10 awesome roguelike deck-builders you should check out

If you’re in the mood for a card battler, but you also want to do some city building, Cardboard Town offers the best of both worlds. This game combines deck-building mechanics with city-building gameplay. Instead of using cards to battle enemies, you use them to place roads, construct buildings, and keep residents happy. It’s the perfect mix of SimCity and Slay the Spire.

Even though this card game is inspired by Solitaire, it mimics the experience of playing cards at your local pub! Card Crawl Adventure is all exploring the world, visiting taverns, and battling the people you meet there. There are even weekly competitions that let players test their skills against each other.

Lots of roguelike deck-builders are set in generic fantasy worlds, but Yao-Guai Hunter takes its inspiration from wuxia movies! Players take on the role of a demon hunter battling magical monsters. There’s a huge selection of cards, ranging from cards based on real martial arts techniques to cards that can summon spiders. It’s an awesome-looking game that rewards all kinds of strategies.

One of the best things about roguelike deck-builders is trying out different decks and card combinations. There are more than one thousand cards in Breach Wanderers, which makes it perfect for experimentation. Not only is the card pool impressive, but the vibrant visuals are pretty easy on the eyes.

Don’t be fooled by Wildfrost’s adorable art style. Enemies might look cute, but they’re tough as nails and ready to punish mistakes. The high difficulty level might scare off some players, but if you’re willing to face its challenges, you’ll find a complex and rewarding game with a great progression system.

Roguelike deck-builders haven’t been around for very long, but Card Crusade still feels like a blast from the past. Not only does it have a great retro art style, but it takes inspiration from classic dungeon crawlers. As you delve deeper into the dungeon, you’ll find better cards, but you’ll also take on tougher enemies.

One part roguelike builder, one part tower defense game, Monster Train is one of the most compelling games I’ve ever played. The concept is simple: You’re on a train out of hell, and it’s up to you to keep the last of its flames alive. It’s easy to pick up and play, but with twenty-five difficulty levels, there’s also plenty of challenge for more experienced players.

Inspired by Little Red Riding Hood, Night of the Full Moon is a robust class-based deck-builder. Every class has a unique card pool and play style, making the game endlessly replayable. The standard story mode is extremely addictive, but if you get sick of that, there’s also an auto-battler and a gameplay mode that feels a lot like chess.

Instead of having players build a standard deck of cards, Backpack Hero asks you to create a deck you can fit into a backpack. Every card takes up a certain number of inventory slots, and the placement of cards affects their power. Lots of deck-builders involve some inventory management, but here, it’s a key part of the experience. Moving around the cards in your backpack feels a little like a game of Tetris.

Saving the world isn’t an easy task, but Beecarbonize makes it feel possible. This strategic card game asks players to find a solution to climate change. Whether you choose to new policies or research cutting-edge technology, every card you play will change the world around you.