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I have loved Temtem ever since its initial release on Steam, and the monster-catcher/battler was everything I wanted Pokémon to be. It had co-op multiplayer, crafting and house building, and a gorgeous world to explore, which I was happy to do. With how successful it became, I fully expected Crema to continue the series, but Temtem Swarm was not what I expected.
Taking a pointer from Vampire Survivors, their new entry goes in a similar direction. You run across a world killing off different creatures, leveling up, getting new attacks and equipment (and enhancing them), all while trying to avoid dying and having to start over again. If you have played Vampire Survivors, or other survivors-esque titles, this gameplay loop is going to be very familiar, but Temtem Swarm goes in a couple of different and interesting routes, and it’s quite possibly the best optimized Survivor-like game for the Steam Deck.
The game capitalizes on its monster-catching background, using it to inject more personality and uniqueness into it. Instead of choosing a character or a class, you will choose from a selection of monsters from the series, each with their own unique abilities and attacks. On top of that, they also each have a skill tree that you can unlock to enhance them further. I love this type of progression, and while other games have done something similar, the way it’s implemented here feels much more worthwhile.
Outside of the core loop, Temtem Swarm has a couple of intriguing mechanics to digest. There's a passive overarching skill tree for each monster that you can unlock nodes for and enhance so their chances of survival are much higher. The monsters have a combination of generic nodes, like damage or health up, and more specific nodes that suit their playstyle, like extra projectiles or specific elemental damage. You get currency to unlock these while playing. We also have a challenge-like Kudos system that will give you new gear, abilities, and monsters depending on what you do in-game. It feels a bit more unique than other challenge systems I have seen in other games, and I like it a lot overall.
Then, we go to the in-game mechanics. The core gameplay loop is similar to other games, but there are a couple of neat changes to make it feel like it has its own identity. There are different events you can trigger to give you some extra skill tree currency, extra experience, and more upgrades. Though, my favorite feature is synergies. As you play, you will discover synergies, where certain abilities and gear can work together to dramatically enhance it. For example, using a wind cutting ability with a gear that increases crit chance can combine and make the attack much bigger with a fantastic crit chance. It can change up your playstyle and give you a goal to reach for, and the payoff feels fantastic.
And being able to do all of this in co-op is just so cool. I didn't have a chance to try the co-op/multiplayer modes yet, but I love the idea and concept of choosing monsters with abilities that can work together to overcome larger waves and harder enemies.
Temtem Swarm Alpha Performance on Steam Deck
Though, it isn't all perfect. There are some minor issues present here, like it taking a bit too long for events to spawn in and a couple of spots on the maps that I got stuck in, but overall, these were minor in comparison to what they are setting out to achieve with Temtem Swarm. And then we have Steam Deck performance.
Previously, Crema posted on Steam about how they are prioritizing optimizing for the Steam Deck, and they were not pulling keywords out of thin air. For an alpha, I was shocked at how well the game was performing on the Deck! Most survivors-like games are CPU limited and will drop frames/performance in the later rounds when everything gets really heavy. With Temtem Swarm, this didn't happen as often as I would have expected. The game held strong at 60 for awhile, with some dips to 55, but it still felt smooth. There were some drops I found that went into the 40s, like when getting a powerup that sets everyone on fire or poisons all enemies, but then it would go back to smooth right after.
Overall, I am walking away extremely impressed. Temtem Swarm is addicting, and I couldn't stop playing it almost my entire trip to Germany for Gamescom, only stopping when my Steam Deck was going to die. I am very much looking forward to this release though, and I have a good feeling it could be my personal favorite, and possibly the best optimized, survivors-like game for the Steam Deck.
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I have tonnes of survivor games on OLED steam deck and most of them don't tank at high busy moments. I think that part of your review is incorrect, but otherwise its pretty solid.