videogamescritic
← all games
Black Legend

Black Legend

Warcave · released Mar 25, 2021

RPGStrategy

A dark, immersive Turn Based Strategy RPG. Master tactical combat and the art of 17th century alchemy to liberate a doomed city from a bloodthirsty cult inspired by the great alchemist Mephisto.

65
VGC Score
·No trend datamedium confidence
64%
At launch
65%
Steam all-time
60%
Press
0%
Recent sentiment

Screenshots & trailers

Review sentiment over time

Weekly positive-review rate (green) and review volume (bars). Dashed lines mark significant patches; the amber line is the start of the current scoring window. Hover the dots to see what drove a dip or a jump.

How this score was computed

The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.

ComponentPositiveQuality (0-100)Weight (pseudo-reviews)
Press reviews (OpenCritic)6020
All-time Steam reviews65%63106
Metacritic user ratings0
Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted)0%150
Calibration prior (typical game)7250

Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 1 reviews sampled · 1 total reviews in window · weighted 0 up / 0.1 down · computed 3h ago · full methodology →

Press & Creators reviews (28)

Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.

  • 65
    trust 80Mar 29, 2021

    With its medieval setting and alchemy-based combat system, Black Legend looks and plays quite a bit differently from most turn-based strategy games available on the Switch. Its repetitive settings and battles, however, will likely turn away those used to a greater degree of variety and fun.

    read full review ↗
  • 85
    trust 76Mar 25, 2021

    Black Legend is a very pleasant surprise for me. Combining real historical elements of the 17th century with alchemy and mythical creatures from folklore into a turn-based strategy game, where you can also combine different job classes with lots of weapons and equipment, is really successful.

    read full review ↗
  • 55
    trust 75Apr 1, 2021

    A great foundation soured by unbalanced classes, uninteresting story and an extremely linear exploration. Black Legend could’ve a future if updated and polished further, but I don’t see that happening.

    read full review ↗
  • 70
    trust 74Mar 30, 2021

    Even though Black Legend uses a lot of common features, they are blended in an original way. With the addition of alchemy, battling never gets boring, even when it takes hours of gameplay to be proficient in it.

    read full review ↗
  • 68
    trust 70Mar 25, 2021

    Tactical strategy titles have begun to show up more often overall on Switch since launch but the consistency of quality in the genre has been spotty...

    read full review ↗
  • 54
    trust 69Apr 9, 2021

    Despite the heavy influence of Belgian folklore and an interesting tactical battle system Black Legend couldn’t convince me. A disappointing visual world, annoying bugs, and frustrating explanation of game mechanics result in a game that exists but won’t be recommended by anyone. Honestly a big missed opportunity for something much better.

    read full review ↗
  • 75
    trust 69Mar 24, 2021

    Black Legend isn't perfect, but it brings some really solid pieces to the game as a whole. The town is interesting and is designed well, the class system allows for a good amount of freedom of player choice, and the alchemy system is pretty novel. The writing (or lack thereof) is a stumbling block, along with the difficult healing system… but the atmosphere really draws you in and leaves you wanting more of Grant and its mysteries.

    read full review ↗
  • 60
    trust 67Mar 29, 2021

    Black Legend’s combat is solid if unspectacular, and the setting is unique and atmospheric. The character progression is more interesting than the characters themselves, and the story fails to match the intrigue created by the overall visual style due to average writing. Across the board, Black Legend is a decent game with some good ideas but technical issues hold it back.

    read full review ↗
  • 50
    trust 66Mar 26, 2021

    What’s good about Black Legend is very good. The gloomy atmosphere and the novel turn-based combat based on 17th century medicine are well designed and smartly implemented. Everything else about this game is either bland, rough around the edges or straight up poor. Diehard fans of turn based strategy games that can overlook the issues will still get something from Black Legend. For everyone else, there are better alternatives.

    read full review ↗
  • 50
    trust 65Mar 24, 2021

    Black Legend evokes a brooding atmosphere thanks to the fog covered streets of Grant and has some good ideas around party and class management, as well as its turn based battles. However, bugs and awkward camera controls, plus a lack of a strong narrative or lore makes Black Legend feel like a fog has descended obscuring its potential.

    read full review ↗
  • 70
    trust 64Mar 24, 2021

    While Black Legend may not be the prettiest game to look at and there are still quite a few bugs around, the sinister atmosphere, local folklore and deep tactical gameplay made up for a lot. If you’re a fan of turn-based RPGs, you’ll probably have a great time.

    read full review ↗
  • 64
    trust 63Mar 30, 2021

    Black Legend is a game with interesting ambitions. The gameplay is well structured in the fights, the dark atmosphere of the lost city in a mad alchemy of madness and violence is well executed in some respects (such as the voice acting and one of the side quests) and also some of the themes raised by the discovery of the origins of the fog are of good depth. Unfortunately, the many technical shortcomings don’t allow you to enjoy the game without being distracted by the aforementioned discordant notes but, if you are a fan of tactical RPGs, give it a try. Grant's misty streets could be worth the ticket price, especially in sight of patch improvements.

    read full review ↗

…and 16 more tracked reviews.

Patch history

  1. Patch 4: Guides
    May 2, 2021significant · resets scoring window
  2. Patch 3: Minimap & World Map
    Apr 16, 2021significant · resets scoring window
  3. Patch 2: UX improvements
    Apr 2, 2021significant · resets scoring window
  4. Patch 1: Bug fixes and improvements
    Mar 29, 2021significant · resets scoring window