, and weak enemy designs, but reviewers focused most of their attention on the poor control and erratic camera movements. John Davison of Electronic Gaming Monthly elaborated that "In places the camera seems to somersault over your head in a puke-inducing high speed maneuver.", and his co-reviewer Kraig Kujawa said that because of the camera and control issues, "Battles often consist of struggling to turn the right way to face an enemy, and then exchanging…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 174 · most liked first*sigh* oh, i used to love this game. In fact, i still do, but this steam version is just a joke. First of all, the intro cinematic don't even play. The resolution is 800x600 and, the worst part, the soundtrack is bugged and plays the same song on all the levels. I still have the original cd, and the game is pretty enjoyable, but they should not sell a game full of flaws such as this. If they ever fix all those issues, yeah, i would recommend it, but until then, no.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →good game, i Love the Tomb Raider engine!! resolution increase: Steam -> library -> (right click) Beathtrap Dungeon -> features -> local Files -> local Files search -> nglide_config -> Screen resolution
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's #RandomGameSaturday, and this week, I reached over to our PS1 shelves and came away with Deathtrap Dungeon! Hack-and-slash action in a loose adaptation of the Fighting Fantasy game book.
positive · AI labelView post →It's like dark souls except instead of fighting enemies, you fight the controls and camera.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →1989 (age 10)… It wasn't just Transformers I drew, by this age I was enjoying Fighting Fantasy books, particularly Deathtrap Dungeon. I swear that Batman drawing is from a video game? Maybe from something on the Amiga or Atari...? 🧵[13/?…]
neutral · AI labelView post →Ian Livingstone's role playing classic is brought to life in 3D. This is a game from thge depths of a retro treasure trove. It's dark and sadistic, with many monsters, traps and obstacles making this game insanely challenging. Sometimes it's seemingly impossible but it has that trademark replay value like modern classic Dark Souls which keeps you playing again and again.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →We didn't often get nice things in game cases when it came to PAL PS1 games, but Deathtrap Dungeon is one of the exceptions. Not only do you get a manual but there is also a wonderfully illustrated bestiary for all the foes and beasties in the game. Might be 'The Knackerer' causing the pain xD
positive · AI labelView post →Deathtrap Dungeon for the PS1 #RandomGameSaturday I got this for a couple of quid at a wonderful retro game shop in Scarborough called "The Game Pad". Was a really fun game until there is a huge difficulty spike and it's expected to die all the time, still worth a look!
neutral · AI labelView post →Tomb what? Back in the late 90s I was a boss among my middle school friends for conquering this title on PSX. Mind you, the PC version has total level redesign, even funkier controls, and seems overall harder, but yeah... I'll be shooting my Infernal Device at the psychotic clowns, Ratmen, and Orcs soon enough. Inb4 "grafx make my eyes bleed" duh it was made before some of you were even born, ♥♥♥♥ ain't for everyone. Quick nostalgia trip? Grab it on sale.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Over looked game from yesteryear, very fun and not so challenging once you get a grip of the games controls which aren't too bad, remember to browse local files once installed and look for nGlide settings in the games directory to bump the resolution to 1080p and download the DDmusicpatch as the game does have issues but one installed the game should run fine.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Why the bloody hell is this a mixed review game? This game is amazing. Slightly clunky control? Sure, but you can put a controller in and map it real quick ingame, it works with my 3rd party 360 pad. The combat is simple but satisfying, you really chop goblins into bits. Platforming is on par with Tomb Raider, and the difficulty is fantastic. I nearly finish the first level, and in my dumb excitement I rush out of the room I just survived and fall directly to my death, the character screaching…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Controls and camera are really really bad
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Red Lotus (Deathtrap Dungeon) No, I don't know why the Imps in the game wear red sneakers.
neutral · AI labelView post →a good old game graphicly not the best indeed it was good for its time maybe not the premium class. The level design is challenging still today, the game itself is scary at some parts even im now grown up i´ve played the game first when i was 14. The enemies are weak but very different to all the games whom came after it. The riddles are great and challenging- the story isn´t that great. This game is pretty hard you need a lot of tries to get through one single mission. It has 9 very well…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A wonderful 90s style challenge with a very steep dificulty curve. Not for the faint of heart. (Or people who prefer to complain about video games instead of getting good.)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A friend has just reminded us that in 1998 Eidos hired Kelly Brook to promote the Playstation adaptation of Deathtrap Dungeon, and you will have to google that for yourself, didn't help the game from not sucking if I remember correctly but still absolutely peak late 90s UK there
negative · AI labelView post →Haters will say that the controls and camera suck. But honestly I think it's a skill issue. This is one of the most polished games I have had the pleasure of playing. 100% Recommended if you enjoy a challenging but ultimately fair experience in a game. This game walked so that Dark Souls could run.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Downvoting the PC version, not the game itself Advantages over the PSX version run on emulation : -nicer graphics even on 800x600 -its cheaper Disadvantages: -Controls are a mess since this was apparently developed to be played on a 3 button controller or something -Music doesnt work right unless patched with an user patch -Cutscenes dont work For comparision i started the original on epsxe and it looked a little worse but was indefinitely more playable right out of the box. The nicer…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good Game Just like Playing on my old Ps1 i call this a Classic.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Works just fine on my 2024 computer (which is more than I can say for a lot of games from this era that are here on Steam) BUT this has absolutely the least player-friendly control scheme that I have ever encountered.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Brought it for nostalga, crashes to Steam desktop every time.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I played this game quite a bit when it was new and anyone with a gaming mag in the 90s no doubt saw multiple full-page ads for this game, but even then it was "OK" at best. While the engine bears many resemblances to the original Tomb Raider engine, it's was developed independently and isn't quite a good. While Tomb Raider was floaty, you could still manipulate it to get those pixel perfect jumps. Here, on the other hand, you have an engine that is simply unresponsive. It has that laggy…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you like C*ck and ball torture, this is the game to go for.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love the game, but not this port. It's like Tomb Raider meets some retro '98 version of Dark Souls set in a trapped magical dungeon. For such an old game, it has surprising depth to its movement and combat system and can be very rewarding once you learn how dominate the levels and gameplay. -Has some minor annoying port faults but is totally playable with widescreen and full controller support. Just map out your controller using third party software or use my own "P!mp3d" steam configuration…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I got this game for next to nothing for a couple of reasons: 1) I loved the series of "Fighting Fantasy" choose-your-own adventure books this game is supposedly based on. 2) I dared myself to try to enjoy a game that is REALLY showing it's age. The verdict? Ain't got enough in common except in name with the former and what the hell was I thinking with the latter? This game came out the same year as Tomb Raider or thereabouts -- and this game is not as good as that game. I *STRONGLY* suggest you…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →While browsing through old 1997 magazines looking for that specific advertisement, I just remembered this also showed up quite (along with the infamous two-page Deathtrap Dungeon ad). Unlike Mace: The Dark Age, I don't recall ever renting this game.
neutral · AI labelView post →This... woah. Just woah. It may be old school as but I call worth on buying this. Seriously. I've barely even gotten passed the first bit of the first level and I'm already hooked. Love how your character gets progressively more undead looking the more health you lose xD 10/10 Would buy again (and did for a friend hehe)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Tried Deathtrap Dungeon briefly. It plays like a clunkier Tomb Raider, or Dragon's Lair if it was an actual video game, but I have a soft-spot for these slow methodical platformers where your character is extremely fragile. Based on a series of books by GW founder Ian Livingstone.
neutral · AI labelView post →We join Red Lotus, a leather leotard-clad warrioress who ventures deep into a brutal dungeon under the city of Fang in search of treasure and liberty. A game that broke me. I’m changed. Fighting With My Fantasy | Deathtrap Dungeon youtu.be/O7GCwi94lkg
neutral · AI labelView post →Deathtrap Dungeon was the first game I wishlisted on Steam over a decade ago, and despite numerous sales, I only recently got my hands on it. The game works well on the Steam Deck, but be sure to configure your controls to play it properly. I believe there are some templates available for download, but I had to reconfigure them a bit for myself. As for the game itself, it's one of those difficult games where any kind of progress you make, even just killing a single enemy or moving to another…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I've now beat this game and now I grow chest hair/
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Holy shit guys! I found Toriyama's dinosaur! Game: Ian Livingstone's Deathtrap Dungeon (1998)
neutral · AI labelView post →WARNING: controls are extremely hard to get used to, even with a controller not all keys can be remapped. despite this, it's a rather fun dungeon crawler that plays alot like the older tomb raider games, however this game is not for everyone.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Dark Souls but actually hard Deathtrap Dungeon follows Nightmare Creatures' footsteps in order to deliver an even more challenging experience. This brutally punishing yet very fun title is a third-person adventure inspired by the gamebook with the same name. The player takes the role of an adventurer (either the Amazon "Red Lotus" or the Barbarian "Chaindog"), who -- at the invitation of a baron named Sukumvit Charavask -- explores a series of perilous rooms based on his infamous creation:…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →swell fawk the h8rs
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →trying out Deathtrap Dungeon 1998 PC computer game today livestreamed on the twitch platform which I've been streaming on for a while now twitch.tv/RetrogradeTom #pcgaming #retrogaming #retro
neutral · AI labelView post →Deathtrap Dungeon plays sort of like a Doom/Tomb Raider knock-off, but with some of the worst controls and movement feel I have ever experienced in a game. Even rebinding all the keys to more sensible ones couldn't save it. The movement is tank controls, you hold attack to stand still and slash in one direction (if something is a little to the side of your swing, you have to stop attacking, turn, and start attacking again), and the camera moves all over with a will of its own. Also, for some…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Windows 10: Compatibility problem! tried all modes & fixes! NOGO !!! I wasted my money! If anybody has a solution, that would be great. :)
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Despite buying it on two different systems and still being unable to finish it, I've always felt like I've got my money's worth with Deathtrap Dungeon. It's so huge and so challenging that nothing in modern games compares. I hope to one day get to the end but considering that 99%+ of gamers who play this game are beaten by it, I'm not optimistic.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Wow, I'm afraid this one may not get much game play from me. I love dungeon crawlers, but this one was fairly clumsy. If you enjoy the old clunky dungeon puzzle games, you'll like this one. Else, it was worth $1.74, but not much more. Camera angles are hard to get use to.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Somehow missed this ad while researching my Deathtrap Dungeon video! That game really wanted to show off anything but it's own gameplay.
negative · AI labelView post →5 years ago today, we were at EGX showing Deathtrap Dungeon starring Eddie Marsan. Here's a picture of Eddie Marsan playing a game starring Eddie Marsan under a massive picture of Eddie Marsan.
neutral · AI labelView post →What a pathetic attempt to port this game. Virtually everything about it is broken in some way. They shouldn't even be allowed to charge money for this it's so broken. The Eidos bundle this came with is one of the poorest values I've ever purchased on Steam even while it was on sale. There's so many things wrong with it I can't even be bothered to list it all. --- Even if you do manage to get the game working (and you can with some tweaking around), it wasn't very good originally to begin…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Classic Dungeon exploration at its finest, had to get it again once i seen it on steam, played this game years ago on PS1 & was hooked, great exploration elements & combat, even if the controls were slightly limited, they took some time to get used too, but that was one of the main charms of this great game, every area you explore, every level you enter, nothing is as it seems, just when you thought you were over the worst, BAM, there would be another ambush of enemies or another insane trap…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Back when Sentient Play were trying to fund their game 'Hero of Deathtrap Dungeon' (based on the Fighting Fantasy book) they put out some great artwork. This illustration of Fang is stupendous, it has this wonderful clash of cultures and it's the kind of fantasy location I'd love to know more about.
neutral · AI labelView post →Unplayable garbage. I will give it a "real review" when Square Enix decides to make it a "real game", and by that I mean fixing the audio glitches, fixing the cinematics, fixing the lag, and adding controller support. Until then, this game can ♥♥♥♥ off.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Ian Livingstone's Deathtrap Dungeon by Asylum Studios (1998 - Windows 98) is a 3D adventure platform game; an adventurer goes to a maze full of traps, magical hazards and beasts after a devilish baron built it to invoke an ancient satanic village from hell! #gaming #retrogaming youtu.be/tuvB_0LWMMk
neutral · AI labelView post →Oh man! So I got this on a whim because I returned a game I bought (Deathtrap Dungeon) because it didn’t work. I played this game to death! I’d never played anything like it before.
positive · AI labelView post →It simply doesn't work. I do wish that, at the very least; they would do a remaster of this game.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Tank controls, terrible resolution and outright insulting ending. Red lotus ' butt is nice to look at tho. 3/10 Seen better games on my calculator. Seriously. This game did not age well. No way of getting through it with the controlls or the guidebook.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Nostalgia is better left in the past
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The controls are a deathtrap. This is Dark Souls where the enemies are the controls.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It is yes if one day you feel like "man, I really like to play deathtrap dungeon" and you see it for $1.74 or less. I bought the orignal game in 98 and at this time the game was not playable on my computer... But with the game background being largely inspired from a gamebook written by Ian Livingstone (one of the first ones I read), this game had a lot of interest to me. So what you get in this version... nothing much new from the old one because it does not seem anyone bother to bring the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great atmosphere, unforgiving and oftern cryptic, its clunky but hey, this was 1998, give it a break. Five Stars (oh yeah, and there is a T-Rex)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game has terrible controls for a 3D platformer, and has bad camera angles.It just seems like you could play it around friends and joke about it if money's no object to you.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →i can't imagine anyone finding this game enjoyable and not just quitting after entering the second room of the first level, but i guess some people can find this clunky dungeon crawler mess enjoyable for the 'so-bad-it's-good' factor, but for me, it doesn't come close to that. ALSO: dem controls man OH man
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Does anyone remember Deathtrap Dungeon. The game was so bad and confusing but i loved it.
neutral · AI labelView post →decided to do a late night stream. we be playing some Deathtrap Dungeon. the FMV game. Adventure awaits! HUZZAH www.twitch.tv/retailescapeartist
neutral · AI labelView post →Deathtrap Dungeon is a harsh, atmospheric third-person action adventure that embodies the unforgiving design philosophy of late-1990s dungeon crawlers. Originally developed by Asylum Studios and released on PC under the Square Enix catalogue on Steam, the game is a digital adaptation of Ian Livingstone’s classic Fighting Fantasy gamebook of the same name. Rather than modernizing its ideas, Deathtrap Dungeon embraces brutality, limited forgiveness, and constant danger, offering an experience…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Can't start the campaign without it crashing every time... Love this game on ps1, sad i cant play it on steam, everything about the pc version is garbage and all the reviews are true and right its sad.. Went on sale for 1$ so i thought okay whatever happens ill deal with the bs.. like the music loop, & super bad key binding controls. The worst controls i ever seen lol dont waste your money.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
Posts are quoted from public profiles with links to the original. Want yours removed? Contact us.