I've been circling this one like the world's most hesitant landfill shark, unsure if there's anything good behind the poor stats and nice visuals. Don't get me wrong, the graphics are solid, but most of us don't browse store page content in fullscreen. At a glance, nothing there does justice to the variety of eclectic yet cohesive backdrops and unit designs. Most of those were certainly inspired by Warhammer. You know, Biblical angels, twisted demons, a woman in sunglasses driving a jeep. Stygian Lords reminded me of Gantz of all things! I love the little cutscenes before each battle, the oomph of a big hit, and all the tasteful particle effects that somehow remain readable. Still, High Voltage Software couldn't sell the game based on this alone, the market had their dragon in the rear. Perhaps what it needs is a demo? After all, nothing else conveys the depth and the game feel. Only after I got my hands on Dragon Front, I knew it was my thing. It's clicky, robust, and the first unit to place is a dwarf. Maybe I'm just dwarf-pilled but, speaking from this experience, let people touch your creation through a demo. Sure, there's a learning curve, so it would be fully devoted to the tutorial, however, without the Damocles Sword of the refund bias hanging over them, people would be more inclined to learn.
The curve isn't too steep anyway. It's a streamlined roguelite deckbuilder that focuses on tactical unit placement where randomness is almost entirely delegated to the luck of the draw. It's synergetic and snappy, transparent with its information (even shows cards in your opponent's hand), while providing all the instruments for deck-thinning and power-creeping. At that, it rivals the best representatives of the genre. In terms of variety and presentation, just check out them juicy screenshots - none look the same. And the mechanical filling is extremely addictive. I booted it up for the first time just to check if the game works, then played it almost non-stop until I was done. Because Dragon Front gets the genre's staples right, the "one more battle" boon that comes with it is working full-force. There's such a warm tabletop feel to it, reminding me of another hidden gem called Etherlords. I'll eventually to tell you all about its fantastic sequel and its history. For now, it's Dragon Front's time to shine. Long overdue! Those who call it an underrated gem are on the money. Turns out, there's no catch, no fatal flaw. That's what a bloated market overflowing with slop and flips often does to unlucky indies - buries them amidst the rotting fat folds.
[h3]Why It's Fun and Replayable[/h3]
A branching Slay the Spire map, 3 acts, 3 bosses, a choice between 3+ reward choices after each combat will make you feel at home. Crucially, skipping a card gets you a skeleton key. Those open some routes on the map, allow you to do more than one thing while camping, unlock an occasional treasure chest on the battlefield. Good idea! Skipping leads to opportunities. The map includes your traditional shops, battles, elites for game-changing relics, tavern for lucrative quests, encounters with mutators for legendary spoils and promotion gems, camps for healing, removal and upgrading cards with said gems. The runs last up to a couple of hours, but at least the game is generous enough to heal you after a boss or let you replay one battle when you die. Upon entering one, you'll see 3 battle points (summon slots) to fill, a hand of cards containing units, spells, and abilities. No mana, do whatever you want with what you have. The order and position are key. The goal is to defend your champion who hides in the back while killing the enemy champion who does the same. Place your units, cast your buffs and lightnings, cycle, maybe play your champion's superpower when the meter is filled, then hit end turn to see your toys fight. I won't go into detail, combat is intuitive and the tutorial is decent.
The cards are well-designed, there's seldom an empty description space. You can tell units were crafted with too much love to leave them blank. Almost everyone has a keyword, it's good to see how much effort went into their designs. You can add to that by upgrading units with promotion gems that imbue them with bonus abilities. Splash damage, a shield, or more exotic stuff like giving you a copy of a killed enemy. The gems alone turn a simple ruleset into a complex system requiring thoughtful decision-making. It's not just about how well cards combo by default, with gems (up to 3 on a unit) you can create your own broken synergies. As for the meta-unlocks, while all the 8 factions are unlocked from the start, you'd still have to work for their champions with distinctive powers. Despite that you can sometimes obtain other factions' units and gems during a run, each faction has quite a few unique units and default gems to rely on, while champions have alternative decks that suit their powers. Together it creates distinct visual and mechanical differences that make the game extremely replayable. Devising overpowered builds that get out of hand in a satisfying manner never gets old, and these builds change drastically depending on who you play as, making it exciting to start a new run. Even if you lose one, you can always switch a faction or just pick another champion next time.
[h3]Bugs and Suggestions[/h3]
- Unlocking a hard mode upon beating the game as all 8 factions would be nice. Coming back for the champions alone, diverse as they are, is busywork, not progression.
- Once my champion died during a bossfight vs. Magmarot. I could play cards and even charge, but the model disappeared and I couldn't push end turn. Restart helped.
- Got stuck on a discard screen. It happened because I used a discarding card as my 3rd in a challenge where playing 3 cards discards your hand. So, these cards were already technically discarded the instant my card triggered and I couldn't do it twice. Restart helped.
- You can theoretically hover over the end of turn button to see predicted results. Too bad it didn't work after the tutorial.
- Right now one has to right-click a card to see gem descriptions, it could've been so much easier if you added tooltips for everything on screen.
- It would be a life-saver since the game is bugged, disallowing right-clicking on the reward screen. I had to pick my cards blindly, which, until I learned things by heart, killed a few runs. It can't be that I'm simply an impulsive fool who picks rewards based on the rule of cool, right?
[h3]Why It Deserves Better[/h3]
Then again, the rule seems to be the main driving force behind this game's designs. Dragon Front was made with passion and it shows. It feels solid despite a few bugs, these are nothing compared to the effort and talent on display. Mostly unpaid, unappreciated talent and effort. Besides, Unreal Engine makes UI design harder than it should be. I know since my best friend is an UE developer who whined to me about it for 10 years before finally jumping to Godot. I wish Dragon Front's obscurity was on the engine, it could be fixed. Can't fix that market, sadly. If only one could turn things around with some measly review! Welp, sometimes you want it to be one way, but it's the other way. Regardless, delusional as I ever be, it was the main reason I tried my best. As a final argument, consider another beautiful thing: despite the lack of financial success, High Voltage Software didn't abandon their game. They keep up expanding it as we speak. For free. Balancing, adding content, engaging with the feedback they get. Just for that, their game deserves better than a handful of sales and reviews. I implore you to give it a chance. Not as a charity case, it can easily earn your affection, fair and square. Dragon Front isn't shooting for the stars or anything, but it should be celebrated, not forgotten.
My curator [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/35305390/]Big Bad Mutuh[/url]
