Summoner

About Summoner

Summoner is a turn-based role-playing game released in late 2000 by Graphsim Entertainment and published by THQ. You play as Joseph, a young man marked with the power to summon demons after accidentally destroying his own village as a child. The story follows his reluctant journey to gather ancient rings while facing invading armies from Orenia. This title launched on PC, Mac, and PlayStation 2 during the era of isometric RPGs. It offers a dark fantasy setting where magic carries heavy consequences rather than just being a convenient tool for victory. The narrative focuses on redemption and the burden of power as Joseph travels across varied landscapes with a small group of companions.

Gameplay

Combat happens in a grid-based system where you issue commands to your party members before the enemy acts. You control Joseph and three other characters, each with distinct skills like thievery, magic, or swordplay. The core loop involves exploring towns and dungeons to find items and lore while managing your team's health and morale. A major mechanic is the summoning system where you use collected rings to call forth powerful demons and golems to fight alongside you. These creatures deal significant damage but require careful management since they can turn on you or drain resources. Battles feel tactical rather than action-oriented, requiring you to position units correctly and time your summons for maximum effect during tough encounters.

What Players Think

PlayPile data shows a solid reception with an average Metacritic score of 78 out of 100. Community members rate the game highly for its story depth, with 64 percent of players finishing the main campaign compared to the site-wide average of 42 percent. The average playtime sits at 18 hours for a standard run, though completionists spend over 30 hours hunting for all summoning rings. Current community moods lean nostalgic, with users frequently citing the voice acting and character designs as standout elements. Review snippets highlight the unique demon-summoning mechanic as the primary reason players return to it years later. The game holds a stable price point of $1.24 on Steam, which aligns with its status as a budget-friendly classic among retro RPG fans.

PlayPile's Take

Summoner works best for players who enjoy turn-based tactics and deep lore over fast-paced action. The $1.24 price tag makes it an easy buy given the 30+ hours of content available for completionists chasing all achievements. You should play this if you like stories where magic has a cost and characters carry heavy emotional baggage. It is less ideal for those seeking modern graphics or streamlined gameplay systems. The demon summoning adds a strategic layer that few other games from this era attempted successfully. Finish the game to see how the rings change your combat capabilities before moving on.

Storyline

A Summoner's inheritance is a power greater than magic. With rings of channeling, Summoners call forth demons and golems, supernatural servants and elemental creatures. Summoners have toppled empires and challenged gods. They are venerated as saviors and feared as destroyers. The chosen are born with a mark on one hand, but the origins of this gift were forgotten long ago. Joseph fears his power more than death itself. As a child, Joseph tried to save his village from attackers, but the demon he summoned slaughtered the villagers while Joseph watched in horror, his misguided heroics causing the deaths of those he loved. Exiled and ostracized, Joseph vowed never to summon again. Over the years, the enigmatic Yago counsels and guides the youth, preparing Joseph to fulfil his prophecy. As the invading armies of Orenia march across the Medevan plain, Yago urges Joseph to quest for the ancient rings. Reluctantly, Joseph agrees. On his journey, Joseph meets three young adventurers who become his companions-Flece, Jekhar, and Rosalind. Flece is a cunning thief and cynical rogue who grew up on the streets of Lenele. Jekhar's family perished when Joseph summoned a demon long ago, and now the warrior seeks revenge. Begrudgingly, he helps Joseph on his quest. Rosalind is novice of the Order of Iona and yearns to become a mage-priest and guardian of Iona's divine scrolls. The daughter of Yago, Rosalind is jealous of Joseph's power and hates her father for devoting his life to the Summoner’s cause. Their quest takes them across the world-to the sunken empire of Ikaemos and the rugged wilds of Liangshan, from the stronghold of the Khosani to the Jade River that flows from Heaven. In the ruins of lost civilizations and the temples of Orenia, they search for the Summoners' rings.