Encounter: The Lost Cards

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Encounter: The Lost Cards is a single player tactical role playing game with fantasy, mystery, anime, medieval and others themes. It was developed by Salvatore Grosso and was released on January 26, 2026. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

As fate would have it, you’ve stumbled upon this game. Might as well give it a try. Who knows what you might encounter… ayyy. Get it? Encounter is the name of the game. When I said, “who knows what you might encounter,” it was a play on words. Encounter: The Lost Cards is a solo, turn-based roguelike where Tarot cards drive the journey. Each card represents an event—an enemy, a stranger, a blessi…

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73%

Audience ScoreBased on 30 reviews

gameplay4 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

Engaging turn-based combat with a unique tarot card mechanic and resource management elements, providing depth and replay value.
Strong pixel art style and music, creating an enjoyable atmosphere with humor and vibey presentation.
Good progression system with unlockable items and characters, including a mobile version that links with the main game.

Heavy reliance on RNG can feel frustrating and overly luck-based, impacting the strategy and enjoyment for some players.
The game has bugs and technical issues, including inventory management limitations, connectivity problems, and occasional crashes.
Lack of clear explanations and tutorial coverage for complex mechanics, plus an unfinished main story and uneven pacing.

gameplay
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
46%
23%
The gameplay is engaging and offers a unique challenge that rewards learning its mechanics, particularly the sin and virtue system, though some players find the randomness and lack of clear tutorials frustrating. While the core gameplay loop is solid and well-crafted, certain mechanics like blocking can feel unintuitive and poorly explained. Overall, the gameplay is enjoyable and thoughtfully designed but may require patience to fully appreciate.
- “One of the things that really appealed to me was having my butt handed to me for the first many runs, but eventually once you figure out the mechanics it gets more interesting.”
- “It has a bunch of different mechanics that are great imo (the whole virtuous/sinful system which doesn’t necessarily make one way better than another, the fact that each event has two variants which brings a ton of randomness into the run) and the whole RNG aspect can be mitigated if you know the game well.”
- “But the core gameplay loop is there and clear effort has been made to make it very tight and very resonant.”
- “I gave this a go for 3 hours and wanted to like it, but the randomized mechanics just straight up killed the experience for me.”
- “Not all mechanics are explained well in tutorial, like armor can block only up to 5 damage at a time and solid armor just means the armor point remains for the next strike, not blocks 2 damage outright.”
- “Why reinvent blocking mechanics for the hell of it... without even the development horsepower to pull it off cleanly and effectively and communicate how it works clearly?”
story
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The story is generally seen as limited and uneven, with an engaging, story-driven tutorial or prologue that hooks players, but the main game lacks a cohesive narrative and feels incomplete or flat. Some appreciate the initial storyline and pixel art, though pacing and story coherence are often criticized.
- “Interesting story-based tutorial.”
- “I based my opinion on the 30 minutes I played in the prologue and fully intend to play more. It got me hooked on the pixel art, the characters, and the story.”
- “Smooth mechanics and storyline.”
- “You have to figure out the game properly to beat it, but the moment you finally do, you find out that the main story isn’t finished yet and there’s nothing left to do.”
- “The tutorial serves as a story-driven intro, but the rest of the game is flat with no story at all.”
- “The story is chaotic and random despite the great raw pixel art.”
music
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
The music is generally well-received, with some users enjoying it along with the game's comedy and art style. However, there are mentions of tonal inconsistency in the soundtrack. The developer plans to update the song and cover art in the future, which some players find understandable given budget constraints.
- “I loved the music, the comedy, the art style, and the gameplay.”
- “The music is good, but varied.”
- “Tonal whiplash is a thing, and I'm dying of it because of the soundtrack.”
- “Went to see the AI disclosure and they only reported using it for the song in the ad video, which I originally hadn't caught.”
- “Generators are a tool, and this dev literally stated they plan to change the song and cover art when he has the money, I find that completely acceptable, if you want to fight about it try being poor.”
graphics
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
80%
20%
The graphics are praised for their great pixel art style and appealing visuals, contributing to the game's unique and humorous atmosphere. However, some users feel that while the visual detail is strong, more focus on other game aspects would have enhanced the overall experience.
- “I liked the graphics, especially the great pixel art style.”
- “Fun unique concept with funny writing, great visuals, and a unique twist to the roguelike genre!”
- “It's got humor, great pixel art style, turn-based combat, and experience gain on unsuccessful runs.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's humor is witty and enjoyable, adding charm to its unique rogue-like concept. While initially the mechanics may be confusing, players appreciate the funny writing and engaging tone once they get accustomed to the gameplay.
- “Enjoyed the end game a lot; the beginning was difficult to understand the game and rules, not too intuitive, but once you get the hang of things you enjoy it a lot more, even the witty humor.”
- “It's got humor, great pixel art style, turn-based combat, and experience gain on unsuccessful runs.”
- “Fun unique concept with funny writing, great visuals, and a unique twist to the roguelike genre!”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game offers solid replayability, encouraging players to revisit it in order to discover all easter eggs, unlock characters, and collect special items. This collectible focus adds meaningful incentives for multiple playthroughs.
- “There was a decent amount of replay value for me to try to collect all of the Easter eggs, characters, and all their special items.”
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the grinding aspect tedious due to inventory management and the inability to use crafting or stat-upgrading items conveniently, especially during inns and non-combat scenes. They suggest improvements to streamline item usage without interrupting gameplay flow.
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is notably problematic, with frequent bugs and technical issues that affect the overall experience.
- “Fairly buggy and janky.”

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Frequently Asked Questions

Encounter: The Lost Cards is a tactical role playing game with fantasy, mystery, anime, medieval and others themes.

Encounter: The Lost Cards is available on PC, Windows and Linux.

Encounter: The Lost Cards was released on January 26, 2026.

Encounter: The Lost Cards was developed by Salvatore Grosso.

Encounter: The Lost Cards has received mostly positive reviews from players. Most players liked Encounter: The Lost Cards for its gameplay but disliked it for its story.

Encounter: The Lost Cards is a single player game.

Similar games include Deepest Chamber: Resurrection, The Iron Oath, Backpack Hero, Card Quest, Beneath Oresa and others.

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