Undertale

Undertale received critical acclaim, and was quickly considered a cult video game by numerous publications.^[44][45] Review aggregator Metacritic calculated an average score of 92 out of 100, indicating "universal acclaim", based on 42 reviews.^[39] Metacritic ranks the game the third-highest rated Windows game released in 2015,^[39] and among the top 25 of all time.^[46] Praise was particularly directed at the game's writing, unique characters, and combat system. GameSpot's Tyler Hicks declared it "one of the most progressive and innovative RPGs to come in a long time",^[31] and IGN's Kallie Plagge called it "a masterfully crafted experience".^[14] By the end of 2015, in a preliminary report by Steam Spy, Undertale was one of the best-selling games on Steam, with 530,343 copies sold.^[47] By early February 2016, the game surpassed one million.^[48]
Daniel Tack of Game Informer called the game's combat system "incredibly nuanced", commenting on the uniqueness of each enemy encounter.^[41] Giant Bomb's Austin Walker praised the complexity of the combat, commenting that it is "unconventional, clever, and occasionally really difficult".^[40] Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of The Escapist commended the game's ability to blend "turn-based and live combat elements in a way that actually fucking works".^[49] IGN's Plagge praised the ability to avoid combat, opting for friendly conversations instead.^[14] Jesse Singal of The Boston Globe found the game's ability to make the player empathize with the monsters during combat if they opted for non-violent actions was "indicative of the broader, fundamental sweetness at the core" of Undertale.^[50]
Reviewers praised the game's writing and narrative, with IGN's Plagge calling it "excellent".^[14] The Escapist's Croshaw considered Undertale the best-written game of 2015, writing that is "on the one hand hilarious ... and is also, by the end, rather heartfelt".^[49] Destructoid's Ben Davis praised the game's characters and use of comedy, and compared its tone, characters and storytelling to Cave Story (2004).^[2] PC Gamer's Richard Cobbett provided similar comments, writing that "even its weaker moments ... just about work".^[42] Breitbart's Ned Price commended the "soul and charm" that the game conveys through its writing, but noted that the dialogue often "borders on cringey random humor".^{[51] - Wikepedia}