SoulQuest

Hunting the Goddess of Death through Celtic myth

SoulQuest is a 2D hack-and-slash from SoulBlade Studio LLC and solo contributor TomasJPereyra, published by indie.io. Players control Alys, a widow carving her way through hordes of enemies drawn from Celtic mythology to defy the gods and seize the power of Morrigan, Goddess of Death, in order to retrieve her husband's soul, chaining airborne combos and dashes across ranked, score-driven combat arenas. This review draws on an English review sample, 60 reviews at the time of research, rated Very Positive overall, though a sizeable and detailed minority raises real concerns about its difficulty design and launch-state polish.

Praised repeatedly for deep, satisfying combo-driven combat

The sample's most consistent theme is how much genuine depth reviewers find in the core combat once they invest the time. "The core combat system is great, very satisfying to explore and the progression is very well balanced," reads one detailed review from a player who logged over 25 hours across multiple difficulties. A separate reviewer, with over 110 hours played, goes further: "If you want a hack'n slash with off-the-charts depth in its combat and a flavor of 'unintended mechanics' à la GunZ, SoulQuest might steal your heart... I am still learning more and building crazier combos after 100 hours." This review treats that convergence as fair and meaningful: reviewers independently logging dozens to well over a hundred hours while still crediting fresh combat discoveries is credible evidence of a genuinely deep, replayable combat system.

Praised for Celtic-mythology art, music, and presentation

Reviewers also specifically credit the game's visual and audio identity. "Beautiful pixel art. I know everyone says that, but I think very few people really understand the world that goes into making the art and animation for a game like this THIS pretty," reads one review, while a separate reviewer independently credits its score: "The music is all pretty good so far. Celtic vibes, a personal favorite of mine." A third reviewer credits its narrative delivery: "Story is slightly generic, but still engaging, especially thanks to the cinematics and audio." This review treats that as fair: reviewers repeatedly crediting distinctive art, fitting music, and fully voiced cinematics as genuine strengths, even amid other complaints, is credible evidence of considered presentation work.

Praised for active post-launch patching

This review also found specific, credible praise for the developer's responsiveness after launch. "I got salty in few stages but thankfully the Dev listened to the community and removed a high percentage of the environmental hazards so the experience has improved A LOT," reads one detailed review. A separate reviewer independently notes the same pattern: "It looks like the developer is actively patching the game shortly after release which is a good sign! Some of these might be taken care of by the time anyone reads this." This review treats that as fair: multiple reviewers independently confirming the developer is actively addressing community feedback with real changes is a genuine point in the game's favour.

A fair, corroborated complaint about punishing hazard-and-platforming design

Set against that praise, this review found a specific, recurring complaint about how the game's difficulty is constructed. "The problem arises when they start adding 3-4 giant enemies to small areas in levels that get perpetually smaller as time goes on... tanky enemies can remove a 1/3rd of your health with every hit," reads one detailed negative review. A separate reviewer independently reports the same friction, despite an otherwise positive review: "There's a strange emphasis on platforming when the jumping doesn't feel good... I wish the jumping gimmicks were removed and the game was just straight combat rooms." This review also found reviewers flagging visual clarity suffering in these same chaotic moments: "It's really hard to see what the enemies are doing when they are all inside of each other." This review treats that as fair: multiple reviewers, including some who otherwise recommend the game, independently identifying the same combination of hazards, tanky enemies, and cramped spaces as a source of unfair-feeling difficulty is a credible, corroborated design complaint.

A fair, corroborated complaint about buggy achievements and an unfinished ending

This review also found a specific, corroborated complaint about the game's launch-state polish and narrative closure. "I am curious why so many achievements aren't working. I beat the game on medium and neither the achievement for beating easy (or higher) and normal (or higher) didn't pop," reads one detailed review. A separate reviewer independently flags the story's incompleteness: "The game isn't finished, it ends on a cliffhanger and makes it look like there's a true ending, but there isn't one, we're left waiting for an update or a sequel." This review treats that as fair: reviewers independently reporting broken achievement tracking and an admittedly unresolved story ending are credible, specific complaints worth flagging to prospective buyers, distinct from the game's difficulty design.

Achievement data corroborates a brutally low completion rate

This review's own check of Steam's global achievement data, across 39 tracked milestones, shows the achievement for defeating Morrigan, the game's final boss, sitting at just 8.5%, and clearing the game on even the easiest difficulty at only 5.5%. That steep drop-off toward the finish line is consistent with reviewer accounts of a demanding, hazard-heavy difficulty curve that pushes away a meaningful share of players well before the credits, even among those who otherwise praise the combat.

Final verdict

SoulQuest is a genuinely deep, stylish 2D hack-and-slash that earns real credit for combo-driven combat with surprising longevity, a striking Celtic-mythology art and music identity, and a developer that has kept actively patching the game since launch. This review found that praise tempered by fair, corroborated complaints about hazard-heavy, cramped encounter design that several reviewers found punishing rather than challenging, plus broken achievement tracking and a story that ends on an unresolved cliffhanger. For fans of demanding, combo-focused hack-and-slash games willing to push through some rough edges, it's a solid recommendation; players wanting a smoothly polished, low-frustration experience with full narrative closure should wait for further updates.