9 Till Void

I played this game a bunch in beta, and now it's finally been released. A great twist on deckbuilding roguelikes, where each card/ability takes up a slot on the rows of your grid and can only be cast when you're on that row. Gameplay becomes about managing your rows, trying to find good synergies for different cards. If you like tile-based roguelikes or games where you build a deck over time, you should definitely try this out.

What a gem! This is such a fun little roguelike. It's got an interesting twist on deck builders and really opens it up for unique runs and lots of strategy. I've really enjoyed my time so far with this game and highly recommend it to anyone that likes roguelikes or strategy games.

Very innovative and engaging gameplay. Figuring out how to unlock all the characters is a fun puzzle. Give me more please <3

(Just as a heads up, I was a beta tester for this game!) 9 Till Void's a fun and strategically deep roguelike puzzler that makes you feel like that one person who knows a card/board game like the back of their hand. (You know the one.) It has familiar movement options seen in other roguelikes with its 8-directional movement and ability to pass a turn, but the real fun comes in with the various spells the game has to offer. From simple ones like Magic Punch and Mage Hand that simply deal damage to adjacent enemies, to action-gaining ones like Chain Lightning and Sands of Time which give you more actions for your turn. The action-gaining spells specifically make the whole "card/board game expert" claim from earlier hold true since you'll be able to zip around levels and use multiple spells in one turn with them. This can be important since with most spells, you can only use them if you're on the same row as where they're placed in your loadout. Add the titular void into the mix which starts to close in while you're still in a level and damages anything that's in it after your turn ends, and you're now tasked with making your loadout as flexible as possible for whatever springs up on you during your runs. I really enjoy the vast amount of spells and strategies that can be formed with said spells, as well as the enemies that'll try and thwart your plans with their abilities like the Dune Fairy which gains +1 HP every time you kill another enemy other than themselves, and Cerbetron which reduces any damage you deal to it down to 1. It's another thing that keeps you on your toes while you're purchasing spells and surveying levels as you arrive into them. Lastly, there's the cast of 5 characters that'll potentially change up how your runs go or introduce you to a spell you may have neglected/never seen in the past, and three difficulty settings to allow for an easier/tougher experience. Overall, 9 Till Void's a great fit for anyone's that's into optimization (even through "bad rolls" here and there) or anyone who's seeking a good roguelike puzzler like no other.

[code] [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/36948155-Card-Game-KING/] FOR MORE REVIEWS ABOUT CARD GAMES, CHECK OUT OUR CURATOR PAGE: [b]CARD GAME KING [/b] [/url] [/code] [h1] [b]TL:DR[/b] [/h1] Note: Card mechanics are minor. Apart from spells being in card form there are no other card mechanics worth noting. The basic idea of the game is that you attach spells to rows and then these spells can only be activated when you are in that row. When you use all of your actions (default 1) enemies will move and attack if possible (some also have special abilities). The idea is simple, but it offers plenty of strategic/tactical decisions both in the spell preparation stage and when on the map fighting enemies. Where you place those spells, where you move and in which order can mean the difference between a win and slow painful death. It's a roguelike so if you die, you start over, but thankfully, the levels are super short so dying is only a minor setback. [h1][b]The positive[/b] [/h1] + Solid gameplay. Simple but engaging. Your decisions matter every turn (unless you heavily screw up you spell arrangement, in which case, it's just a matter of time when you will die and who will kill you) + Spell variety. Plenty of spells to choose from, which make each run feel fresh. + Can be played in short sessions. Losing doesn't feel like you've wasted a lot of time. + Small amount of RNG. Although the cards you get offered are random, few other things are. Enemy movements are predictable, so short term and long term planning is key. [h1][b]The neutral[/b][/h1] * The music did not appeal personally to me. It was too upbeaty for my taste and this type of game. * Spells are bought through movement by stepping on them but it would've been faster/easier through a menu. Really small remark. [h1][b]The negative[/b] [/h1] - Some enemy abilities are unfun. In a game where planning your movement and spell order is the absolute core gameplay mechanic, I found it odd there are enemies that can lock you out from using spells if you share a row with them or enemies that scrabble your carefully planned out spell order. The last one hurts even more because: - You can't order your spells between screens. If you bought a mana hungry spell that would be great to come after the mana boost spell, you can't reorder. You could remove another spell to fit it into the location, but then you would be losing that spell instead. - Enemy variety is lacking IMO. While on the positive side this gives you the opportunity to learn their abilities quickly and play around them, it also puts all the weight on the spells to offer most of the variety between runs. [h1][b]Gameplay[/b] [/h1] The game is built from 5 locations, each having a few screens of enemies to deal with before you can advance. In order to deal with them you are given spells that you can attach to one of the rows. You can ONLY use spells in the row you are at. The other key mechanic is that the enemies move and attack when you have no more actions points, typically 1 square at a time. This often leads to a type of back-and-forth tango dance between you and the enemies as you try to plan out your route and activate spells along the way. In between screens you get to add up to 3 more spells, making your arsenal more devastating and opening up more spell combinations. After each stage you will be able to upgrade your starting mana or how many spells you start with from the several you've bought so far. Planning this part out is often essential at later locations as you will get quickly overwhelmed if you don't have a good combo going. Of course, enemies will have abilities too, that break the game in some ways (like damaging you even if you are not adjacent to them or plainly refusing to die). Some of them can lose you the game if left unchecked. One big advantage you have over enemies is that you can move and attack diagonally, while most of them only do it orthogonally. This will often give you the edge you need to smartly dispatch enemies while you kite them to their death. On the map you can also find tokens, which give you gold, extra action points and mana, which all offer some additional decision making options on where to move next. There is one other mechanic that coincidentally also explains the name of the game. Every time your turn ends (when you have 0 actions) enemies move BUT also a bar fills up. When it reaches 9, void starts appearing on the edges of the map. Stepping into it does 1 damage, but it also damages enemies. The bar then resets and starts to fill out again, drastically reducing the map you can move on safely (and activate spells!). Luckily the void being an obstacle is an edge case. In conclusion, it's nice, smaller sized game with challenging gameplay and tactical options. The ability to activate spells only based on rows you physically in is an interesting concept and would like to see it a bit more.

This is a very cool game. I love how the position determines what spell you can use. It makes you think where you wanna move btu you still have to avoid all the enemies. Here is some gameplay for those curious: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFgCYdFyzls ​

I was a big fan of this developer's other game: Wequer, so I was super excited to play this newest concoction! Solid and brain-bending gameplay, bringing some of the "Mystery Dungeon" combat mechanics I love, but with a fresh twist! The synergies and combos you are able to pull off are extremely rewarding, and I still have barely scratched the surface of what is possible. 9 Till Void is also a tightly tuned game, where each attempt feels like the perfect length (be careful of staying of late and telling yourself "just one more run..."). Each failed run teaches you a little bit more about the game, even when you think you've got it figured out, there seems to be another overlooked solution or synergy. The replay value is through the roof. Superb game. Well done Ben.

This is an annoyingly fun lil game. The gimmick of only casting spells when you're on the associated row feels fun at first but really opens itself up to more depth as you unlock more characters and familiarize yourself with each area. Each encounter uses the same enemies each time, but their abilities are interesting enough that just placing them randomly around the board each run still makes them feel like a unique puzzle each time. The play field is a little overstimulating at first but was easy to get a hang of, which is really helped by the vibrant and expressive art. I especially loved the player character art. Each PC option radiates overwhelmingly smug energy in a new and unique way. Overall: recommended!

I find this pretty clever and addictive. A bit like Imbroglio or Hoplite, with a pinch of Fortnite storm.