The Haunted Ruins

The Haunted Ruins

Browser - Screenshot - Title screen.

Developer Gamedesign, Skipmore Publisher Gamedesign Published 2011-05-?? Platforms Browser Genres Dungeon crawler, Role-playing game Themes Adventure, Fantasy Distribution Freeware

The Haunted Ruins is a dungeon crawler role-playing video game developed by Gamedesign and Skipmore and published by Gamedesign as a browser game in May 2011. The game is meant to pay homage to 8-bit dungeon crawlers.

In the game's story a witch has removed the protection to a the ruins of an ancient dungeon which houses an evil orb of power and now monsters are running amok. You play as a brave hero who is tasked with traveling to the depths of the dungeon in order to reseal it.

Personal

Own?	No. The game was never sold.
Won?	Yes.
Finished	2023-11-22.

I think I tried playing this game when I first saw it in the early 2010s, but gave up pretty quickly assuming it would be a long grind. On a Flash kick, I started playing more from Gamedesign and tried this one again and stuck with it long enough to beat it. I didn't notice the game's web site had maps until after I finished.

Review

5	3	5	5	4

Best Version: Browser

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

• I like the cute monster sprites and the graphics in the shops.
• The game's music is decent and fits the theme of the game.
• Unlike the 8-bit games it's modeled after, the game doesn't wear out its welcome with tons of grinding. You can beat it within around an hour. It also isn't harsh with death, items aren't that expensive.
• I liked the ending sequence.

Bad

• Like the games it's based on, it is very repetitive.
• You get weak items from chests late in the game.
• The game lacks an in-game mapping system. Thankfully, the developers provided one.
• The graphics used for the dungeons are boring and ill-fitting.
• The menus are ugly and dull.
• The hi-res animations clash with the pixel art.

Ugly

• The game needs keyboard support. Having to use the mouse to move around the whole time hurt my wrist.

Media

Maps

• 

  Map of the ruins.

Screenshots

• 

  Title screen.

• 

  Introduction.

• 

  General store.

• 

  Evil mouse in the ruins.

Videos

Longplay.

Play Online

Browser

Representation

Strong female character?	Fail	The witch is actually kind of powerful and changes over time, but doesn't grow.
Bechdel test?	Fail	There is only one woman.
Strong person of color character?	Fail	None of the characters appear to be human, and, the humanoids all appear to be white.
Queer character?	Fail	There are no queer characters.

Credits

Role	Staff
Programmer	Gamedesign
Graphics	Skipmore
Music	Panic Pumpkin

Titles

Language	Native	Transliteration	Translation
English	The Haunted Ruins
Japanese	まもののいせき	Mamono no Iseki	The Evil Spirit

Links

   

• jayisgames.com/review/the-haunted-ruins.php - Review - Jay Is Games.