The Verdict
“A compulsive auto-battler roguelite with brilliant item synergies and a retro soul — but Early Access content depth lags behind its ambition.”
Very Positive
This puts the game in the top 30% of all reviewed games on Steam.
Analysis by Ivan Z. Ganza · Methodology →
Quick Stats
2,404en
3,760 total (all languages)
1,995 analyzed
Current as of Apr 22, 2026
Jul 17, 2025
$9.99
Apr 23, 2026
7.1/day
Slowing
Metadata current as of Apr 22, 2026 · Source: Steam
Market Reach
≈120K
≈$1.2M
Based on 3,760 reviews (all languages)
Based on review count × genre/age/price-adjusted Boxleiter ratio. Gross revenue before Steam’s 30% cut, refunds, and regional pricing.
Design Strengths
- Auto-battle combat removes reflex demands, letting players focus entirely on item strategy and build expression
- 350+ items produce emergent synergies comparable to deckbuilders — players regularly discover interactions that feel broken in the best way
- Run length of 5–30 minutes enables rapid iteration and softens the sting of RNG-heavy losses
- Kingmaker asynchronous PvP meaningfully extends replayability by replacing bosses with snapshots of real player builds
- Retro pixel art and chiptune soundtrack are cohesive and distinctive — the Woodlands/Kingmaker tracks are cited repeatedly as standouts
- Boss pool of 30+ enemies with unique mechanics forces build adaptation every three in-game days, creating genuine strategic variety
- Developer patches arrive frequently and demonstrably address balance complaints, giving players confidence in the Early Access trajectory
Gameplay Friction
- Item pool dilution is the dominant design flaw: unlocking more items floods the draw pool with low-value options, making synergy-building increasingly luck-dependent rather than skill-dependent as playtime grows
- Limited inventory (4 items + 1 weapon slot) with insufficient banish/reroll tools prevents players from reliably executing intended strategies
- Accidental weapon swap is irreversible mid-run, capable of destroying a carefully constructed build with a single misclick — no undo option exists
- Boss encounters hard-counter specific build archetypes (e.g., Razorclaw Grizzly ignores all armor, Boar one-shots low-health builds), narrowing viable strategies to specific item combos
- Swamplands difficulty spike is steep relative to Woodlands, creating a wall where many fun builds become non-functional without warning
- Early game is opaque for new players — mechanical depth only becomes apparent after ~10 hours, with limited in-game guidance to accelerate the learning curve
- Kingmaker balance is distorted by dominant meta builds (Thorns/bomb compositions) that crowd out creative strategies in competitive play
Audience Profile
Ideal Player
A patient theorycrafting roguelite fan who loves discovering absurd item combos in 15-minute runs during commutes or late-night sessions.
Casual Friendliness
medium
Player Archetypes
Not For
Sentiment Trend
stable
Sentiment steady at ~86% positive over the last 180 days (699 reviews).
Genre Context
Auto-battler roguelites live or die on build variance and run freshness; He is Coming's 350-item pool and 30+ boss roster meet genre expectations for variety, but its absence of meta-progression and two-map scope sit below the content floor that players have come to expect from established entries in the space. At $9.99, the price is competitive, but Early Access buyers in this genre increasingly benchmark value against complete experiences rather than roadmap promises.
Promise Gap
Audience Match
The store page targets solo PvE players seeking a rich single-player fantasy roguelite, but the game's most engaged audience skews toward asynchronous PvP theorycrafters and Steam Deck portability seekers — groups the description does not address. PvE-only buyers frequently feel misled by the scope implied in the store copy.
Player Wishlist
- Additional biomes and boss pools beyond the current two maps — players with 50–100+ hours explicitly cite this as the primary missing feature
- Permanent meta-progression system (character classes, base upgrades) to reward long-term investment outside individual runs
- Co-op PvE mode alongside the existing asynchronous PvP
- Item set filtering or draft-weighting tools so players can curate their unlock pool and reduce dilution
- Control remapping and screen resolution settings for non-standard setups
- Screen shake toggle for accessibility (motion sensitivity)
Churn Triggers
- After 2–4 hours of PvE, players hit the content ceiling (two maps completed) and realize no additional single-player biomes are available, triggering departure among PvE-focused buyers
- When the unlocked item pool grows large enough that synergy-building feels random rather than strategic — typically around 5–15 hours — players who bought for build-crafting depth disengage
- At first contact with Kingmaker, players who encounter impossible stat combinations from apparent cheaters immediately abandon the multiplayer mode
- During the early game (first 1–3 hours) before mechanics click, a subset of players perceive the game as too random and exit before the loop reveals its depth
Developer Priorities
Implement item pool weighting or draft-filter system to prevent synergy dilution as unlock count grows
The highest-voted critical complaints (168, 142 helpful votes) trace directly to this mechanic. It is converting engaged mid-session players into negative reviewers and is the single largest churn driver for the core audience.
Deploy server-side validation or anti-cheat for Kingmaker to detect impossible stat combinations
Cheating is driving out the highest-playtime players (100–335 hours) — the exact audience responsible for word-of-mouth and long-tail retention. Asynchronous PvP is the game's primary endgame; corruption of it collapses the content ceiling.
Add a screen shake toggle and basic accessibility settings (keybind remapping, resolution control)
The screen shake review has 122 helpful votes — the highest accessibility signal in the dataset. Missing resolution/keybind settings cause immediate negative reviews from players who cannot adjust to their hardware.
Add an undo or confirmation prompt for weapon swaps to prevent accidental run-ending misclicks
Accidental weapon replacement is cited as the single most frustrating UX moment in the game — a low-complexity fix that eliminates a high-emotion negative event and requires trivial implementation effort.
Ship at least one additional PvE biome before 1.0 to retain PvE-focused players and reframe the EA narrative
156 reviews cite incomplete single-player content as a core complaint. A perceived pivot to PvP is actively generating negative reviews from the audience the store page targets. A new map signals commitment to PvE and resets the content ceiling for casual players.
Competitive Context
Most frequent roguelite reference point. Reviewers place He is Coming at comparable strategic depth; some prefer it for shorter run length. Daily challenge feature suggested as inspiration.
Cited as the closest competitor in addictive synergy-driven loop. One reviewer calls He is Coming 'the first roguelike to actually compete with Balatro in terms of polish and fun.'
Compared as the closest auto-battler peer. He is Coming praised as 'the best autobattler since Loop Hero' by fans, but criticized by others for having a fraction of Loop Hero's content at a similar price.
Cited for comparable item-unlock driven progression compulsion. Reviewer states they haven't felt the same drive to unlock everything since Isaac.
Referenced as a roguelite benchmark. He is Coming preferred for faster loop; criticized relative to Hades for lacking action combat, storytelling, and narrative depth.
Placed in the same auto-battler genre space. One reviewer notes Vampire Survivors offers more content and player involvement.
Praised by a long-time PoE player for matching PoE's theorycrafting depth in a fraction of the time investment.
Item mechanics compared unfavorably: RoR2 adds power with every item pick; He is Coming forces slot juggling and item discard, which some reviewers see as a design disadvantage.
One high-engagement reviewer ranks He is Coming in their all-time top 20, citing Monster Train as the last game that surprised them equally.
Publisher-bundled comparable auto-battler. Mentioned as a direct alternative; one reviewer notes 9 Kings gives significantly more player agency.
He is Coming positioned as avoiding Backpack Battles' forced min-max meta, with better balance described as a distinguishing advantage.
Sentiment History
Sentiment over time
Playtime Sentiment
Sentiment by time invested
· 2,403 post-launch reviewsPlayers who invest more time rate this game significantly higher (+15pts) — a strong signal of a slow-burn experience that rewards patience.
Competitive Benchmark
Compared to 577 similar games in the Strategy genre released in 2025.
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