As We Descend

About

As We Descend is a single player tactical role playing game with medieval, post-apocalyptic and historical themes. It was developed by Box Dragon and was released on May 28, 2025. It received very positive reviews from players.

As We Descend is a strategy roguelike deckbuilder set in an apocalyptic world with dual-layered deckbuilding: you must play your cards right in both dangerous expeditions and the last city of humankind. Recruit new squads of units by utilizing scavenged technology. Each squad is a unique archetype with its own set of cards which can be added, removed, and upgraded. Deploy the right compos…

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91%

Audience ScoreBased on 549 reviews

gameplay67 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

Unique and fresh take on the roguelike deckbuilder genre, combining tactical two-zone combat with city resource management.
Excellent art style, creature designs, and atmospheric sound design that create an immersive dark and dystopian world.
Deep strategic gameplay with meaningful choices, diverse unit synergies, and rewarding combat mechanics such as staggering and weak point targeting.

The game is currently in early access with limited content, short runs, and lack of story depth; more narrative and progression are desired.
User interface issues include hard-to-read text, overlapping info, and confusing tooltips, making the game less accessible and harder to learn.
Some balance problems and punishing difficulty spikes exist, including occasional frustrating enemy attacks that can feel unfair or overly reliant on RNG.

gameplay
188 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
62%
2%
The gameplay is a complex and engaging blend of roguelike deckbuilding with unique mechanics such as stagger and faction-specific tactics, offering deep strategic choices and a satisfying mastery curve. While some find the mechanics dense and initially overwhelming, updates have improved balance and replayability, though certain areas like the city phase and UI could use refinement. Overall, it presents a fresh, addictive, and thoughtfully crafted gameplay loop that stands out within the genre.
- “Core mechanics are really solid with a Slay the Spire ascension system for replay value and a meta progression system which rewards experimenting with different troops to unlock more cards and troops.”
- “The stagger mechanic in combat is perhaps the standout feature of this game: there is strong incentive to learn enemy combat timings and identify when the best moment is to stagger an enemy, effectively disabling it for a short time, and to learn which weakpoints are critical to target to cripple the enemy further once it recovers. This mechanic is unique among the other deckbuilders I've played, and has a lot of room for growth as the game's development continues.”
- “Tons of crunchy decisions to ponder in the meta city layer, as well as the tactical combats that cleverly merge light positioning and auto-battler-adjacent mechanics into the classic deckbuilder formula.”
- “The gameplay was already fun and satisfying but you could almost rinse and repeat the same tactics over and over which made the gameplay too repetitive.”
- “Game was good but an update introduced a phase system to 'help new players' and just changed the gameplay to be very linear and boring.”
- “The gameplay loop with city interactions feels a little clunky and slow; hopefully they'll add a way to speed up the interactions.”
graphics
73 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
59%
37%
4%
The game's graphics receive widespread praise for their unique, gothic-steampunk and grimdark aesthetic, featuring beautiful, well-designed artwork and animations that enhance the atmosphere. While some find the visuals immersive and original with engaging art styles, others note occasional repetitiveness and underdeveloped thematic expression in environments. Overall, the art style strongly contributes to the game's appeal and helps differentiate it within the deck-building roguelike genre.
- “The art style is phenomenal.”
- “The art style is spectacular, and there's enough variety in each playthrough already to make it feel fresh each time.”
- “Absolutely gorgeous visuals and tons of potential on this one!”
- “Aesthetically the battles take place in what feels like the same cramped, bland box every time - there's very little in the art that actually evokes the theme that the game is going for, which is that the city itself is burrowing down into the earth (I think).”
- “Ui needs some time to get used to, some visuals are not ready (thus early access).”
- “The aesthetic is gothic steampunk with a Virtual Boy x dog food color palette.”
story
46 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
67%
7%
The game's story is currently sparse and underdeveloped, with many players noting its absence or lack of evolution, though it shows potential through intriguing lore and characters. While some appreciate the narrative elements and ongoing meta-progression, most hope for further fleshing out, richer storytelling sequences, and more impactful choices in future updates. The active developer communication and aesthetic promise suggest the story might improve beyond early access.
- “Engaging, story works, doesn't drag you through a ton of meaningless words, tight game loop.”
- “The characters around the city are interesting, beautifully drawn and the storyline just drags you in.”
- “This game manages to be novel and exciting in an overcrowded genre while also telling a very interesting story with really cool lore.”
- “If this game had even a little bit of a story and it eventually became clear what we’re doing and why, that would be a dream come true.”
- “But the fact that there isn't even any kind of evolution to the story beyond what may or may not have been explained at the start means that essentially there is no story, so there's no point to any of the beautiful things we're seeing through the game.”
- “The story is nonexistent, some dialogs are present to give some general background vibes, but that's all.”
music
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
37%
11%
The music in the game is widely praised for its fitting, immersive, and atmospheric qualities, often enhancing combat intensity and overall mood. While some find the soundtrack repetitive, most reviews highlight its strong contribution to the game's art, worldbuilding, and emotional impact, with occasional notes that it may not be standout for everyone but still complements the gameplay well.
- “The music is solid and fitting, while the sound design has real punch and impact, helping combat moments feel weighty and intense.”
- “Deeply rewarding gameplay and addictive soundtrack, this gets my game of year vote!”
- “The art and music work perfectly together and create this really immersive, eerie vibe that just sticks with you.”
- “As you dig deeper through the run, though, nothing at all seems to change, so you're left with the vibe you get from the soundtrack and the mostly static environment.”
- “Id say 8 out of 10, it's missing a solid soundtrack.”
- “- For music and sound effects, they didn't strike me really that much, but they do fit really well with the theme or atmosphere of the game, so that is really nice.”
atmosphere
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
42%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive, well-crafted dark fantasy setting, supported by impressive art, sound design, and music that cohesively enhance the worldbuilding. Players appreciate the unique, mysterious, and adventurous vibe that makes the game feel lived-in and engaging, often highlighting it as a standout feature. While some hope for deeper lore development, the overall atmospheric experience is considered a major strength that elevates the gameplay.
- “The worldbuilding is impressive, with a clear sense of lore and atmosphere that makes the world feel lived-in and intentionally crafted rather than just a backdrop for gameplay.”
- “As we descend is a captivating blend of roguelike mechanics, deep strategy, and immersive atmosphere that has quickly become one of my favorite gaming experiences this year.”
- “Gameplay is good, atmosphere is adventurous, worldbuilding is mysterious, music works well on the atmosphere, visual style and character design are two things I really enjoyed.”
replayability
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
61%
13%
The game offers solid replayability through its unique faction combos, meta progression, and roguelike deckbuilding mechanics, drawing favorable comparisons to titles like Slay the Spire. However, some players note limited current content, repetitive encounters, and incomplete features that temper long-term replay value. Ongoing updates and potential content expansions are expected to significantly enhance its replayability over time.
- “Core mechanics are really solid with a Slay the Spire ascension system for replay value and a meta progression system which rewards experimenting with different troops to unlock more cards and troops.”
- “Each of the factions have their unique squads and choosing different combos and synergies as you descend gives the game heaps of replayability.”
- “Tons of replayability and the developers are doing small and major updates all the time.”
- “The purchase feels a bit iffy at times with how little replayability it has as of now.”
- “I've already unlocked most of the game within 10 hours and there's not a lot of replayability at the moment.”
- “Only 2 of 3 factions are playable, most locations lose their value after the first visit, and bosses repeat across dives.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Grinding in the game is generally seen as a necessary part of progression, with battles balanced to remain engaging rather than tedious. However, some players find the later stages more grind-heavy due to scaling issues, though the core gameplay loop remains enjoyable without feeling like a pure stat grind.
- “If you like just grinding, it's okay; otherwise, pass, despite the cool art.”
- “Needs a lot of balance; the battles become too grindy by region 3 and 4, and the ability to cause damage does not scale.”
- “I think it's an interesting idea, but it feels a bit grindy at the moment.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Optimization is widely criticized, with users reporting poor performance, especially during intense gameplay moments, and frequent issues like slow screen transitions and asset pop-ins. Overall, the game suffers from significant optimization problems that impact the user experience.
- “Performance is terrible for what it is, UI is painful once you get draw rate up or enemies start hitting you with affliction cards.”
- “I am playing on a rog ally, so I don't know if this is a lack of optimization, but a lot of screen transitions and loading feature assets pop in from previous screens or other places for a few seconds before disappearing.”
- “Performance could use optimization as well.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a strong emotional connection to the game, likening its impact to their first experience with Darkest Dungeon and highlighting genuine investment and heartfelt support.
- “This game made me feel the same emotions I felt when I played Darkest Dungeon for the first time.”
- “I don't usually write long reviews, but I'm genuinely emotionally invested in this game and want to give it my wholehearted support.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Character development is highlighted primarily through strong character design and visual style, which players found enjoyable. While the gameplay and atmosphere contribute to the overall experience, the focus on character design enhances engagement and immersion.
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its stability, being bug-free and running smoothly, contributing to an enjoyable and balanced gameplay experience.
- “Game is well balanced, fun to play, pretty to look at, and as far as I can tell: bug free.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is noted for being genuinely funny, adding an enjoyable and entertaining element to the overall experience.
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's monetization is widely criticized as a cash grab, marked by an initially high price that was later reduced due to poor sales, alongside attempts to manipulate reviews by distributing extra copies. Overall, the approach is seen as unfriendly and driven primarily by profit rather than player value.
- “Cash grab with sugar coating on top of being unfriendly, dev initially launched it at 30 dollars to grab as much money from the hype, failed so reduced it to 20 dollars and discounted it, then proceeded to give extra copies to earn positive reviews.”