I love indie games, especially ones that break the norm. It usually doesn’t take long to find unique indie games and I believe we have one here with Versus Evil and Gambrinous’ latest, Cardpocalypse. Cardpocalypse as you can guess, is RPG with collectible cards. Battles are fought with the cards you collect and trade and the better your deck, the better your odds are at winning.

You play as 10-year old Jess and her adventures at a brand new school. This isn’t an ordinary school though as everyone here is obsessed with the most popular card game in the world, Mega Mutant Power Pets. There’s only one problem, the teachers at the school hate the game and have banned it. That doesn’t stop Jess and her new friends from playing, especially when strange things start occurring and the monsters from the game are appearing in real life.

I won’t go too much into the rest of the story because this game is very story driven so I don’t want to ruin it for you guys. Just know that it does seem like the story is quite deep, and you’ll need to talk to everyone and explore everything, just like any RPG.

It terms of gameplay, much of Carpocalypse deals with the card battling system which after several short tutorials, you’ll get the hang of quite quickly. Battling is pretty much like any other card game. Each player takes a turn placing down cards and attacking when they can. New cards usually can only be used for attacking in the next turn and any cards you already had on the field should be able to attack on that turn. Some cards have special abilities that allow them to attack on the same turn they are placed. Always be sure to check out what each card’s abilities are along with any special abilities they have. The key to winning is knowing your cards and what they do.

Build your decks around the ultra rare Champion cards you earn. Each Champion comes with unique abilities to tailor your deck around. First player to get their opponent’s Champion card’s health to zero wins the match. You will have to customize and overpower your favorite cards by applying stickers on them, on your path to saving the world from an impending mutant invasion. Players can earn better cards by completing quests, trading your candy stash for them, and defeating opponents.

For the most part, you are constantly gaining new cards. You’ll need to however organize your decks if you want to use your cards effectively.

Aside from the gameplay aspect of things, I’m really digging the whole presentation of the game. The art work is really unique with the way characters are drawn. It sort of has an abstract feel to it, but mainly with character’s faces. The monsters in the cards are also very well done with lots of variety which is what you need in a collection game. I just really like how it all looks. Audio wise, there’s a really good 80’s inspired soundtrack.

So is Cardpocalypse worth a buy? I believe so, especially if you’re a fan of card collecting/battling games. The game does remind me a bit of Pokemon, but that’s not a bad thing at all. While similar, it’s also very different and definitely has its own style and character. The card battles are pretty fun too and require you to actually examine both sides to determine what is the best strategy to proceed and which card to put down. It’s a solid experience for sure.

With that said, indie developer Gambrinous did a wonderful job here with Cardpocalypse and they’re not done with it yet. There will be a new free Gauntlet Mode update where you can choose a Champion and work your way through a series of challenges in a mega mutated version of draft mode. As you progress you will unlock more cards, more decks, and more playable Champions. Can’t wait!

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Received game from developer and/or publisher for coverage purposes.

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