Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 1 has the odd Steam profile every indie developer fears: 92% positive user reviews, almost 1,200 reviews, and rarely more than 10 concurrent players.
That gap is the real story behind the deal. The 2020 RPG from Lonely Troops is now listed at an 80% discount, dropping from $6.99 to an all-time low of $1.39, according to Notebookcheck. On paper, the game has proof that buyers like it. In practice, SteamDB data cited by Notebookcheck suggests almost nobody is playing it at the same time.
That makes this less a simple “cheap RPG” story and more a clean example of Steam’s hidden-gem problem: approval does not equal attention.
A 92%-Rated RPG With Fewer Than 10 Concurrent Players Shows the Visibility Gap
The headline number flatters Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 1. A 92% positive Steam rating signals that the audience which found the game largely got what it wanted. The low active player count tells a different story: satisfaction has not translated into visible momentum.
That tension matters because this is not a new release fighting for launch-week oxygen. It is a back-catalog indie RPG trying to be seen years after release. The $1.39 price works as a signal flare. It lowers the risk for buyers and gives the game a fresh reason to appear in deal coverage.
MLXIO analysis: the discount is not proof the game failed commercially, and the source does not provide sales data. What it does show is a familiar asymmetry for small PC games. User approval can sit high while current attention stays tiny. For players, that can create opportunity. For developers, it shows how hard it is to keep a modest, well-liked game in circulation.
The more useful question is not whether The Lost Tales 1 is “worth it” in the abstract. It is whether its narrow design fits the buyer.
The Lost Tales 1 Sells Cozy Questing, Not RPG Sprawl
Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 1 starts after a town has been attacked by a dragon. Players take the role of a traveling adventurer who meets Brent, an orphan boy who wants to prove himself as a hero. Together, they investigate the source of the dragon threat.
Mechanically, this is a point-and-click adventure with light RPG elements. Notebookcheck describes a loop built around learning skills such as fishing, hunting, and gathering, while collecting better equipment along the way. That places it far from the modern maximalist RPG: no sprawling buildcraft, no huge party systems, no massive open world pitch in the supplied material.
Its appeal is smaller and cleaner.
Steam reviews cited by Notebookcheck praise the relaxed atmosphere and the “just finish one more task” pull.
That line explains the game better than a feature list. The Lost Tales 1 appears built around low-friction completion: find the next task, collect the next item, advance the story, repeat. For the right player, that can be satisfying. For the wrong one, it can feel slight.
| Buyer type | Likely fit |
|---|---|
| Cozy RPG fans | Strong fit if relaxed questing is the draw |
| Steam Deck players | Stronger fit because the game is Verified |
| Hardcore tactical RPG players | Weak fit based on the described mechanics |
| Open-world RPG fans | Weak fit if scale and depth are the priority |
| Short-session players | Good fit, given the reported 2 to 4 hours length |
The short runtime is the main caveat. Notebookcheck cites criticism around the game’s length, estimated at 2 to 4 hours, and its simple presentation. At $1.39, that complaint loses some force. It does not disappear.
The $1.39 Price Changes the Risk Calculation
The cleanest data points are also the most important:
- Review score: 92% positive on Steam
- Review count: almost 1,200 reviews
- Discount: 80% off
- Sale price: $1.39, down from $6.99
- Player activity: rarely above 10 concurrent players, per SteamDB data cited by Notebookcheck
- Runtime criticism: roughly 2 to 4 hours
- Steam Deck status: Verified
Those numbers create a specific bargain. This is not a bet on a giant RPG backlog project. It is closer to buying a compact fantasy diversion at a price below many in-game cosmetic purchases.
MLXIO analysis: the review percentage should be read together with scale and activity. Nearly 1,200 reviews is enough to suggest the rating is not based on a handful of friends or early buyers. But the low concurrent count means the game is not currently generating a visible player base. That combination points to a niche title with durable goodwill, not a sleeper hit suddenly breaking out.
For readers tracking Valve’s hardware push, the Steam Deck Verified label is also relevant. It makes the game easier to justify as a portable purchase, especially alongside broader interest in Valve’s living-room and handheld ambitions covered in Steam Machine Leak Sends Valve Fans Into Launch Watch and Steam Machine Hype Hits a Wall: No Price, No Date Yet. The connection is practical, not strategic: a short, relaxed, verified game fits portable play better than a demanding RPG epic.
The Series Context Makes This a Low-Cost Entry Point
The Lost Tales 1 is not the first Hero of the Kingdom game, but Notebookcheck says it works as an entry point because it is a prequel set before the original. The source also notes a small chronology wrinkle: it says the original Hero of the Kingdom released in 2012, while the listed series lineup begins with Hero of the Kingdom (2013). Either way, the practical point holds. New players do not need to start at the beginning of release order.
The series listed by Notebookcheck includes:
- Hero of the Kingdom (2013)
- Hero of the Kingdom II (2015)
- Hero of the Kingdom III (2018)
- Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 1 (2020)
- Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 2 (2021)
- Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 3 (2024)
That matters because a cheap prequel can function as a test case. If the loop works for you, there are more entries. If it does not, the loss is small.
MLXIO analysis: this is where the deal has its best logic. A short, discounted prequel reduces the commitment needed to sample the series’ tone and mechanics. It also avoids the common problem of starting midway through a story-heavy franchise, at least based on Notebookcheck’s description.
The Real Test Is Fit, Not Hype
For RPG fans, the buy/no-buy decision should be blunt.
Buy Hero of the Kingdom: The Lost Tales 1 if you want a gentle fantasy RPG with point-and-click pacing, simple progression, and a short runtime. Skip it if you want deep combat systems, large-scale exploration, or a long campaign.
Before buying, check five things:
- Screenshots: The source flags simple presentation as a criticism.
- Runtime tolerance: 2 to 4 hours is short, even at a low price.
- Gameplay loop: Resource gathering and small tasks appear central.
- Series interest: The prequel structure makes it a low-risk first stop.
- Device fit: Steam Deck Verified status strengthens the portable-use case.
The broader lesson is sharper than the discount. A game can have high user approval, a defined audience, and a multi-entry franchise behind it, yet still sit with barely visible player activity. That does not make it bad. It makes discovery the bottleneck.
The next signal to watch is whether the $1.39 low pulls in enough new reviews or discussion to make the game more visible beyond deal posts. If attention fades after the sale, the hidden-gem label will remain accurate. If new buyers start surfacing the rest of the series, The Lost Tales 1 may prove that a tiny price can still open a door — even if it does not turn a quiet indie RPG into a mainstream hit.
The Bottom Line
- A 92% positive Steam rating shows the game is well-liked by players who found it.
- The 80% discount lowers the barrier for new buyers and gives the RPG renewed visibility.
- Its low concurrent player count highlights how strong reviews do not always translate into sustained attention on Steam.
