I’ve never really admitted to being a fan of Diablo-like games. In fact, I’ve often found them overly simplistic and incredibly time-consuming. And yet, every time I pick up another title in the genre, something strange happens – I get completely hooked and can’t pull myself away. Dragonkin: The Banished from Eko Software is no exception. That said, I can’t quite call it perfect.

The game is set in a dark world devastated by hellish dragons. The player takes on the role of a legendary hunter, tasked with tracking down and defeating the Dragon Lords responsible for the mess. That’s the core of the plot. As for the finer details, the game is filled with locations and characters, yet none of them leave a lasting impression – I’d struggle to recall them accurately if asked. The narrative isn’t particularly engaging, so I found it hard to stay invested.

Charge, comrades!

The title offers four distinct classes: the Knight, the Barbarian, the Oracle, and the Tracker, and each plays differently. At the beginning you play a short introduction which presents each class, all equipped with an advanced level of power. This is a bloody good thing – the intro prevents you from making blind choices based solely on classes’ descriptions. Additionally, in the first hour in the game you choose your wyrmling – a baby dragon that will assist you in fight. Again, there are four options to choose from. Perhaps the best option is to pick the class that corresponds to your hero’s main ability (ice, lighting, fire and poison), but opinions are divided, which provides a scope for experimentation.

The wyrmling is non-playable. However, it levels separately from the hero – it collects its own points and you decide on how to allocate them. As for the protagonist, the game offers an interesting puzzle-based progression system. There’s a grid on which you place fragments – hexagonal loot pieces containing both skills and modifiers. And you have to think hard about how to match these elements to achieve maximum efficiency in combat.

Dragons, dragons everywhere!

The further you progress, the more pieces and space on the grid you get. What I especially liked about the progression system is that you can entirely rearrange the grid at virtually any point in the game, which allows you to experiment with new possibilities within a single playthrough. Also, there’s enormous freedom in assigning skills to buttons – you can substantially modify controls whenever you want.

Dragonkin: The Banished introduces unique city-building mechanics. Although this system adds a fresh twist, it feels somewhat underdeveloped. For example, there’s a balance issue – early city progression drags, breaking the momentum of an otherwise engaging core gameplay.

Warm greeting.

The game features over seventy minutes of music, including symphonic and fantasy-themed tracks. All of it was composed by Daniel Sadowski, who has worked on various music projects for video games, film, and television. The soundtrack does its job exceptionally well and is a pleasure to listen to even outside the game.

The visuals in Dragonkin: The Banished are also decent – I particularly enjoyed the level design and special effects. The hero travels through a variety of areas, from poisonous swamps and icy glaciers to desert volcanoes. Amongst things that somewhat weaken the overall aesthetic impression are outdated animations and occasional screen-tearing. The title stutters during more dynamic moments and in cut-scenes.

Velvet Assassin.

Another problem of Dragonkin is an unintuitive UI. Even after several hours in the game, I still found myself confusing buttons and getting lost in the interface. I am sure that this could have been avoided – a better-designed UI would have significantly improved the smoothness of the experience. I was also sometimes frustrated with the map design. The world map works nice, but the local one is almost useless, providing no little guidance but a strain on the eyes.

Setting all these issues aside, Dragonkin: The Banished is a solid title. With satisfying combat, solid visuals, and intriguing ways to optimize your builds, it provides hours of enjoyment. It’s not flawless, yet it unquestionably deserves more recognition than it has received so far.

Dragonkin: The Banished is available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S.

Reviewed on PS5.

A Copy of Dragonkin: The Banished was provided by the publisher.