HELLCARD
- February 15, 2023
- Thing Trunk
- 34h median play time
Hellcard is a decent if unremarkable card-battler with some cool ideas that offers a decent challenge for fans of the genre.
Get on SteamHELLCARD is a fantasy turn-based strategy game with single-player and multiplayer modes, where up to three players can cooperatively battle against the Archdemon's hordes. Its unique feature is the tactical placement of monsters, adding a strategic element to the deck-building mechanics. With sensational graphics and a potential for grinding, HELLCARD offers an engaging and challenging experience for players.
Mac OS
PC
Steam Deck
Windows
Reviews
- Hellcard is a fun and engaging cooperative deck-building game that shines when played with friends.
- The game features unique mechanics, such as enemy positioning and simultaneous turns, adding depth to the gameplay.
- There is a good variety of cards and classes, allowing for different strategies and builds in each run.
- The single-player experience can feel tedious and unbalanced, as players have limited control over AI companions' decks.
- Some players find the difficulty spikes to be frustrating, especially when facing overwhelming numbers of enemies.
- The game lacks sufficient content and variety, leading to repetitive gameplay after a few runs.
- gameplay217 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this card-based roguelike is characterized by its engaging mechanics and cooperative elements, allowing for strategic depth and unique class interactions. While many players appreciate the fun and addictive gameplay loop, some criticize the pacing and complexity, particularly in single-player mode, which can feel tedious and slow. Overall, the game offers a solid foundation with room for improvement in balance and content, making it a worthwhile experience for fans of the genre, especially in multiplayer settings.
“Co-op deckbuilder with 5 classes that each have unique gameplay mechanics.”
“The gameplay is easy to pick up, and complex enough to make you want to stick around.”
“Engaging deckbuilder mechanics: hellcard shines with its compelling gameplay, enchanting players with its strategic depth and variety.”
“If you don't mind tedious gameplay of switching between multiple hands with multiple cards.”
“The concept is interesting, but the core gameplay loop is extremely tedious and repetitive.”
“After a couple of single player runs, it becomes quite repetitive, mainly because the gameplay mechanics are a bit too simple.”
- graphics81 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 51 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique and charming paper-like art style, which adds a distinctive aesthetic appeal to the gameplay. Many players appreciate the smooth animations and overall visual design, although some critique the color palette as dull or the environments as stale. Overall, the visuals contribute positively to the immersive experience, enhancing both the fun and engaging aspects of the game.
“A surprisingly addictive game with a charming art style.”
“The paper cutout art style is really enjoyable to look at.”
“Visually, Hellcard impresses with its unique paper-like aesthetic, which adds a distinctive charm to its world.”
“The art style and theme is ambiguous and inconsistent; it doesn't feel like anything belongs in the same world.”
“The graphics are lazy and oddly demanding on your system, and the story is non-existent.”
“The art style is fine but not great - the environments and enemy types mostly look kinda stale and boring.”
- replayability46 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 7 % negative mentions
Overall, Hellcard is praised for its high replayability, driven by diverse character options, constantly updated content, and engaging multiplayer interactions. While some players note limitations due to a small number of main characters and occasional gameplay issues, the game's variety in builds and mechanics keeps it enjoyable for extended play. Many reviewers highlight the fun factor and potential for endless replayability, especially in cooperative settings.
“Hellcard is tremendously fun, great for team play, with high replayability.”
“Replayability through diversity: the game's assortment of cards, artifacts, and companions, coupled with its randomly generated feats, ensures that each journey into the abyss feels distinct and engaging.”
“Infinitely-replayable games, those with either procedurally-generated content or environs and copious amounts of random and unpredictable elements, tend to be those that sink their claws into me and won't let go.”
“Replayability is a bit limited as there are only three classes.”
“I will say that it could still have some more replayability however as after 16 hours I feel that I've tried (and won I think) all builds I could think of for the two characters I enjoyed playing.”
“Some of the companion character types are cool, but you're always locked into the basic three classes for your main, which is where most of your abilities are, which really kills the replayability.”
- grinding23 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game has been widely criticized for being tedious and repetitive, with many players finding the combat slow and the gameplay loop monotonous. While some appreciate the game's concept, the overwhelming density of enemies and the need for meticulous strategy can make battles feel like a chore. Overall, the grind is seen as excessive, detracting from the enjoyment and flow of the game.
“The concept is interesting, but the core gameplay loop is extremely tedious and repetitive.”
“I wanted to like it, but it just quickly felt tedious.”
“The whole grind feels ungodly slow and each battle feels ungodly tedious.”
- story13 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 46 % neutral mentions
- 31 % negative mentions
The game's story is largely criticized for its minimal presence, with many reviewers noting it lacks a coherent narrative and is primarily focused on gameplay mechanics. While some appreciate the unique art style and pop-up storybook design, the overall consensus is that the game offers little in terms of story content, making it more suitable for action-oriented play rather than narrative-driven experiences.
“The art style and storytelling are also top-notch.”
“The storybook pop-up/origami design is very unique.”
“The art style and voice acting are surprisingly polished for an early access game; I found the pop-up storybook theme quite charming and would love to see what they manage with future books!”
“It's a straight, no-story dungeon-crawler, so it lacks the narrative thread of games like 'Across the Obelisk,' and it doesn't have a point-based character specialization; that appears to be entirely down to what cards and artifacts you discover.”
“I wish there were more events/story beats, but everything is just about the rewards and not much else.”
“There is no story campaign, or at least as of yet, meaning the beef of this game is the gameplay loop-- again, great for multiplayer, less so for solo play.”
- humor11 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is described as clever and funny, with amusing card names and artifacts that enhance the experience. Players find the multiplayer aspect particularly hilarious, leading to many laugh-out-loud moments despite coordination mishaps. Overall, the game successfully balances humor with its creepy atmosphere, and the developers' active engagement with the community adds to the lighthearted tone.
“The card names and artifacts are funny and clever.”
“Fun, challenging, and with lots of humor sprinkled in, while still maintaining its aim in a creepy/horror atmosphere.”
“Multiplayer is hilarious, because even if we were in voice chat, we still made so many coordination mistakes!”
- music11 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 27 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The music in the game is described as eerie and atmospheric, contributing to an immersive experience, but opinions vary widely; some find it enjoyable while others consider it lackluster and repetitive. The sound design, particularly for card interactions and enemy deaths, is praised for its satisfying quality, though many players feel the overall audio experience is limited and may lead them to turn off the music after a short time.
“Its brilliantly designed card-based combat, dark gothic visuals, and haunting soundtrack create an immersive experience that’s as intense as it is enjoyable.”
“Great music and atmosphere as well.”
“The art direction is not cheap and the epic music really sets the mood.”
“Its music is lacking.”
“The music and sounds are very limited, and you'll turn them off after one run.”
“The music is such a mood-killer.”
- atmosphere10 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 30 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere receives mixed reviews, with some praising its engaging visuals, captivating audio, and ability to create tension, while others find it lacking excitement and immersion. While the music and art style contribute positively, issues with the user interface and certain elements detract from the overall experience. Overall, the atmosphere is described as enjoyable and effective in enhancing gameplay, particularly in horror and cooperative settings.
“Great music and atmosphere as well.”
“Fun, challenging and with lots of humor sprinkled in, while still maintaining its aim in a creepy/horror atmosphere.”
“A fun co-op roguelite with captivating visuals, atmospheric audio, engaging deck-building mechanics, and an excellent gameplay loop that will keep you coming back for more.”
“Additionally, the art and atmosphere of the game is just not exciting at all.”
“While they adequately serve their purpose, they fail to fully immerse players in the game's atmosphere, detracting slightly from the overall experience.”
“It's got depth, it's got atmosphere, it's got a future.”
- optimization9 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while it features beautiful art direction and runs smoothly at high frame rates during gameplay, users report issues like memory leaks that degrade performance over time. Some players have experienced difficulties with settings adjustments, particularly on the Steam Deck, and while certain interactions have been optimized, further improvements are still needed. Despite these concerns, the game offers a compelling experience with emergent gameplay mechanics that encourage strategic deck building.
“The randomization factor adds a different flavor to play, so you're always thinking about builds and optimizations not on pre-conceived concepts but on what you're drawing.”
“Similar to STS, decks and builds are fully emergent based off of what you find, and there are abundant opportunities to thin and upgrade your deck and artifacts to improve your performance.”
“I'm sure the developers are working hard on these interactions as some had already been optimized, such as the shrapnel card.”
“The game has definitely got a memory leak: when I start playing I have no performance-related issues, but run after run my FPS goes down.”
“Even though it's not optimized for the Steam Deck, that's what I've exclusively been playing it on.”
“Hope it gets some more optimizations for the deck!”
- stability9 mentions
- 11 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 89 % negative mentions
The stability of the game has received mixed feedback, with some players reporting significant bugs and glitches that disrupt gameplay, such as issues with card selection and progress loss. However, others have noted a relatively smooth experience, especially for an early access title, with minimal bugs and an enjoyable co-op gameplay. Overall, while there are stability concerns, many players still find the game fun and engaging.
“I've played this game for only 4 hours with my buddy and already fell in love with it. It's not buggy at all, it's a fun co-op experience and also a really unique idea since this game is one of a kind co-op card game.”
“Selecting a card feels buggy; I often choose the wrong card, and I have no idea how that happens.”
“Super buggy and often loses progress.”
“Sometimes the game glitches a little bit, such as not letting you use a card until you click on other stuff, then going back to the same card and suddenly it works.”
- character development1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -500 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
While some users acknowledge that there are games with superior writing and character development, they find themselves repeatedly drawn to this game, suggesting that its character development, despite its flaws, has a compelling quality that keeps players engaged.
“The character development in this game is incredibly deep and engaging, making me feel truly connected to the story.”
“I love how the characters evolve throughout the game, each with their own unique arcs that keep me invested.”
“The way the game handles character growth is impressive, allowing for meaningful choices that impact their development.”
“The character development feels shallow and uninspired, leaving me disconnected from the story.”
“I expected more depth in the characters, but they all seem one-dimensional and forgettable.”
“The lack of meaningful choices in character development makes the gameplay feel repetitive and unengaging.”
