NEOVERSE
At its core, Neoverse is a Slay-the-Spire-esque “roguelike” deckbuilding game where you play cards to clear combat encounters across three acts of increasing difficulty, each one capped off with a boss fight. It aggressively invites comparisons to its dark fantasy predecessor, being more similar than many others in the same narrow genre.
However, despite the fact that it saves a lot of effort by way of imitation, Neoverse is a rather different experience to play.
For one, Neoverse is more forgiving. Some negative reviews complain about the difficulty spike of the bonus boss, but while that encounter does require more care and preparation than anything else in Neoverse, it’s still nowhere near the teeth-grinding frustration that you get in many games with “Roguelike” elements that expect you to fail over and over until the RNG winds blow fair and you’re able to assemble that perfect winning combo. I’d go so far as to say that until you start pushing the harder content like higher-level Transcendent Universe runs or Challenge Mode, the game is actually pretty easy… at least if you have a good instinct, either learned from playing or transferred in from familiarity with the genre, for what to do in general. But, I would say instead that Neoverse feels much more ‘fair’ than most other members of the genre.
– Real player with 59.1 hrs in game
Read More: Best Card Battler Deckbuilding Games.
One of the best Spire-type games out there!
Without a doubt. If you like Slay the Spire, you’ll love this little gem!
The setting of the game puts us in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic “universe” where mankind stuck its d#ck in crazy when everything was fine and dandy as it was. As a result, humanity finds itself in QUITE the pickle with multiple realities slamming into each other like a night at the local rave club - only it’s not fun and drugs are nowhere to be found. Monsters, and God knows what else, start pouring through as dimensional shifts smash realities into each other and try to find a balance amidst the chaos. Naturally humanity was NOT ready for this level of f#cktitude, and - as could be expected - that which once WAS is now a complete, dilapidated mess.
– Real player with 45.5 hrs in game
h8machine
h8machine is a cardgame set in a dystopian future in which Artificial Intelligence 🤖🤖🤖 has completely overtaken the online world 🌐🌐🌐 but the worst part is - it learned to behave just like us…
but the AI is not just in the story! an in-game neural network allows you to customize and randomize 2D art in real time! with this TECHNOLOGY, you can fully immerse yourself in the world of anime profile pics posting complete garbage. it’s just like real life social media!
no one uses realtime-with-pause in cardgames, probably for some good reason. but screw it, I like RTWP so I just put it in!
you will strategize around the use of timers as the flow of time is your main resource! there is no turns and all cards time out, resulting in a gameplay like you haven’t seen before. will you get lost in the hectic chaos of ticking timers, or will you optimize every fraction of a second at your disposal? remember: the active pause system allows you to play any card you want while the time stops. use it to make your decisions and execute powerful combos!
are you tired of collecting cards one by one and having to remove the crap ones from your deck as a deckbuilder game goes on? in h8machine, instead of trying to collect a deck card by card, you grab packets of cards with their own “personalities” - internet stereotypes and whatnot. each of these personalities contributes 1/3 of your deck, and you can mix&match them to easily form decks with a pre-constructed feel
Monster Monpiece
Monster Monpiece is a highly flawed card game that still manages to be enjoyable.
The core gameplay is pretty solid. You get 3 Mana every turn, and you can use this Mana to play one of the cards in your hand (all creature cards) each round, placing it onto a small board. The goal of each battle is to get your monster girls across the board and into the enemy HQ, which will cause the unit to be lost but the enemy to take one point of damage. Typically, three points of damage will defeat your opponent. The enemy AI is extremely stupid and quite predictable, so the game usually compensates for that by giving it superior cards.
– Real player with 82.7 hrs in game
Read More: Best Card Battler Strategy Games.
Monster Monpiece, or as I’ve come to call it, maybe another month’ll do it because this game can’t be played all at once without losing your sanity. That’s a bit of a mouthful though, so we’ll shorten it to “unless you really like card games and monster girls, you can skip this one.”
Alright, that wasn’t much better, but my point is this game drags on for way too long for how little depth there is to it. After the first few battles you have basically mastered the game, from there the only thing that changes is getting new cards that do new things that the old cards might not have done, or they do better, or etc etc card game mechanics until you realize two things. Nothing matters but the main stat which is used to summon a card, and that skipping the first few turns has 0 downside and lets you stack your hand to summon whatever you want anyway. Unfortunate first hand draw, didn’t get a 3 mana monster, doesn’t really matter cause next turn you can draw one of those 4, 5, 6 cards anyway. To help you understand, this would be like Yugi summoning Dark Magician on his second turn, it’s really dumb, and it’s how the game is actually played. The second thing you learn that makes almost any other card in the game irrelevant, is that some cards get a + mana bonus, in particular, they tend to give mana when you summon them, and when they are destroyed. Whenever you first get access to a card with this (Nekomata), the game completely changes because you skip your first turn, summon nekomata, she casts her ability to give 3 mana, instantly dies to whatever monster you put her in front of, on your 3rd turn now you have basically 3x as much mana as you would have in any other battle up until this point. From there you stack your deck with Nekomatas, and congrats you have beaten the game. Also don’t bother with healers or buffers, they are just dead weight in comparison to putting another combat ready card on the map that can stand on it’s own, seriously, you might think that’s just a min-max kind of statement, but no really, it just works out like that with how the game is built.
– Real player with 51.0 hrs in game
Cherry Tree High Girls' Fight
This is a stat building simulator game, where fighting is simulated through card battle. It took me awhile to figure out how the card battle works, and I can see why many people are frustrated due to lack of transparancy. I would still recommend this game because I’ve ejoyed playing it and 773 / Seikai Project has made efforts to improve the game.
Card battle tips here: http://www.giantbomb.com/cherry-tree-high-girls-fight/3030-54287/
Positives
-
Good music
-
Good anime styled art work
– Real player with 71.7 hrs in game
I played through this game so many times now.
It’s a really good one and I love the characters.
Especially Asuka, Kei and Kyoko, as well as Asumi and Haru but everyone else is sweet too.
They gave every girl some background story and personality, and there’s quite a lot of characters. Of course this means it’s not super deep on character backgrounds as there’s just too many characters. But for the amount of characters present in the game, this is not surprising and they did a really good job with that. I mean, come on, it’s one thing to flesh out 1 or 2 characters and do a great game with those, but this game has 15 characters, you gotta account for that.
– Real player with 42.1 hrs in game
The Huntsman: Winter’s Curse
This is an amazingly fun game. The first chapter of 5 is free but the rest will cost you. Not sure if they’re worth the asking price but when they’re on sale, definitely worth it.
The Huntsman: Winter’s Curse is a turn-based RPG where the skills you use are based on a deck of cards. Every piece of equipment you use (weapon, armor, and 2 accessories) will give you access to a different set of cards and sometimes a special bonus (or negative effect). So there’s a lot of strategy in what you decide to equip. On the same page where you choose your equipment is also a skill tree. Everytime you level up, you get to choose one perk - all passive.
– Real player with 81.7 hrs in game
The Huntsman : Winter’s Curse is a surprising gem in a fairytale universe, totally worth its price in my opinion. The first book is free to play : a perfect way to make your own opinion about it. And since this is a fairytale, your steam wallet will magically decrease in order to purchase the season pass. Remember : magic always comes with a price.
This game is so much more than a Visual Novel, I just fell in love with its unique type. The story is about Elisabeth, a stubborn girl who used to live in a farm with her father and decides to leave her village to start her own adventure. Her brothers left home years ago and it’s time for her to look for them and discover what happened. During her journey, she will meet many good or evil characters / monsters. Many dangers await but sometimes, fear and inner self are the worst enemies.
– Real player with 12.2 hrs in game
Princess Battles
Fun game, would be great if it were a little longer but definitely worth buying and playing. Yes, you have to deal with a bratty princess to start out, but there’s actual choice about which way she develops. She isn’t a pushover, which is rather nice. There are a number of interesting endings, which add to playing time and value.
Artwork is very nice, main story and story arcs are well done, card battles are slightly repetitive but the difficulty progression is good (especially the first time through). And despite the repetition, I did find the card games fun.
– Real player with 18.9 hrs in game
I was hesitant to buy this. The price seemed a bit expensive and what little I saw of the writing seemed a bit simple. I say seemed, because actually I had a ball with this game! The graphics are pretty, and I love the different dresses for the MC! All of the characters, including the MC, are really likable! Gerald is my absolute favorite, I was smiling through all of his scenes! (I will say it felt more like 3 love interests, not 4). I love that we get extra stories and free play mode. The card battles are fun, and I like that we can customize our deck in free play. The difficulty felt right, since I lost as many times as I won.
– Real player with 16.8 hrs in game
Alina of the Arena
ABOUT
‘Alina of the Arena’ is a roguelite deckbuilding tactics game that combines elements from ‘Slay the Spire’ and ‘Into the Breach’.
Play as a gladiator that must fight for a bloodthirsty crowd to survive. With roguelite deckbuilding and hex-based tactics, players are no longer bound by simple attack and defense. Make use of dodges and knockbacks to stay alive!
#### FEATURES
-
Dynamic Deckbuilding
Pick up dozens of cards, keep the ones you need, and craft a unique deck as you fight your way through randomized levels that present a different challenge each run!
-
Hex-based Tactics
Unlike traditional deckbuilders that focus on attack and defense, the tactics element adds a dimension of positioning. Dupe your enemies into attacking each other, or use the terrain to gain an upper hand.
-
Dual Equipment System
Carry equipment in both hands to enhance your cards! You can dual wield daggers for extra damage, go with a sword & shield combo for rounded performance, or wreak havoc with a two-handed weapon. Figure out the best combination for each fight!
Cardpocalypse
Extremely Fun game with a unique and well designed card game mechanics. While there are a few things I think that could be improved, overall they really pale in comparison to the fun I’ve had from this game.
Pros
-
Fresh new card game mechanics with well designed factions that are both unique and synergistic
-
great story
-
Very replayable
-
Fun Gauntlet mode make your own deck each win with difference Champs
-
Great sound track and voicelines
Cons
- animations and walking can get a little tedious on multiple playthroughs
– Real player with 88.5 hrs in game
This game could have been AMAZING but has some design and balance shortcomings. I’ll list them briefly then go into more detail below.
-
No way to collect all the cards or undo certain permanent changes
-
No real post game or new game+ to try out different deck types. Unskippable cutscenes ruin the thought of replaying the game.
-
Some balance shortcomings can make a couple parts almost impossible in some cases, this game is otherwise extremely easy.
I still had fun with this game and not a lot of people make games like this anymore. The story and writing is charming and the art grew on me. The complaints only hurt so hard because the rest of the game shows so much promise. I still had fun with my 14ish hours of it but I wouldn’t recommend paying full price unless you really love these types of games.
– Real player with 33.9 hrs in game
Shadowhand: RPG Card Game
Shadowhand (Solitaire/Battle-Card)
Options include Full-screen/Borderless Window, Tutorial, Show Blood and Custom Cursor. There are 3 difficulties (Relaxed, Normal, Very Hard), and each is clearly marked as to what is different. Difficulty can be changed before each chapter if you so wish.
The Basics:
Gameplay is similar to that of Faerie or Regency Solitaire, with cards being placed one lower or one higher. The first big difference here is that there are no face cards (Jack, Queen, King, Ace). Instead the cards range from 0 to 9. Zero can go on nine, and vice-versa.
– Real player with 34.9 hrs in game
Shadowhand is a very fun and (mostly) relaxing way to spend an hour here and there. It took me around 23 hours to 100%, playing only on hardest difficulty.
I found it best to play 1-3 chapters per sitting. There are 22 chapters in total, with 8 hands each chapter after the first few tutorial-type chapters. There are also three difficulty levels that can be toggled on a per-chapter basis, with each chapter being replayable, so there is no need to create new profiles.
The base gameplay is similar to the usual solitaire titles on Steam, where you have a stock or draw deck each hand, and the objective is to basically clear the board of cards in sequential up and/or down chains, one card at a time. The card numbers range from 0-9 rather than your standard deck of cards, and there are 6 or 7 total suits.
– Real player with 24.6 hrs in game
Goddess Of Card War
I think this is a “You get what you pay for” sorta thing but….I’m still iffy on the price (I got it at discount/sale too). So…I’m tentatively going to give it a thumbs down (I’ll explain in point 2). The game is interesting if you’re really into grinding. If you’re not into grinding, this is a hard pass.
The game’s story…doesn’t exist. I was taken back at first that there was no tutorial, I was thrown into battle right away, and I was lost for about 20 seconds then realized…you don’t do anything. This is a semi-idle game that is bad at the idle part. The combat is fully automated, there is no control there. That said, most battles take 6-12 seconds, and you have to constantly re-enter or go to the next map/area. So you still have to manage it but without any kind of actual game play. You set a formation of up to 9 characters and you can equip them with stuff and little things to grind to make them more powerful, which I’m not gonna lie, is pretty fun in its own way.
– Real player with 11.3 hrs in game
The character is very beautiful, there is nothing to say.
– Real player with 1.1 hrs in game