everything's a roguelike deckbuilder these days, even if they aren't or shouldn't be. this plays like [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/dohi64/recommended/373970]letter quest[/url] (the undisputable king of the genre) or bookworm adventures (also good but no word definitions, just like here, and it's not available for purchase anymore), except when you die, you start over because that's always more fun than making progress. also, [b]the demo quietly got removed after release[/b]. always a ♥♥♥♥ anti-consumer move but I had even lower standards a few years ago and kept it wishlisted, then eventually bought it for less than half price (6 eur outside a sale, not too bad). wouldn't do the same now, ♥♥♥♥ these practices and devs practicing them, even if the game itself might be fine otherwise.
very basic presentation, very basic settings, available anytime. separate volumes, resizable windowed mode, a few languages, v-sync, toggles for alternative controls and censorship. there's an in-game stats screen with achievements, unlocked equipment and whatnot. no bestiary, missed opportunity. alt controls are only explained with a tooltip in the pause menu (and the patch notes from years ago and during battle if it's turned on), not in the main menu settings, which is weird. [b]tips can't be turned off and their constant repetition becomes annoying fast.[/b]
the separately playable and replayable prologue serves as tutorial, thankfully with instant and silent text display. the 'deck' has a bunch of letters, can only use a few at a time, just like in scrabble, that famous deckbuilder. [b]possible words can be shown on top[/b], shortest to longest or vice versa. don't think I've seen this elsewhere, but with less and less patience and brain capacity, I didn't mind and since it's optional, nobody else should either. there should be a second line if there are more options though. what's even better, hovering over a letter highlights words containing it and [b]clicking a word on top and selecting the attack or defense board places it instantly[/b]. otherwise it's click to pick up a letter, click to place, right click anywhere (or left on the undo button) to remove it.
can't type, can't drag, but items in the inventory and store can only be moved by dragging, gotta love inconsistency. can't move placed letters around without undoing, but tiles can be inserted anywhere, so if you spelled huse, just put 'o' where it needs to be without removing anything. [b]with alt controls ticked, select board first, then click-click-click letters, but regular placement also works.[/b] hotkeys are only for the menu (esc) and end turn (space), the former doesn't have an icon to click, so the game isn't 100% mousable and should be more keyboardable.
[b]you can keep letters or a word for later by leaving them in the attack or defense board.[/b] they get locked in, unless you drag an unused letter on the battlefield. rerolling letters is possible by sacrificing some hp, and there are harmful conditions to mitigate with tiles.
there's a [b]campaign[/b], go through the usual maps with enemies, bosses, markets, resting places and whatnot, die and it's game over. [b]can save and exit (mid-combat progress isn't saved)[/b] or abandon the run but [b]can't choose which enemy to attack during battle[/b], always a bummer. new tiles get added to the deck after a victory and can be upgraded (extra points when used as a first letter, etc.).
[b]3 classes[/b], no explanations until you start a run, then a battle with one, very kind. and only one to start with, the others appear after beating the first and second level. the second class starts with double letters and can split one every turn, the third has a key fetish. spell longer words to get more keys and use 5 to draw 2 extra tiles.
[b]3 difficulties.[/b] gifted shows words on top, cursed doesn't and draws an extra tile each turn, doomed does none of these. once unlocked, you can start from the last level (why you'd want a lower one again is another question) and pick a bonus on subsequent runs if you want. 4 categories of gear (weapons, shields, helmets, armor) with all sorts of bonuses. 130 items total, more get added to the pool with each win.
dictionaries are always iffy in word games but this has a couple things going for it. not only are 2-letter words accepted for balance reasons (so the game told me), you can check them anytime, and even add your own words (no more 2-letter ones though). exploitable for sure but you're only cheating yourself, nobody cares.
[b]finishing the 'campaign' means winning the same 3-map run 5 (FIVE!) times[/b], it's ludicrous. even after that the campaign progress bar wasn't full and no idea what the stars on the side mean on the stats screen. 4 wins with scout put it at 5/6, 1 win with brute at 2/6. ok, and? no story, progression or anything, so [b]why not simply say 'win x runs with any class to unlock challenges ?'[/b] I thought it'd be some fun or interesting stuff but it's just a different boss at the end and more expensive tile upgrades or tougher enemies. and they have to be done one after the other, apparently, bad idea. at least they're available for every class, take your pick.
it's nothing special but even with all the 'deckbuilding' word games around, there's not a lot of letter quest/bookworm-likes, with enemies to fight, etc. the more I played, the more it reminded me of [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/dohi64/recommended/496620]monster slayers[/url] (also visually), though this is a bit more enjoyable, even if not for long. (I was curious about the challenges, so played around with an editor to get to them faster.)
shame about the demo and anti-consumer dev, but the main reason for the thumbs down is [b]some enemies are ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ ridiculous[/b]. crazy attacks, shields, healing, summons and debuffs every turn, while you have a [b]very small hand to deal with it all[/b] before things turn hopeless. [b]it's not about vocabulary, so the word list is just quality of life[/b], and the whole thing is incredibly tedious with or without it, especially with the 'campaign' the way it is.
