WARDOGS
WARDOGS
Game
Game2020
Iratus: Lord of the Dead
Developer Unfrozen
Iratus: Lord of the Dead is a tactical role-playing game developed by Unfrozen and published in 2020 by Daedalic Entertainment for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux. From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
201 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Lemmy, Mastodon) · newest Oct 29, 2026 · last updated Nov 4, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
82
LovedLoved
148 positive · 33 negative
95% range 76–87%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 148 | 33 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 4 | 0 | 9 |
| Lemmy * | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 1 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
2,883 of 3,378 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
81% recommend · 144 yes, 34 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 178 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (7,077 of 8,276 positive).
Many players compare Iratus to Darkest Dungeon, calling it a fun twist or alternative. [1][2][3] Some reviewers praise its tactical depth and variety in builds and minions. [4][5][6] Several players find the game repetitive and lacking depth over time. [7][8][9]
Liked
Representative posts
- [14]
It certainly isn't a bad game, but since I can only give thumbs up or down - down it is. This game has to endure direct comparisons to Darkest Dungeon, and I can see the appeal many others see in how it provides a different approach. But for me, personally, it feels uninspired. In DD I was drawn in from the very beginning, the mystery of the house, the characters, the fighting mechanics. Here, in Iratus, there is no …
- [4]
This is my favorite turn-based combat game. Before playing this, I wasn't really into turn-based games at all, but this completely changed my perspective. One of the coolest things about the game is the concept , you defeat enemies and then use their parts (hearts, bones, skulls, brains, armor, etc) to create your own minions (and your playing as Iratus who is called Lord of the Dead) The difficulty also scales …
- [5]
Review after completing the campaign on the 2nd difficulty level. I may update it later. I would give this game a 7/10. First things first: this isn't Darkest Dungeon. This is 100% subjective obviously, but DD is one of my all-time favorites. Iratus is a very good game, but it isn't anything close to Darkest Dungeon. With this out of the way, Iratus does a lot of things right. - It rewards proper planning and good …
- [7]
The game is too long (and not in a good way), and lacks depth. Each map is overly lengthy compared to others in the genre, but doesn’t offer much variety. You’ll either enter a bonus room (which just gives you items), a situational room (where you make a simple decision, basically fight or flee), or a fighting room (as the name implies). The problem is, combat rooms feel repetitive, every enemy is basically the …
- [11]
By far, the BEST turn -based, rogue-like game I have played. As much as I like Darkest Dungeon, this is by far the more superior game. Much more fun and engaging. Still hard, but not as frustrating as DD. Super fun gameplay. Superb enemies, weapons , and abilities . 9.5/10
Summarised from 34 of the 197 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 10, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Players who liked Iratus: Lord of the Dead talk about fun tactical gameplay with many build options; those who didn't talk about gameplay becomes repetitive after a few hours. Which matters more to you?
Critics, per Wikipedia
On Metacritic, a review aggregator, Iratus: Lord of the Dead received positive reviews. During the game's early access phase, several online magazines posted their impressions. Andy Kelly of PC Gamer wrote the game seems like a simple turn-based tactics game at first, but the monsters' number of special abilities gives it depth. Kelly cited these combat mechanics, and the "lavish artwork", as making it fun enough to overcome the game's derivative nature. Writing for Rock Paper Shotgun, Sin Vega said that she enjoyed the combat, but the game's stand-out feature is crafting new monsters. Commenting on the game's difficulty, RPGamer's reviewer, Pascal Tekaia, called it "a polished, meaty…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 201 · most liked firstSo how do you feel about Halo Infinite right now?. I dropped Halo Infinite a while ago because I didn't feel like there was enough to keep myself engaded, and the monetization just bothers me whenever I see it, but I tired it out again for Infection and ended up sticking around this time. I still don't like certain aspects of the game, like the moniatiation or the fact that there are just alot of precision weapons that all do the BR's job but worse in most situations, but overall I feel like…
neutral · AI labelView post →This is my favorite turn-based combat game. Before playing this, I wasn't really into turn-based games at all, but this completely changed my perspective. One of the coolest things about the game is the concept , you defeat enemies and then use their parts (hearts, bones, skulls, brains, armor, etc) to create your own minions (and your playing as Iratus who is called Lord of the Dead) The difficulty also scales well. Each level gets noticeably harder, which keeps things interesting and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I think the game is too long for what it is. While it provides new enemies each level, in reality you learn everything there is about the combat system in the first couple of hours. On each level you'll need mostly go through the same encounters again and again with little variation.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Lol, yeah, I think I get it. I really do. The devs clearly played Darkest Dungeon (a good game, btw) and suffered through the same pain as I did. You know, where your “heroes” are basically a rotating cast of expendable idiots, capped at level 6, and emotionally easier to replace than an empty pen. Very little freedom when combining a party for a specific dungeon. Still, the game was great overall - amazing atmosphere, fun, and just the right amount of misery to keep you coming back. So with…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's fun enough, I guess. Combat is interesting for a while, then it's just the same thing over and over again. It's not really compelling enough to make me want to replay it. For that reason, I'd say wait until it's 50% off or more. Cannot recommend at full price
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game's premise and intro are pretty good, you make undead with parts you harvest from enemies, good parts = more stats for the undead, you level them up or implant them with brains to get level ups, etc etc etc Honestly the gameplay loop at the start seems pretty solid, however it quickly devolves into tedium around the end of the second floor. First of all, a LOT of minions are locked and the majority of the locked minions are frankly kind of niche, stuff like the Lich or the Shade are…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →a great take on Darkest Dungeon formula, which I personally liked much more than DD1 or DD2. it's much shorter, but much more mechanically rich while not having the boring stuff like "kill literally same bosses and enemies again, but they have more numbers" you also have ~twice as many classes and can swap them freely without the need to spend ages leveling your characters up (althogh some leveling is required and you have limited character slots so you aren't absolutely limitless) the game…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a small indie project from developers working on a new part of the HOMM-saga right now. The game proposes a turn-based RPG with tactical-mode battles 4x4. In the game, you are a resurrected necromancer whose path goes through a 6-level dungeon. Every floor involves fighting battles and visiting any interesting points (like tomb-chambers, sources of revival, etc.). Of course, the main brilliance of this game is its over-attractive antagonist, whom you will play. And if you start, be him!…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hello Bluesky! Unfrozen is a game development studio — that created 💀Iratus: Lord of the Dead, 🪄Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era (coming 🔜) All the fans of #tactical #turn-based #strategy let’s connect! More about our upcoming game: store.steampowered.com/app/3105440/...
neutral · AI labelView post →BSKY Introduction thread: FFXIV edition Character name: Sirona Iratus Server: Primal/Hyperion Main: BRD/DNC/WHM/PLD When did you start playing: At the end of 2020 Favorite thing to do in game: Gposing, Glams, Raids, Leveling/roulettes, Crafting/Gathering and Roleplay(trying to get into)
neutral · AI labelView post →Coming from Darkest Dungeon, this scratches the itch that Darkest Dungeon 2 doesn't. Good game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Review after completing the campaign on the 2nd difficulty level. I may update it later. I would give this game a 7/10. First things first: this isn't Darkest Dungeon. This is 100% subjective obviously, but DD is one of my all-time favorites. Iratus is a very good game, but it isn't anything close to Darkest Dungeon. With this out of the way, Iratus does a lot of things right. - It rewards proper planning and good team compositions. - There's a lot of replayability with different team…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Its crazy that this game has 96% upvotes. I bought it years ago when it came out and played through everything on another account and now got it again on this one when it was on 90% sale. Pretty good deal for a solid game... BUT Aside from being solid and creative, its not actually that good. The core gameplay loop is extremely repetitive and out of my one playthrough i did on this account, i literally spent 90% of the time just clicking buttons. Not because its super easy but because the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It certainly isn't a bad game, but since I can only give thumbs up or down - down it is. This game has to endure direct comparisons to Darkest Dungeon, and I can see the appeal many others see in how it provides a different approach. But for me, personally, it feels uninspired. In DD I was drawn in from the very beginning, the mystery of the house, the characters, the fighting mechanics. Here, in Iratus, there is no mystery, the characters are just substitutible, overall it feels like a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This definitely has some things going for it, but it didn't click for me. There's a clear influence from Darkest Dungeon here, a game I love, but the structural changes here (like a Slay the Spire-style map) just really didn't grab me, and I think the unit design is less inspired as well. I feel like the game is in an awkward midpoint of design where I wish it either embraced the roguelike structure more (making your units much more disposable, having each run very different, etc), or gave it…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After this developer reeleased new HOMM, I remembered that they have another game that they released, this one, years ago, I played it for a bit, but never finished it, got distracted by something else at the time. I came back to this game and finished it in one sitting. Here is what I can say about it: - Fun tactical game with a lot of variety in builds, tactics and synergies - Passive skills, active spells, equipment, minion parts, skill tree for every minion, crafting, base upgrades -…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The game is too long (and not in a good way), and lacks depth. Each map is overly lengthy compared to others in the genre, but doesn’t offer much variety. You’ll either enter a bonus room (which just gives you items), a situational room (where you make a simple decision, basically fight or flee), or a fighting room (as the name implies). The problem is, combat rooms feel repetitive, every enemy is basically the same, which makes the long maps boring and tedious. Also, positioning in this game…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →December Mid-Season Update Patch Notes. Summary: (Copied from https://x.com/halosupport/status/1732106740878147707?s=46&t=VGqOdxWDtLsShLYLikeioQ) 👑 New Mode: Firefight King of the Hill – A team of players battles against Banished forces to capture and maintain control of a zone. Skulls, which act as gameplay modifiers, can be earned or lost when capturing the hill. Matchmaking playlists for this map contain an all-new map based on the House of Reckoning and a new networking model. ⚕ New…
neutral · AI labelView post →I got it because I got the free avatar and I wanted to know what the game was about. Frankly, the game itself isn't worth reviewing. It's shallow and lifeless in a petulant sort of way. You're playing some god-like entity that has almost no influence in the game whatsoever, it's actually incredibly easy to miss that the map you are playing on is the table he's so impotently staring down at. The little influence you do have comes in the form of spells which are way too weak, sporting a…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you care about this - the developer Unfrozen is russian in origin (although they are trying to make everyone forget about it), one of the investors that funded their previous game (Iratus), GEM Capital, has ties with the russian gas and oil business.
neutral · AI labelView post →This is like the 'evil' version of Darkest Dungeon. It's a nice switch of perspective and makes for some fun sessions playing 'the bad guy'. Other than that, Iratus follows the basic formula of Darkest Dungeon very closely. Which is not a bad thing. The graphics are decent, it runs well on my Asus ROG Ally (even in native 4K) and the voice acting is fun and inspired. Yes, the voice lines do become a bit repetitive but it's still good fun. My advice: do your first playthough on the easy mode…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →all the enemies have 1.5 times the health and damage output as you do
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I tend to get back to this game annually on short bursts for 2 years now, yep I enjoy it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Pretty good game, definitely inspired by Darkest Dungeon. It’s easier overall, but also less immersive - I felt like losing minions didn’t sting nearly as much as losing heroes in Darkest Dungeon. Because of that, the stakes just didn’t hit the same, and after a while it got a bit repetitive for me. Still, I got it for only 3 euros and played 38 hours, so I’d say it was worth it. If you liked Darkest Dungeon, this is a solid alternative, but I personally won’t replay it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It feels less like darkest dungeon and more like a facebook game. I got it for 3€ on discount so its price apropriate, but it still feels like it lacks depth. It functions alright, just not what I was looking for.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Really fun twist on Darkest Dungeon. Instead of playing as heroes trying to venture deep into dungeons, you play as Necromancer trying to break free from one. You have access to many different monsters that you use to defeat adventurers and guards trying to stop you. Combat is classic fight of team 4vs4. What I like the most about this game, is that it's focused on combat. This makes it fresh and good alternative to Darkest Dungeon, since you get straight into the action. At the same time,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Tutorial doesn't explain anything already apparent. Many issues with artifacts and gear not explaining in description if they are Iratus only or Minion only. Why can potions only be used during combat? doesnt make sense at all either ecept to adda needless extra level of false difficulty to the game itself. Never mentions how you canot remove items given to minions, and honestly why shouldnt you be able to? Fun game for the most part, just missed the plot in a lot of ways.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Use the Werewolf without teammates and the right 2 equipments attached to it and solo the entire game on multiple difficulties! Super fun game! Supports easy break the game builds! No games are better that don't allow game breaking builds. 5 Stars!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A cocktail of mostly Darkest Dungeon with some elements of Slay the Spire (map design). I'd rate it as good. Somehow it lacks the "special something" of its inspirations.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →looks cooler than it is. The UI sucks so bad, which just breaks a game like this, you need to be able to hover over something & actually see what it does or what stats it affects. love the concept though
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Looks like a casino game that an old woman with an oxygen tank would be chained to but it's fun.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →An good little turn-based dark fantasy dungeon crawler that shares quite a few similarities with darkest dungeon. Its mechanics are interesting and it offers a faster and more accessible experience, making it easier to get into than its main inspiration. Horewer, it is also considerably less deep and complex. 100% steam achievements Time : 77.4H Completion Difficulty : 5/10 Playthroughs : 2 + replay locations Missables : None Notable requirements : Complete the game on two required…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →At $3 dollars I still feel this game is overpriced. Boring is the only word I can use to describe the 52 minutes of game play I put into it. Legitimately mediocre at best.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a really tricky one, because there's a ton I like about the game, but I feel like it doesn't quite manage to stick the landing enough that I could recommend it. For the positives: - Well constructed 4 vs 4 turn based combat where each action feels impactful - Great variety of units, with some really breaking the mould (there's a ghost that actually buffs your foes, but then converts said buffs into a massive damage increase for your units) - Really cool art style and theming that's…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game scratches that Darkest Dungeon itch without burdening the player with the ridiculous amount of micro management needed in DD. Just make sure you turn off "character battle speech" in options. The devs for some reason thought it was a good idea to force you to read a couple of seconds of flavour text multiple times through each combat. There you are in a flow state hitting attack sequences and then you trip over one of your minions giving a bloody monologue in the middle of battle.…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Game is trash. Extreme loading times for a simple game with my computer optimized for FPS sweats. The dealbreaker was when I fought my 3rd battle & it asked me which team I wanted to use. Obviously, I want to use my main team of FOUR & NOT my trash team of x2. Guess what happened next? Bad review, easy uninstall, & REFUND! Yeah, I tried playing again, but I'm too impatient to wait through a loading screen every 30 seconds. Also, battle was made to be needlessly slow. So slow, that I can't…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →By far, the BEST turn -based, rogue-like game I have played. As much as I like Darkest Dungeon, this is by far the more superior game. Much more fun and engaging. Still hard, but not as frustrating as DD. Super fun gameplay. Superb enemies, weapons , and abilities . 9.5/10
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Its alright the monsters get two options per skill for upgrades and four bodyparts. Then basic stat increase points with two items but tbh very bland with it. 5/10 if I could leave a mixed review
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →An excellent entry into whatever genre you'd call Darkest Dungeon like games. More or less being DD in reverse it is oddly satisfying to be the one to break people mentally or come back later when you lose cause your opponents didn't get a chance to heal and just overwhelm them. Lots of good flavor and execution. Sadly Iratus suffers from some slight balancing issues, especially later on to the point where it seems like enemies were built with the notion of specifically shutting down popular…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Small casualties are not a problem for victory.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A good game that would be great had the devs had a clue on what they were doing... example, you have an ability "Cold Grasp - Unable to move on your next turn" that you cast on an enemy when they are set to escape, yet even though they "can't move" they run off. Just one of the many examples of where they $%^@ the bed where skills are concerned. Typical of many games they days, their idea of being "hard" is making the enemies either become too difficult/OP, RNG "leans" in their favor and they…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →great gameplay roguelike, easy difficulty for casual gamers, and hard difficulty for hardcore gamers, high replayability
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TᗯITᑕᕼ.Tᐯ/ᑕᗩᖇTOOᑎᗰOᖇTᗩᒪ Dumb dumb plays hard game because spooki. We playing Iratus Lord of the Dead! #Vtuber #smallstreamer #twitch #TvHead #ClosedCaptions #canadian
neutral · AI labelView post →Pretty good game, but I'm only 5 hours in and I feel it is pretty repetitive and doesn't allow for developing many strategies. I learned the basic characters pretty fast, and unlocking new characters takes more time that I'm just not willing to spend on this game.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This birthday has added years to my video game backlog: Sea of Stars, Shovel Knight, Dispatch, LISA: The Painful, Blasphemous, Blasphemous 2, Night Swarm, Mara Fantasy, Citizen Sleeper, Haven, and Iratus: Lord of the Dead. Ask me if I'm sad about it.
neutral · AI labelView post →A neat game and premise that needs more depth and complexity in the system.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great game. I wish it had more content.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Gameplay In this turn-based roguelike, you command an army of the undead. Instead of managing heroes, you craft and upgrade minions from enemy remains. And remember, you cannot access every minion at the beginning, they will be unlocked when you progress. The combat is deeply tactical, with a focus on a unique "sanity" mechanic that allows you to break enemies' minds, making them attack their allies or flee in terror. The inability to freely explore or backtrack on the map can feel…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If it's on sale, buy it. Better than darkest dungeon imo
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you played Darkest Dungeon and wanted a more thorough exploration of that combat system, this is it. It's very good and very intricate. You will find builds that you think are broken; you will be humbled.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's fun for what it is, but I can only really stomach one playthrough. Roguelike is a bit of a stretch since it's a full game reset and one playthrough is loooong. Maybe if there were multiple ways to play the game? (But really imo either you went full damage or full stress and having a secondary squad didn't even make much sense the deeper I got into the game, tbf, that was only on normal, but not sure I have the patience to trudge through a second time with minimal changes.)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Darkest Dungeon: Uno Reverse.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great take on the Darkest dungeon game style with a nice twist. Dark creatures from fantasy and folk mythos come to unlife by Iratus' necromancer mind to fight other fantasy races from fantasy and folk mythos. Very strategic turn based game. Recommended for people who loved darkest dungeon and/or people who like creatures from dark fantasy and folk mythology.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →(PCDD) Steam Sales PAW Patrol World $17.99 ow.ly/zOhg50VYuM0 The Patrick Star Game $19.99 ow.ly/J4A650VYuLW Iratus: Lord of the Dead $2.99 ow.ly/4qns50VYuLY Copycat $7.49 ow.ly/cK8b50VYuMb Shashingo $11.99 ow.ly/8c9q50VYuM3
neutral · AI labelView post →Very fun for a couple playthroughs. Gets repetitive once you figure it out, but really pleasant for a few hours. Nice graphics and decent sound in general. Definitely not worth the full price, though--wait for a sale if you want to get it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was wrong to skip this game for so long. Back in the day I played Darkest Dungeon nonstop and it became one of my all-time favorites. When Iratus first came out I didn't like the art style in the screenshots at all. To me it looked like some cheap mobile game. But time passed and I couldn't find many worthy games with that 4v4 turn-based combat so I decided to give it a shot. To my surprise the game turned out to be very good and engaging (at least in the beginning). What is the most serious…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Very good turn based like darkest dungeon. Customizing the minions is pretty good... but it does just make me want to go back to darkest dungeon at times. I do also think some of the UI could do to be more... fluid? Like clicking on graveyard, checking what minion I need, going to create, creating, and then going back to the graveyard building feels bad
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I real like this game. It fun to be the villain (I am the bad guy*song earworm*). Every unit can be used effectively and cleverly, if you devise the right stragies. Sometimes luck plays a role, too. Personally, i played a lot with the werwolves and the female chracters.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →fun combos and strategies. the over all progression is too slow though. it takes like a 100+ battles to complete the campaign but about 3/4 of those fights feel mostly the same as other fights.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A decent little strategy game. The meat of it is the four-on-four setup familiar to players of Darkest Dungeon, with enough different units that you have to make meaningful choices in terms of which to build, which to promote and which ones you take into each fight. The difficulty is, however, far more forgiving than Darkest Dungeon, not least because undead don't have heart attacks. The other systems provide a bit of character leveling at both the strategic and unit level, a bit of base…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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