The next game in the SteamWorld franchise is here. This time, instead of digging for gold or tower defense, it’s yet another spin on the newly popular deck building genre. Popularized by releases like Slay the Spire, these card-based spins on classic genres are popping up everywhere. They take the fun of a traditional TCG and add other video game elements to make something imminently interesting. Have you already gone through SteamWorld Quest and want to play something similar? Here are a few more entries in this growing category to watch out for in the coming months.
When you’re playing a deck building game, you always have to keep track of what you’re putting into your deck. Players of Slay the Spire know that it’s not always optimal to keep expanding your card pool mindlessly. You want access to your most powerful cards repeatedly, and having to churn through weaker spells to get to them is no good. Instead, you’ll want to make sure that anything you add to your deck helps with your overall theme. No matter if it’s a run-based game where you repeatedly build something or an RPG experience where you hold onto your changes, it’s still worth remembering.
Hopefully the trend of mixing other genres with procedural deck building continues. On the eve of the Xbox One, every game seemed to have cards tied into microtransaction systems. You weren’t building a deck, you were just cashing in consumable items that you had to procure over and over. Games like SteamWorld Quest and Slay the Spire recognize the popularity of cards as a concept, but treat them in a more familiar way. After all, who didn’t play the Pokemon TCG at their school’s cafeteria when they were young? Developers can tap into those good feelings while also exploring fun new mechanics. It’s a win/win.
SteamWorld Quest Card Battlers
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SteamWorld Quest and the Top 10 Deck Building games
The next game in the SteamWorld franchise is out, and it's yet another spin on the newly popular Deck Building genre. These Spirelikes take the fun of a traditional TCG and add other video game elements to make something imminently interesting. Here are a few more entries in this growing category. -
Slay the Spire
There may have been games before Slay the Spire to tap into the deck building ideal, but Slay the Spire lit the fuse that sparked the whole movement. The procedural runs, the endless strategic possibilities, and the crazy chain combos. Spire rightfully earns its place as a genre-defining title. -
Hand of Fate 2
Slay the Spire didn't come out of nowhere, and one of the games that predicted the trend was Hand of Fate and its sequel. An isometric action game with a hard focus on dice and tabletop action, both games are in-depth adventures with repeatable runs and plenty of variation. -
Forced Showdown
A lesser known card battler is Forced Showdown, a Binding of Issac-style bullet hell experience with power-ups based on deck building. The developers at BetaDwarf have moved on to a Clash of Clans-style game in Minion Masters, but what's available in the base game will still entertain players for hours. -
Book of Demons
Book of Demons has three words for you: deck building Diablo. This card-based hack and slash has a unique papercraft art style and plenty of variation thanks to its deck mechanics and multiple playable classes. Draw the right cards and you too can kick the Archdemon straight out of his perch in Hell. -
Deck of Ashes
While there are several games not listed here that merely aim to copy Slay the Spire, Deck of Ashes offers something different. It focuses on interacting with your graveyard, shuffling cards back and forth to gain unique effects. Our Early Access preview has much more on this interesting spin on deck building. -
Nowhere Prophet
While Spire focuses more on cards, Nowhere Prophet dives much more into the strategy end of things. Nowhere Prophet's development proceeded Slay the Spire by quite some time, but it's not out quite yet. Its summer debut this year should still put it in prime positioning to ride the wave of this new genre. -
Overdungeon
A lot of deck building games are slow turn-based affairs. Overdungeon is more fast-paced, trying to marry Spire's combat to a real-time battlefield. Throw your cards out and watch your monsters spit fire over and over. It's still in Early Access and has plenty of ground to cover, but it's one to look out for. -
A Long Way Down
Currently set for release at some point in 2019, A Long Way Down brings a dark RPG story into the mix. Morality matters, with decision points in the story to go along with choosing your cards. Wander through the maze and see if you can pick the right cards for the job. -
Fate Hunters
Currently in Early Access, Fate Hunters is a dark fantasy spin on Spirelikes. While the characters stick to the cards, the game's artwork is still impressive. With five playable classes currently in the game, there's plenty of different decks and combinations to try out already.
