Styx: Master of Shadows is a good concept marred by poor writing and riddled with bugs that turn it into a frustrating mess. I sank 36 hours into this game with most of it going into reloading over and over again because of game mechanics that only work occasionally.

GAMEPLAY: 3/10
The basic concept of a stealth game with multiple paths and approaches to your goal is a great one. Sadly for Styx the devs had no clue how to implement it and the few good ideas they had they were unable to execute.

NARRATIVE: 3/10
The story had some good ideas involving personality duality and manipulation. But this was ruined with childish monologues and one dimensional characters. The writers tried to make this nonsense edgy with the use of excessive, unnecessary, and completely pointless obscene language.

GRAPHICS: 7/10
The art style is in stark contrast to the rest of the poorly conceived game. Despite the game’s age the graphics hold up well and keep the game playable from a visual perspective even in 2026. Unfortunately there are a lot of animation bugs including magically teleporting enemies and positioning retries that give an overall janky experience.

SOUND: 7/10
The sound effects are pretty good for the most part and the soundtrack matches the atmosphere with a couple of noticeable tracks and effects that grated on my ears like nails on a chalkboard.

VALUE: 1/10
I got the game as a free giveaway on Epic. If you can get it for free it may be worth your time if you’re looking for a miserable gaming experience or if you are interested in game development yourself and want to learn what not to do. Otherwise I wouldn’t waste my money on this game even if it’s 90% off.

OVERALL: 4.2