WARCANA

About

WARCANA is a multiplayer strategy game. It was developed by 1000 Orks and was released on August 29, 2024. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

WARCANA is a fantasy-inspired real-time base defense strategy game featuring unique deck-building mechanics. Command powerful magicians, summon armies, and unlock diverse tech trees to outwit foes in intense PvP battles with up to 30 players or challenge yourself in engaging single-player campaigns. Enjoy beautiful gameplay, stunning graphics, and an immersive soundtrack.

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62%

Audience ScoreBased on 218 reviews

gameplay17 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

The game features stunning pixel art and a visually appealing design that enhances the overall experience.
The blend of deck-building and tower defense mechanics creates a unique and engaging gameplay experience that encourages strategic thinking.
The multiplayer mode offers a fun and competitive environment, allowing players to engage in large-scale battles with up to 30 participants.

The tutorial is poorly designed, making it difficult for new players to understand the mechanics and strategies needed to succeed.
The game suffers from balance issues, with certain strategies dominating gameplay and making it feel repetitive and unfun.
There is a lack of active community support and updates from the developers, leading to concerns about the game's longevity and player engagement.

story
55 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
9%
82%
9%
The game's story aspect is primarily conveyed through a challenging single-player campaign that features a variety of missions, but many players find the difficulty curve to be poorly balanced, with some early missions feeling excessively punishing. While the campaign offers opportunities for deck-building and strategic gameplay, it often lacks clear tutorials and guidance, leading to frustration as players struggle to complete missions that feel more like puzzles than traditional strategy challenges. Overall, the narrative experience is hindered by technical issues and a lack of engaging storytelling, leaving players wanting more depth and coherence in the campaign.
- “The campaign is also pretty challenging (probably too hard right now, a few missions are crazy difficult).”
- “The tutorial teaches you the very, very basics about the game and then blends into the single-player campaign, which explains some things further but is much more on the side of an actual campaign with specific missions with a limited loadout at certain times.”
- “The 'campaign' (just a bunch of fixed scenarios with fixed decks) highlights this beautifully, in that there is one solution that they want you to implement based on the stuff you have, and you either figure out what that precise way of playing the mission is, or you lose.”
- “The tutorial teaches you the very, very basics about the game and then blends into the single player campaign, which explains some things further but is much more on the side of an actual campaign with specific missions with a limited loadout at certain times.”
- “It is for that reason why I see many people struggle immensely with the solo missions because there really are some brutal ones and there doesn't seem to be a difficulty curve in the campaign itself.”
- “Making 'tutorial' missions that tight if not flat out impossible seems like a poor decision in a game where after every single phase the enemy base repairs itself completely, everything you broke comes back.”
gameplay
47 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
58%
6%
The gameplay of Warcana is a blend of deck-building, base defense, and real-time strategy that offers a unique and engaging experience, though it suffers from poor tutorial explanations and UI issues that can hinder player understanding. While the mechanics are well-designed and provide a sense of achievement once mastered, the game can feel unbalanced and repetitive at higher levels, with some factions dominating the meta. Overall, the game is visually stunning and features addictive gameplay, but its complexity may deter players seeking simpler mechanics.
- “Warcana, developed by 1000 Orks and published by Team17, presents an innovative twist on the strategy genre by combining elements of base defense, real-time strategy, and deck-building into a cohesive and engaging gameplay experience.”
- “Its blend of deck-building and base defense mechanics offers a fresh challenge that demands both foresight and adaptability.”
- “Fans of strategic gameplay looking for something that merges creative deck construction with fast-paced combat will find plenty to appreciate in this ambitious and well-crafted game.”
- “The tutorial is very bad at explaining game mechanics.”
- “The UI is horrendously clunky, core faction mechanics are flat-out bugged and non-functional for one faction, the campaign missions suddenly see a massive spike in difficulty at the fifth mission to the point where it feels like zero testing was even done on them, and the balance is completely non-existent with any online matches functionally boiling down to you either play the single viable meta deck or you can just quit the match instantly; you will not win.”
- “Endless tutorial is a mind-numbing slog that ironically leaves you unprepared for actual gameplay.”
graphics
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
66%
25%
9%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning pixel art and appealing art style, which enhance the overall experience and contribute to the game's aesthetic charm. While many players appreciate the beautiful visuals and intricate designs of units and environments, some note that the user interface could use improvement and that the graphics can blend together at times, making it difficult to distinguish elements during gameplay. Overall, the art style is a significant highlight, drawing players in and adding to the enjoyment of the game.
- “This attention to artistic detail enhances the overall experience, balancing its complex mechanics with an aesthetically pleasing presentation that feels polished and inviting.”
- “This game has absolutely stunning visuals.”
- “The pixel graphics are great, the music is nice, the design of the buildings and the units are absolutely beautiful.”
- “Yes, the graphics are more retro than others, but judging the game by its cover isn't a cool thing, right?”
- “Honestly, the only flaw I can think of in the game's marketing is pushing it towards the RTS demographic; this game isn't at all APM heavy and your deck building, building placement, and timings of spawning your units are all more important than how fast you can click or press hotkeys.”
- “Graphic quality runs on the highest setting.”
optimization
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
50%
25%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews; while some players praise its ability to handle a large number of entities without significant performance issues, others report that it suffers from poor optimization and lacks essential settings. Many users feel that the game could benefit from further optimization to enhance gameplay fluidity, particularly in deck-building mechanics, which can feel clunky without proper adjustments. Overall, the game's performance varies significantly across different systems, leading to a call for improvements in optimization and polish.
- “When was the last time you saw a game that could hold 100,000 entities in game at once before it starts having performance problems?”
- “The devs must have optimized this game with a microscope because holy hell is it great.”
- “This seems like a very well optimized and polished game.”
- “The game is poorly optimized; I hope this essential aspect gets fixed as soon as possible.”
- “I will update my Steam review to include this fact, but I continue to believe that the game lacks essential optimization settings and polish in general.”
- “I think trimming the fat is a necessary aspect of all deckbuilders, but to get a really optimized thing going in this game, I feel like you need to trim a lot of it, and if you don't, the whole deck just starts feeling clunky and slow.”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
89%
11%
The music in the game is highly praised for its dynamic nature, adapting to the factions and gameplay situations, while also being described as beautiful and fitting for the game's aesthetic. Reviewers commend the soundtrack as engaging and well-composed, enhancing the overall experience, although some note limitations in multiplayer due to player availability. Overall, the music and sound effects contribute significantly to the game's immersive atmosphere.
- “Music and effects are greatly done and fitting either the faction, the specified card, or the landscape you are playing on.”
- “Couple small extras, the soundtrack absolutely slaps, props to the composer for an awesome one.”
- “The music, while only really being one track, is dynamic, switching based on which factions are in play, who is winning, and so on.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is well-received, with players appreciating its lighthearted and amusing approach, particularly in the context of its deck-building mechanics.
- “Nice and funny deck builder!”
- “The humor in this game is absolutely delightful and keeps me laughing throughout!”
- “I love how the witty dialogue and quirky characters add a layer of fun to the gameplay!”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, leading to a quick sense of fatigue.
- “It gets tedious quickly.”
- “The grinding feels endless and repetitive.”
- “I find myself doing the same tasks over and over without any real reward.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's vibrant environments and detailed animations create an immersive atmosphere that captivates players, enhancing the overall experience with its magical realm and well-designed gameplay.
- “The game’s vibrant environments and detailed animations contribute to an immersive atmosphere that draws players into its magical realm.”
- “This game is absolutely fantastic – well-designed gameplay, great atmosphere, and tons of fun.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
100%
The game boasts high replayability due to its five distinct factions, each with unique mechanics and synergies that encourage players to experiment and adopt different strategies. This diversity, combined with a wealth of content for the price, ensures that mastering each faction presents fresh challenges and keeps the gameplay engaging.
- “This diversity encourages replayability, as mastering each faction requires a different approach, and experimenting with their synergies offers fresh challenges.”
- “This diversity encourages replayability as mastering each faction requires a different approach, and experimenting with their synergies offers fresh challenges.”
- “A lot of content for the price; five fully fleshed-out factions with unique mechanics and units add to the replay value.”