Game review
Grave Keeper
4 / 10
- Developer
- Baldur Games
- Publisher
- SIG Publishing, WIG Publishing
- Released
- 29 March 2019
- Platforms
- Windows
- Genre
- RPG
- Monetisation
- One-time purchase, no DLC or in-app purchases (mobile microtransactions removed for the Steam release).
- Players
- Single-player only
The short version
Grave Keeper casts you as a bounty hunter fighting through the Forbidden Stronghold to defeat the Skeleton King, across 600 arena-style levels of wave combat, loot, and gear upgrades. Steam's aggregate reads Mostly Negative at 36% of 33 English-language reviews, and this review read all 21 negative reviews plus a sample of the positive side.
Almost every review in this sample, positive and negative alike, identifies the same underlying fact: this is a mobile free-to-play game ported to Steam with its microtransactions removed but its repetitive, endless-grind structure left intact. Reviewers who enjoy it tend to do so in short bursts, and several explicitly say it's only really worth it deeply discounted. Reviewers who don't recommend it point to the same root cause from the other direction — real crash bugs, missing sound effects, poor English translation, and a 600-level structure with, by several accounts, no meaningful payoff for reaching the end — arguing the asking price doesn't reflect what's essentially unaltered mobile shovelware.
Biggest strengths
- A functional, if simple, arena wave-combat loop that several reviewers describe as a genuine, if brief, time-waster
- Real, if shallow, progression systems — a crossbow for ranged damage, melee weapons, and a special power — give some structure to the repetition
- Cheap enough on sale that multiple reviewers explicitly recommend it only at a steep discount, where the low cost matches the low depth
Biggest weaknesses
- The single most repeated observation across nearly the entire sample, positive and negative alike: this is a mobile free-to-play port with its microtransactions removed but its repetitive structure and lack of PC-specific polish left unchanged
- Real, independently reported crash bugs, with at least two reviewers unable to play more than a few minutes before the game crashed consistently
- Missing sound effects reported by more than one reviewer, alongside poor English translation throughout
Who it's for: Only players specifically looking for a cheap, disposable arena-combat time-waster, and only worth buying at a steep discount given how many reviewers say that's the only price point at which it's worth it.
Our recommendation: Skip it at full price. The core combat loop has some genuine, if shallow, appeal in short doses according to several reviewers, but it's consistently and credibly described as an overpriced mobile port that never received the polish a PC release should have.
4 / 10
Introduction
Grave Keeper casts players as a bounty hunter fighting through the Forbidden Stronghold, taken over by the Skeleton King, across 600 arena-style combat levels of loot collection and gear upgrades. Developed by Baldur Games and published by SIG Publishing and WIG Publishing, it launched on Steam on 29 March 2019 at NZ$14.75. Nearly seven years later, its 33 English-language reviews sit at 36% positive, Mostly Negative. This review read all 21 negative reviews in that sample alongside a range of the positive side.
An identified origin, agreed on by both sides
What's unusual about this sample is how rarely its central diagnosis is disputed. "It is probably a port of mobile game, where are microtransactions," reads one negative review — a claim echoed repeatedly and specifically: "A mobile port with microtransactions removed," "Grindy mobile port with microtransactions," "It's certainly noticeable that this is a mobile port." Even reviewers on the positive side don't really argue against this — several recommend it specifically because of a steep sale price, treating it as a cheap, disposable time-waster rather than a substantial premium release. "Absolutely a gem!... now it's 90% off I absolutely recommend it," reads one, a framing that inadvertently supports the negative reviews' central complaint: the game's value proposition depends heavily on paying far less than the listed price.
Real, specific problems beyond the port question
Beyond the mobile-origin complaint, this sample surfaces real, concrete technical issues. Two reviewers independently report the game crashing consistently within minutes regardless of what they tried. Missing sound effects recur as a specific complaint — one detailed review notes "your character and the shop keeper are the only real thing" making noise, an odd gap for a combat-focused game. Translation quality draws repeated criticism too. Structurally, several reviewers who invested real time report the 600-level campaign has no meaningful conclusion: "I finished stage 600 and fought the skeleton king, to start at stage 300 again... there seems to be no reason to" continue, one wrote, describing an endless loop without a clear payoff for reaching the nominal end.
What the game does offer
It would be unfair to this sample not to note that several reviewers, including some negative ones, describe real if limited appeal in short sessions. "This game is an addictive time-waster," reads one detailed review, comparing it to a 1980s arcade cabinet — worth a few "quarters" of attention rather than a serious commitment. That framing recurs across several reviews on both sides: fun for an hour or two, before the repetition and lack of meaningful progression set in.
Verdict
Grave Keeper is, by close to universal agreement across this review sample, a mobile free-to-play game sold on Steam with its monetisation removed but its repetitive core and lack of PC polish otherwise intact. Real crash bugs, missing sound design, and an endless grind with no clear payoff compound the core complaint that this simply isn't worth its full asking price when the free mobile original — or a steep Steam sale — sits right there as the honest alternative.
Pros and cons
Pros
- A functional, if simple, arena wave-combat loop that several reviewers describe as a genuine, if brief, time-waster
- Real, if shallow, progression systems — a crossbow for ranged damage, melee weapons, and a special power — give some structure to the repetition
- Cheap enough on sale that multiple reviewers explicitly recommend it only at a steep discount, where the low cost matches the low depth
- A large, if repetitive, level count (600 arenas) for players who specifically want a long grind to chip away at
Cons
- The single most repeated observation across nearly the entire sample, positive and negative alike: this is a mobile free-to-play port with its microtransactions removed but its repetitive structure and lack of PC-specific polish left unchanged
- Real, independently reported crash bugs, with at least two reviewers unable to play more than a few minutes before the game crashed consistently
- Missing sound effects reported by more than one reviewer, alongside poor English translation throughout
- The 600-level structure is described by multiple reviewers as having no meaningful conclusion or payoff for reaching the end, functioning as an effectively endless, unrewarded grind
- Several reviewers explicitly compare the asking price unfavourably to simply playing the original free mobile version instead
Screenshots
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Grave KeeperImage: SIG Publishing via Steam -
Grave KeeperImage: SIG Publishing via Steam -
Grave KeeperImage: SIG Publishing via Steam -
How the review scores each part of the gameWanderer Editorial -
The essentials at a glanceWanderer Editorial -
The short versionWanderer Editorial