Kardboard Kings: Card Shop Simulator
- January 27, 2022
- Akupara Games
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"Kardboard Kings: Card Shop Simulator" is a game where you run a card shop, buying and selling cards to build a successful business. With over 100 unique cards to collect and an ever-changing market to master, each decision you make affects your success. Build relationships with customers, design your shop, and uncover a mysterious plot in this card-game simulation.
Nintendo Switch
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features charming art and engaging character designs, making it visually appealing.
- The core gameplay loop of buying and selling cards is addictive and reminiscent of real-life trading card experiences.
- The humorous dialogue and quirky characters add a fun layer to the overall experience.
- The story is short and ends abruptly, leaving players wanting more content and resolution.
- There are several bugs that can disrupt gameplay, including issues with card purchasing and freezing during interactions.
- The reputation system is poorly balanced, often punishing players for making logical business decisions.
- story134 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story in the game is generally perceived as short, disjointed, and lacking depth, with many players expressing disappointment over its abrupt ending and unfinished character arcs. While some appreciate the quirky characters and comedic elements, the overall narrative fails to provide a satisfying or engaging experience, often feeling like a prologue rather than a complete story. Many reviewers hope for future expansions to enhance the storyline and address its pacing issues.
“The game has charming visuals and an entertaining story.”
“Cute business sim with queer characters and a weird yet wonderful story tied in.”
“I'm enjoying the buying and selling/general shop management aspect but I didn't expect to be drawn into the story as much as I am.”
“If you're looking for a story, you may be disappointed; the characters are fun but the plot doesn't go anywhere, since the game is faithful to their gameplay loop.”
“The story is short and boring.”
“The story ends anticlimactically but gosh the gameplay loop is so addicting.”
- gameplay62 mentions
- 24 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Kardboard Kings" is characterized by a core loop of buying and selling cards that many players find addictive, despite its lack of depth and innovation. While the mechanics are straightforward and can be enjoyable, they often feel repetitive and poorly balanced, leading to a sense of emptiness after extended play. Additionally, the game struggles with bugs and a lack of meaningful progression, which detracts from the overall experience.
“The gameplay loop of buying and selling cards while trying to pay attention to, and plan around, changes in the market can get a bit addictive.”
“Ultimately, if you’re anything like me, Kardboard Kings will leave you disappointed with some of its mechanics and choices, but you’ll still have a really good time doing the core gameplay loop, as it’s done pretty well.”
“The gameplay is solid—the stock market approach to the cards, buying and selling, and trading all remind me of paper Magic: The Gathering, which is fun.”
“The gameplay loop also seems to be stale after a while and doesn't evolve.”
“The only thing to the gameplay is selling and buying cards, and the extra mechanics don't add anything.”
“As I played, I was expecting the game to build in more mechanics as it did with the first 30 minutes or so, but it never did.”
- graphics20 mentions
- 35 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The game's graphics feature a charming mix of art styles, including pixel art and distinct card designs that enhance the overall aesthetic. While some players appreciate the unique visuals and character designs, others find certain elements, like the dialogue sprites, out of place and the interface lacking polish. Overall, the art style is generally well-received, contributing positively to the game's enjoyable atmosphere.
“As an added benefit, the card designs are interesting and each set has its own distinct art style.”
“The art style is great, with a mix of pixel art, orthographic 3D, and great card art.”
“Charming graphics.”
“The dialogue sprites have a very 2014 Tumblr look to them that is entirely out of place with everything else about the game aesthetically.”
“Graphics and interface were pretty rough looking, lacking some polish.”
“I'd rather this game had no visuals at all, just a dashboard that allows me to trade cards, buy packs whenever I please and trade with NPC players on a changing market.”
- music14 mentions
- 79 % positive mentions
- 7 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The music in the game is consistently praised for its chill, lo-fi vibe, enhancing the relaxing experience while browsing card art and engaging with characters. Reviewers appreciate the tasteful soundtrack, which complements the game's visual aesthetics and contributes to an immersive atmosphere, despite occasional moments of overpowering bass. Overall, the combination of groovy tunes and beautiful card designs creates a delightful auditory and visual experience.
“The music is super chill and nice to relax to as well.”
“Meanwhile, in the short time you spend in the game, you're met with very tasteful music, nice visual art direction and some good characters with a good, short but sweet story too.”
“The music is groovy and fun to listen to, the characters all seem to have a personality to them, as well as events that actually make them feel like real people instead of bland NPCs.”
“The dialogue and characters are also rather engaging, and I felt mostly immersed apart from getting upset at the soundtrack once or twice when it was blasting bass over the radio.”
“The lo-fi music.”
- humor12 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's humor is characterized by witty and expressive dialogue, with some players enjoying the absurdity of certain character interactions and references, particularly those related to card games. While many find the humor charming and reminiscent of Australian culture, opinions vary, with some players finding the cast annoying despite the funny moments. Overall, the humor is a highlight for many, contributing to an enjoyable experience, though technical issues have affected some players' enjoyment.
“How funny you find the irony in a card game shop owner not knowing how to play their own product, streamers being loud, and the number 69 being funny on its own, will tell you how much you'll like this game's humor.”
“Funny and expressive dialogue writing; the cast of characters is great.”
“It's really charming and funny, with a definite Aussie sensibility that I love.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding in the game to be initially enjoyable but ultimately repetitive and tedious, especially after completing the main storyline. While some appreciate the cute gimmicky elements, the lack of a clear goal and the ongoing grind can lead to frustration, particularly for those who prefer store management games.
“If you like store management games, you'll be doing a lot more tedious work in this game and there's really no goal to stopping it.”
“The early grind is fun but it becomes a bit stale and tedious once the main storyline is finished.”
“People don't have that bad of memory and, trust me, the gimmicky jokes are cute the first time, but grinding becomes repetitive every time after that.”
- stability3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players report a generally stable experience with occasional bugs, such as freezing when using certain features or inconsistencies in transaction values. While these issues can disrupt gameplay, they do not significantly detract from the overall enjoyment of the game.
“The game runs smoothly without any crashes or bugs.”
“I appreciate how stable the gameplay is; it really enhances the overall experience.”
“There are bugs in the game; sometimes opening boosters freezes the game, or when the female ninja character asks to compare decks, it freezes. I also found it odd that when buying a card from one of the NPCs, the price they ask for can be different from the price displayed when you hover over the bought value.”
“Fun game, but it's a bit buggy and needs some more content.”
“I ran into no glitches while playing the game, thankfully.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is considered low, with players feeling that once the main story is completed and card collection is finished, there is little incentive to revisit the game. Despite a decent initial playtime, many users express that the lack of additional content diminishes long-term engagement.
“I think you get your money's worth from what is currently included as of this review date, but even after 14 hours, I am finding the replayability a bit low.”
“Replay value is lacking - once the main story is finished and card collection is complete, there's not really anything left to do.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has been criticized for poor performance, particularly during in-game cutscenes, which experience noticeable loading issues.
“The game suffers from poor performance during short in-game cutscenes, leading to frustrating loading times.”
“Optimization issues are evident, especially with the loading times of minor cutscenes.”
“I experienced significant lag during brief in-game cutscenes, which detracted from the overall experience.”
- character development1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Character development starts strong, with endearing traits in the initial hours, but quickly deteriorates as characters become repetitive and lose their depth, leading to a sense of disconnection from their growth.
“The characters are very endearing for the first hour or two, but you may grow to hate them as they quickly become soulless husks of repeating dialogue the more you play, and you completely forget their character development.”
“The character arcs feel rushed and underdeveloped, leaving players with little emotional investment as the story progresses.”
“Despite the initial promise, the characters lack depth and fail to evolve, making it hard to care about their journeys.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game is criticized for being overly simplistic and perceived as a cash grab, suggesting that it fails to fully realize its potential and instead capitalizes on current trends.
“There's just so much this game could be, but they unfortunately left it at level one basic, almost as a cash grab to take advantage of a fad.”
“The monetization strategy feels exploitative, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending a fortune.”
“It seems like every feature is locked behind a paywall, which really ruins the overall experience.”
