I have played a ton of deck-building games over the last year or two, but Griftlands does more than enough to stand out. This is also a rouguelite, but it has a sci-fi setting and a heavy emphasis on making decisions as you play. The game as I write this is in early access, but there is more than enough here to make it worthwhile checking out.
How to Download Griftlands
You can download the game from Steam. There is also a free demo available, so you can try it before you buy it. If you like the game, check out also other hits by Klei Entertainment: Oxygen Not Included or Don’t Starve Together.
The Game Review
The game is very heavily character driven and currently, you have two characters to choose from. These are Sal and Rook and each one has their own decks, abilities, and story for you to experience. It is my understanding that another character and other quests, cards, and so on are going to be added as the game moves along the development.
I like the style and setting of the game. It has a sci-fi kind of wild west vibe going on and that is really cool. There is a lot of text here, but what is cool is that the game has much of its own jargon, but you can highlight certain words and it will let you know what they mean. I liked this as it gave this strange world more personality.
The game looks like a million bucks. This is one of the best-looking card building games I have played, seriously it looks like a legit animated series that you would watch on TV. I found that this along with the overall setting really got me invested in the game like some other deck-building games have struggled to.
The actual gameplay of Griftlands is a lot of fun. You can have two decks on the go at once and each character has their own style of deck. You can add people to your party and like other games of this style knowing what cards to use and when is the key. There is a lot of strategy and some trial and error here, but overall, I found it a fun experience.
The battles are quite fast-paced and thanks to those incredible visuals. I found myself getting really into what was going on. The game also has some boss battles, the few I have done so far are super tough, but they never felt unfair which I liked. Overall, the gameplay is tough, but I found this to be much more accessible than other deck-building games.
A huge part of the game is dealing with other people. You will get many opportunities in the game to talk to people. You can attack, befriend, screw them over and even buy and trade with certain folks. What I liked about this aspect of the game was that it felt like everything I did could have some kind of consequences down the line.
For example, you could let a dude live only for him to come back and help you later or try and kill you. You can kill the wrong guy and then have his whole crew on your back! There always feels like there is some weight behind the decisions you make and that helped me get even more invested in what I was doing.
I was not sure if Griftlands was going to hook me, but hook me it did! This is one of the best deck building games I have played in a long time. It is just a lot of fun to play and I love the sci-fi setting of the game and the way it looks, sounds, and in general everything about it. The game is not finished yet, but what is here is great so far.
