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Styx: Shards of Darkness is a 2017 stealth-focused action-adventure for players who would rather slip through guarded spaces than fight every enemy head-on. It has a clear stealth premise and solid aggregate reception, but the storefront information available here does not establish the details of its online co-op. Whether it is a good fit depends on how much you enjoy sneaking, navigating large environments, and recovering when a plan goes wrong.
What kind of game is Styx: Shards of Darkness?
Developed by Cyanide Studio, Styx: Shards of Darkness was released on March 14, 2017, according to the developer’s official game page. Steam identifies Cyanide Studio as developer and Nacon as publisher. Its listing describes a stealth adventure built around large environments, avoiding or assassinating enemies, and using abilities and weapons.
That makes stealth the central draw rather than an optional way to approach a conventional action game. The available descriptions establish the broad premise, not the fine details of each level or how forgiving the game is when guards spot you.
What do reviews say?
Metacritic’s page snapshot accessed in 2026 reports a critic Metascore of 72/100 from 38 reviews, categorized as “Mixed or Average,” and a user score of 7.7/10 from 172 ratings, categorized as “Generally Favorable.” Those aggregates indicate a more positive response from users than critics in that snapshot, but they are not unanimous verdicts; both scores and counts may change.
#1 Best Overall
- GAME CONTENT: A premium expansion for Dracula’s Curse, featuring stunning components like the towering Sunken City board and a beautifully sculpted Cthulhu head centerpiece — a true table-presence showstopper.
- GAMEPLAY MECHANICS: Unleash cosmic horror with a new playable Legend — Cthulhu. Spread corruption across the castle, drive Slayers to the brink with Sanity effects, and twist the game with entirely new ways to play.
- STRATEGIC DEPTH: Shifting alliances and evolving threats make every game unpredictable. Corruption spreads, the map transforms, and no two sessions play the same.
- ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE: Features breathtaking handcrafted artwork and eldritch designs, transforming the castle into a surreal nightmare worthy of the Great Old One.
- GAME SPECIFICATIONS: 120-minute estimated playtime, supports 3–6 players, ages 14+. English rules included. Cthulhu’s Curse requires the base game Dracula’s Curse to play.
Steam’s retrieved listing showed 83% positive English-language reviews from 2,236 reviews in a 2026 page snapshot. Steam’s figure is specific to English reviews on that storefront, not a rating across every platform or region. Metacritic’s score page and the Steam listing are the sources for those figures.
Does Styx: Shards of Darkness have co-op?
Yes: Steam lists both single-player and online co-op. That establishes that co-op is a listed Steam feature, but the available listing information does not explain its structure or confirm that the same feature set appears in every store edition. If co-op is the deciding factor, check the current listing for the specific platform and edition you plan to play.
Rank #2
- BECOME DEATH AND SEIZE THE MOST SOULS: Reap is easy to learn and teach but plenty of nuance for strategic gameplay with players varying from new to experienced gamers.
- MORBID SENSE OF HUMOR?: Makes a great gift for holidays and birthdays for that spooky friend who leaves their Halloween decor up year round.
- PERFECT FOR FAMILY GAME NIGHT: Reap the Card Game is a great way to spend quality time with your friends and family. Fun, quick gameplay and variety of cute cards makes for excellent replayability.
- PREMIUM COMPONENTS: Jason Anarchy makes games that you want to play with components that are designed to be handled. Reap features gorgeous watercolor DM screens, over 70 different reapers with their own artwork, wooden skull tokens and reaper meeples.
- NUMBER OF PLAYERS AND AVERAGE PLAYTIME: This fun grid movement, constrained bidding game is designed for 2-4 players and is suitable for ages 14 and older. Average playtime is 15-30 minutes.
Where can you buy it?
Steam and GOG list digital PC editions. GOG advertises an offline installer option, which may matter if you want an installer rather than relying solely on an online storefront client. See the Steam product page and GOG product page.
Prices, discounts, regional availability, and current listings can change; check the relevant store directly before buying. The available information does not establish current console-store availability or whether a physical edition can be purchased, so neither should be assumed from the PC listings.
Rank #3
- - Solo game with proven mechanics, taken from Negotiator Taking Hostage - Strong and well-rendered theme, horror movie classics/suspense - Modular system of games allows great replayability - You will have to take your pills if you want to escape all these maniacs!
Who is it for?
It is worth considering if you want a game centered on stealth, enjoy navigating large guarded areas, and like choosing between evasion and assassination. The aggregate scores show a generally positive response overall, particularly in Metacritic’s user snapshot, but they do not settle whether its level design, difficulty, combat, or writing will suit you personally.
If those details are important to your decision, look for reviews that discuss stealth-system flexibility, traversal and level design, how detection affects progress, whether combat is a viable fallback, and the game’s character writing. If you mainly want co-op, verify the mode’s particulars for your edition rather than relying on a general feature label.
Quick Recap
Rank #4
- For 1 to 6 players
- Full campaign : the story mode Comes with 10 unique quests in the Campaign
- Incredible figures : massive Darkness comes with six detailed hero miniatures and 69 enemy miniatures
- Shadow mode : by using shadow mode players can gain a stealthy advantage over the agents of darkness
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
