Heroes of Hammerwatch
Heroes of Hammerwatch
Game
Game2013
Hammerwatch
Developer Crackshell
Hammerwatch is a 2013 hack and slash and action-adventure game by Swedish studio Crackshell. It was released for Linux, Microsoft Windows and OS X in August 2013, followed by released for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in December 2017. It was followed by Heroes of Hammerwatch and Hammerwatch 2. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
284 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Lemmy, Mastodon) · newest Oct 28, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
68
Fresh
111 positive · 53 negative
95% range 60–74%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 111 | 53 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 28 | 1 | 61 |
| Lemmy * | 5 | 1 | 19 |
| Mastodon * | 2 | 0 | 3 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
3,934 of 4,444 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
68% recommend · 113 yes, 53 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 166 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (5,815 of 6,516 positive).
Players praise Hammerwatch as a fun, old-school dungeon crawler reminiscent of Gauntlet. [1][2][3] Some reviewers enjoy the co-op and pixel art, but note the game can be repetitive. [4][5][6] A few players criticize broken multiplayer, lack of save features, and unbalanced classes. [7][8][9]
Liked
Representative posts
- [7]
Devs killed the multiplayer AGAIN because they want to push copies of their remake. im not gonna pay $20 for the remake of a game i already own because the devs keep breaking the online while staying radio silent. scum devs, i wish i could refund all the games i bought from them. i bought all hammerwatch games as well as some DLC only for them to ♥♥♥♥ me over. ♥♥♥♥ you. i will never pay for another of their games, i …
- [9]
The classes are noticeably unbalanced. Some feel fluid and forgiving; others fight the game's own mechanics just to stay relevant. The game never acknowledges this, nor does it teach you anything about how it works — no tutorial, no feedback, no explanation for why you died. You're expected to learn entirely through repeated failure. The difficulty curve isn't a curve at all — it's random spikes followed by long …
- [10]
In Hammerwatch, you and your buddies (assuming you have friends crazy enough to join you) are tossed into a dungeon that’s about as forgiving as a tax audit. You start by smashing bugs, snakes, and other critters that could double as rejected Pokémon designs, and it seems manageable at first. Then suddenly, BAM, you’re surrounded by 40 bats, 20 skeletons. Hope you weren’t attached to that health bar. The game’s …
- [2]
fun top down action rpg dungeon crawler kind of like the old Gauntlet games from the 80s. Beautiful Pixel graphics and fair challenge. Levels are fairly long but there are lots of checkpoints. The wooden plank thing is a little unforgiving but still a great simple game. Worth the price.
- [1]
Basically Gauntlet. The default controls are retarded, but with a bit of fannying about you can set up a good twinstick controller config, & there are lots of handy controller options allowing you to set up buttons for strafing, autofire, press to prevent movement etc. Gives you a reason not to hold down the fire button by having attacks slow movement speed. Pixel art is nice enough, music is mid. Steam workshop …
Summarised from 34 of the 273 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 11, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
68% of the 166 Steam reviewers we collected recommend Hammerwatch. The complaint that keeps coming up: multiplayer is broken or unsupported. Deal-breaker or nitpick?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Hammerwatch received a score of 75/100 on GameFront and a score of 7/10 on Destructoid. Hammerwatch has an average rating of 72 out of 100 at Metacritic, based on 5 critic reviews. It had 2,500 pre-orders and sold 12,000 units on the first 24 hours on Steam. The game was in the top 30 of the most anticipated indie games of 2013 on Destructoid.
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 284 · most liked firstNew game recommendation: Heroes of Hammerwatch II ARPG roguelike with meta progression in the form of town building. This game currently has it's hooks in me DEEP
neutral · AI labelView post →Devs killed the multiplayer AGAIN because they want to push copies of their remake. im not gonna pay $20 for the remake of a game i already own because the devs keep breaking the online while staying radio silent. scum devs, i wish i could refund all the games i bought from them. i bought all hammerwatch games as well as some DLC only for them to ♥♥♥♥ me over. ♥♥♥♥ you. i will never pay for another of their games, i will pirate them and i will go out of my way to seed torrents for all their…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A decent game, but with some pretty frustrating flaws. Permadeath is super annoying in a co-op. Losing all your progress and then playing through the exact same dungeon again is super demotivating. We tried playing with infinite lives, but then it trivialized the game -- there was no penalty at all for death. Also, the fact that every player controls every menu simultaneously led to a let of misclicks. My partner opened a vendor while I was attacking things, and my button press bought…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hammerwatch 2 is just the right micro-RPG for the moment. There are some great 30 minute dungeon runs in your future if you've got tolerance for—or enjoy—old school tropes. ... The ambitious sequel to 2013's Hammerwatch hits at a perfect time for me: this mini hack and slash takes Hammerwatch's action RPG combat and goofy fantasy setting and pushes it into a wider open world with a day-night cycle. It's a bit odd, like an early open world games fused with twin-stick combat out of classic…
positive · AI labelView post →Make sure to grab Hammerwatch Anniversary Edition which is an improvement.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →[Broforce](https://store.steampowered.com/app/274190/Broforce/) is too much fun with friends. [Hammerwatch](https://store.steampowered.com/app/239070/Hammerwatch/) is a pretty fun top-down pixel dungeon crawler. There are other Hammerwatch games and it's also on consoles. The "Lara Croft and the ________" games are a bit older but are fun puzzler dungeon co-op's. I really liked [Temple of Osiris](https://store.steampowered.com/app/289690/LARA_CROFT_AND_THE_TEMPLE_OF_OSIRIS/). I think these…
neutral · AI labelView post →I can't agree with this article because Itch.io exists and is thriving. The indie scene in the last decade has exploded with titles that easily rival the fun of a triple A game. People do tend to centralize, but why would that stop all the indie devs who make these great games with a passion? Like Rain World, Heroes of Hammerwatch, Crab Champions, Caves of Qud, Castle Crashers, and many other unmentioned titles would actually stop because a Triple A studio made a game. Turn-based RPGs have been…
neutral · AI labelView post →The classes are noticeably unbalanced. Some feel fluid and forgiving; others fight the game's own mechanics just to stay relevant. The game never acknowledges this, nor does it teach you anything about how it works — no tutorial, no feedback, no explanation for why you died. You're expected to learn entirely through repeated failure. The difficulty curve isn't a curve at all — it's random spikes followed by long stretches of tedium. And after grinding through all of it, the ending is…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →So I might have guessed wrong about Plato, but it's ok as we managed to finish up the game with a good chat to Zipp the raccoon in his café! Big love to @inkvoice.bsky.social for the raid! We raided out to @writesout.bsky.social playing Heroes of Hammerwatch II with friends! CAW!
neutral · AI labelView post →Day 10: Underrated game A fun little rogue-lite called Heroes of Hammerwatch. I played it back in like 2018 but I put 100+ hours in it. Very nice pixel art, procedurally generated dungeons, upgrade the town, rinse and repeat. The original Hammerwatch is really good too.
positive · AI labelView post →Hammerwatch 2 released a demo that ends on Sunday. cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/511090 > If you liked Hammerwatch 1 or Heroes of Hammerwatch, it's more of the same, but better!
neutral · AI labelView post →A rudimentary yet competent dungeon crawl that has been twice surpassed by its own sequels... In Hammerwatch you, and possibly your cohort of fellow heroes brave the dark hallways of castle Hammerwatch, crawling through the floors and gathering loot while fighting the hordes of horrors lurking in its darkness. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3475676273 At its core this is a top down isometric dungeoncrawler where you pick a class and hack and slash through a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hotfix 2 for Heroes of Hammerwatch II is now live! 🛠️ Further improvements to pets, summons, survival mission enemies, and more. Thanks to our players for your feedback, suggestions, and reports 🫂 Read the full hotfix notes 👉 bit.ly/HoH2CRHotfix2 #IndieDev #IndieGame #ARPG #Roguelike #PixelArt
neutral · AI labelView post →Looks cool but gameplay is boring and unrewarding, skip this
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Back from the Dermatology appointment, finally got some answers! Now it's time to game, Keystones, Plunderstorm and some Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 later! Let's have fun!
neutral · AI labelView post →In Hammerwatch, you and your buddies (assuming you have friends crazy enough to join you) are tossed into a dungeon that’s about as forgiving as a tax audit. You start by smashing bugs, snakes, and other critters that could double as rejected Pokémon designs, and it seems manageable at first. Then suddenly, BAM, you’re surrounded by 40 bats, 20 skeletons. Hope you weren’t attached to that health bar. The game’s dungeon layout is the perfect recipe for the "just one more room" syndrome. You’ll…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hammerwatch II - Gameplay Trailer. Launching on PC August 15, coming to consoles later. For more details, check the [Gematsu Story](https://www.gematsu.com/2023/06/hammerwatch-ii-launches-august-15-for-pc-later-in-2023-for-ps5-xbox-series-ps4-xbox-one-and-switch)
neutral · AI labelView post →We're ahead of the game today! New games to play, and a few more collabs! January sure has been FULL of them! One day I'll play a game solo again, I swear. #Palworld, #ItTakes2, #EscapeAcademy, #Hammerwatch & #Buckshot! In addition to all this - Tuesday is our FIRST Community night!
neutral · AI labelView post →Hammerwatch 2 released a demo that ends on Sunday. If you liked Hammerwatch 1 or Heroes of Hammerwatch, it's more of the same, but better!
neutral · AI labelView post →Can no longer play multiplayer with friends.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Not super sure if I'll continue playing/streaming Heroes of Hammerwatch 2. Really like the game but feel like it is missing just a bit of something to keep me motivated to push. Might start Minish Cap in the near future, might do Other Co-op Zelda, might do Phalanx or other stuff. Who knows!
neutral · AI labelView post →Multiplayer is dead again. Fun game but daaaaaamn... FIX PERMANENTLY ALREADY.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Wow I really liked this game. I had been sitting on playing it for a long time until I got a few friends together to play it finally. The curved monitor effect especially was so enchanting. Crushed to find out that controller support for the game was broken some time around 2018 and was never fixed.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Mixed. The puzzles I came across were competent, and the concept is interesting. I just could not get past the tedious and stringent controls and find a point where I could enjoy the experience. Maybe I did not play enough of this kind of game when I was younger to be able to enjoy the nostalgia now. Additional Details Operating System Ubuntu Linux 22.04 x64 CPU Ryzen 7 5800h GPU RX 6700m Game Saves…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I think this is one of the only negative reviews I have ever written for a game. There is nothing wrong with enjoying the game if it is to your taste, but there are a lot design decisions that were made about this game that seem objectively bad if not slightly trolling of the player: So far as I can tell, there is no way to save/load. If you want to beat the game, you had best be ready to binge it for 6-7 hours straight. There is literally no lore and the only hint of a plot you get…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Steam Cloud save sync issues on some games. I just built a dedicated Linux gaming machine. Brand new parts and I installed Pop!_OS last night. At first Steam wouldn't load from the Pop Store install. It would quickly flash the app then disapear. Repeatedly until I exited it. So I removed it then installed it via `sudo apt install steam` and then it worked. I was able to sign in and download Outer Worlds: Spacer's Choice edition. After it finished installing I got a notification that there…
neutral · AI labelView post →I started Cyberpunk 2077 but I'm not quite ready for another big RPG yet. Got Deep Rock Galactic and played a few hours. I also played some Heroes of Hammerwatch 2. Mostly though I've been playing Wayfinder which has been a pleasant surprise. The art has some real WoW BfA vibes (first area reminds me of Boralus).
neutral · AI labelView post →Most impressive: Assetto Corsa Custom Shaders Patch / Content Manager Tiniest mod which solves biggest frustration: Heroes of Hammerwatch rejoin mod
neutral · AI labelView post →I played the demo and I would recommend! I have about 100 hours in Hammerwatch, 200 hours in Heroes of Hammerwatch (mostly coop), but only 20 hours in Hammerwatch 2 (big miss for me). So for Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 I played the demo and was sold right away, played the demo again in coop and it was awesome as well. Looking forward to putting the hours in this one.
positive · AI labelView post →Might be worth having a look at Heroes of Hammerwatch. I had a lot of fun with the first one and it's usually pretty cheap on sale. Haven't played the 2nd much and it has some mixed review so start with 1 first I'd say.
positive · AI labelView post →Basically Gauntlet. The default controls are retarded, but with a bit of fannying about you can set up a good twinstick controller config, & there are lots of handy controller options allowing you to set up buttons for strafing, autofire, press to prevent movement etc. Gives you a reason not to hold down the fire button by having attacks slow movement speed. Pixel art is nice enough, music is mid. Steam workshop support is very basic, just custom campaigns to play through, but it's still nice…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →putting deli meat in my panties
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →GeForce NOW Thursday August 3rd. Members can look forward to the 10 new games joining this week: - F1 Manager 2023 (New release on Steam, July 31) - Bloons TD 6 (Free on Epic Games Store, Aug. 3) - Bloons TD Battles 2 (Steam) - Brick Rigs (Steam) - Demonologist (Steam) - Empires of the Undergrowth (Steam) - Stardeus (Steam) - The Talos Principle (Steam) - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (Steam) - Yet Another Zombie Survivors (Steam) And here’s what the rest of August looks…
neutral · AI labelView post →February Schedule Time 🫶🏻 Live updates to the schedule can always be found at this link: www.canva.com/design/DAG-6... We have two collabs this month with some cuties and two community game nights (Heroes of Hammerwatch is making a comeback). Getting ready for Pokopia with some Let's Go Eevee 🥰
neutral · AI labelView post →Ahhh my favourite FNAF game “Hammerwatch II” 😂😂😂😂 Not sure why Overwolf calls Help Wanted 2 that, but ok 😅 #fnaf #helpwanted2
neutral · AI labelView post →I don't have a low spec rig myself but here are some games i've gotten a lot out of that'll run on most anything... Terraria, Grim Dawn, Chronicon, Heroes of Hammerwatch, Vampire Survivors and Into the Breach.
neutral · AI labelView post →You fight hordes of the same bug enemies with a very basic combat system while listening to bland fantasy music.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →You can play solo but it's definitely not meant to be. Incredibly repetitive having to fight through the same level and groups of enemies every time a new run starts.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Today's indie game is Heroes of Hammerwatch 2! This is a roguelite ARPG! Battle through the Dark Citadel dungeon as one of 7 classes, gaining roguelike skill upgrades per run & permanent items to upgrade your town & characters! Solo or 4-player! Dev: Crackshell Link below!
neutral · AI labelView post →The coop is not working, We tried all the fixes from steam even hamachi. From what I've heard the dev is a scumbag that abandons games.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A nice little throw-back to the old dos games this is clearly inspired from however, the local-coop shared camera is very poorly done, actual split-screen would have been awesome and I stopped playing it for that reason and that's why I can't recommend it.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Didn't spend ~5 hours scouring the multi-level maps for secret planks of wood? THEN YOU LOSE! GOOD DAY SIR! Fun gameplay but terrible ending. Pretty much have to play in a group of 4 to get far enough. Bring a healer, a paladin, a ranger, and whatever magic user floats your boat. Never. Pick. Thief.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →📣 STREAM tonight @ 1030 EDT!! Tonight we've got one more round of MecchaChameleon community chaos with friends before we switch up next week and dive back into Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 for the big new update! 👀 Come hang for a chill lil weeknight stream! 🥰 ⏯️ twitch.tv/gardenofindie
neutral · AI labelView post →📣 STREAM tonight @ 1030pm EDT!! Thursday means another #indiegame community night! 🥰 We skipped stream last week, so we'll be doing another round of Meccha Chameleon tonight before we switch back over to Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 next week ahead of the upcoming update! 🎨🖌 ⏯️ twitch.tv/gardenofindie
neutral · AI labelView post →Old school dungeon crawler with DnD based classes, some progression in form of vendor upgrades, lots of enemies to kill with plenty of secrets and easter eggs to find along the way. Main campaign takes you through the floors of a castle Hammerwatch where you must climb to the top to claim treasure. Gets a bit repetitive as there`s not much to do besides kill, find color coded single use keys and progress to next floor until you beat it. Expansion does add some much needed mechanic addition in…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →(Pretty much any game I have is fair game) yesterday I ended up playing Monster Train 2, Risk of Rain 2, HoMM: Olden Era, Dragon Quest Builders 2, & Balatro but I also had Heroes of Hammerwatch 2, Hades, Peak, Tiny Rogues, Boyfriend Dungeon, Ravenswatch, Tales of Arise, Mario Maker 2 ready to go 💜
neutral · AI labelView post →www.twitch.tv/vinesauce/cl... Title: ster shoutout + jerma callout Game: Heroes of Hammerwatch II Clipped by: glumpyglooble Clipped on: April 17, 2025
neutral · AI labelView post →I played this game for 4 hours thinking it was Hero Siege and wondering why it was so bad compared to what I remembered and then someone on my friends list bought Hero Siege and I was like oh right it's called Hero Siege not Hammerwatch so don't make the same mistake I did.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I have gotten another friend to purchase the full game! Come join me and @lilialurksvt.bsky.social for more Heroes of Hammerwatch 2! Plenty of laughter, plenty of panicking 😂 > www.twitch.tv/writesout < #Vtuber #PNGtuber #Roguelite
neutral · AI labelView post →Poly-husband and I found Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 last night while searching for a new co-op game to play together. It's a little rogue-lite, action rpg, and we both are having a great time with it already.
positive · AI labelView post →Catgirl Gets Trapped in the Pixel Game Timewarp! Heros of Hammerwatch II Twitch twitch.tv/sorceressena Youtube youtube.com/live/QC5ttRb... #vtuber #catgirl #streamer #livegaming
neutral · AI labelView post →If Monster Hunter Wilds plays nice on Steam Deck, I doubt I'll be able to resist. Otherwise, it's a small game, but Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 releases next week, and I am *hyped.* The first HoH is the GOAT roguelite, IMO, and the demo for HoH 2 was very promising.
positive · AI labelView post →Schedule up! Starting a new game on Mondays, Heroes of Hammerwatch with @jitio.bsky.social and @scarypastry.com on Pastry's channel today! And then continuing the games from last week~!
neutral · AI labelView post →Steam Next Fest has been really fun, here are the games I wishlisted today - Brave Escape (2 player game) - Luma Island (up to 4 players) - Heroes of Hammerwatch 2 (up to 4 players) - Plug it in (single player puzzle game)
neutral · AI labelView post →I am gonna give you some lesser known suggestions. Chronicon - 2d Diablo like Heroes Of Hammerwatch - same but procedurally generated levels Grim Dawn - 3D Diablo like Also I would check out Monster Hunter World or Rise, they aren’t exactly what you are looking for but the looting and upgrading loop might really be up your alley. Oh yeah, what about Mount And Blade?
neutral · AI labelView post →At most this game is meh. It feels really tedious and grindy. Don't bother, get another game. Also there is a High DPI Bug in Fullscreen, which can be mitigated by applying the overwriting option in the High DPI column under the compatibility options for the Hammerwatch.exe. My rating 3/10, not recommended.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →GFN Thursday - 8/17/23. - Desynced (New release on Steam, Aug. 15) - Hammerwatch II (New release on Steam, Aug. 15) - Moving Out 2 (New release on Steam, Aug. 15) - The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood (New release on Steam, Aug. 16) - Book of Hours (New release on Steam, Aug. 17) - Gord (New release on Steam, Aug. 17) - Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew (New release on Steam, Aug. 17) - Wayfinder (New release on Steam, Aug. 17) - Bomb Rush Cyberfunk (New release on Steam, Aug. 18) - The Texas Chain Saw…
neutral · AI labelView post →Summary for the lazy: Members can look forward to the 10 new games joining this week: - F1 Manager 2023 (New release on Steam, July 31) - Bloons TD 6 (Free on Epic Games Store, Aug. 3) - Bloons TD Battles 2 (Steam) - Brick Rigs (Steam) - Demonologist (Steam) - Empires of the Undergrowth (Steam) - Stardeus (Steam) - The Talos Principle (Steam) - Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge (Steam) - Yet Another Zombie Survivors (Steam) And here’s what the rest of August looks like: -…
neutral · AI labelView post →If you still have it, my wife would be delighted to see Heroes of Hammerwatch II. We played the poop out of the first one but forget the 2nd existed. If not no worries, thanks for doing this regardless! <3
neutral · AI labelView post →Hammerwatch, developed by Crackshell and published by Team17, is a modern tribute to the classic top-down hack-and-slash dungeon crawlers that defined the genre decades ago. It combines the spirit of old arcade action with modern accessibility, creating a game that feels familiar yet fresh. Set within the sprawling halls of Castle Hammerwatch, players embark on a perilous journey through labyrinthine corridors filled with monsters, traps, and treasures. The game can be played solo or…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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