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Deck-ed dismay

We wake up in a dark room. The only thing we see is a wooden table. It virtually smells of mustiness, of stale air. We look around: Nothing. Black. We hear an ominous humming, almost a cracking sound. Two white dots suddenly emerge from the darkness opposite us - eyes. The spectacle doesn't help with the uneasy feeling that has been haunting us the whole time. With a creak, the eyes start talking to us and turn into two orange spirals. The whole thing seems like an interrogation, but only the eyes speak. A weathered, bony hand appears in the cone of light - and then we play cards.

Frustrating fear

This is the unabridged introduction to Inscryption. The rogue-like deckbuilding game by Daniel Mullins Games was originally the result of a game jam under the motto 'Sacrifices must be made'. The clearest inspiration for this was apparently Magic the Gathering - at least according to Wikipedia. As a result, we build a deck of different monsters over the course of a game and compete against the stranger sitting opposite us. We walk across a randomly generated map and can determine the route of our little figurine. As expected, each encounter brings something different and allows us to obtain cards, combine cards or swap cards, for example.

This all sounds incredibly basic, but Inscryption is not a game that wants to be explained - Inscryption wants to be played, wants to be experienced. That's why it's of little use if I talk about the 80s VGS look or explain the deeper game mechanics, shed light on items or maps or go into detail about the creature sitting opposite us. Here you still have to satisfy your curiosity yourself.

However, Inscryption is not an easy game, especially at the beginning. As is usual for a rogue-like, we get better with every attempt, receive new bonuses and learn more about the mechanics, but you will inevitably see the game-over screen very often. In fact, I was on the verge of firing up the uninstaller in anger several times, but caught myself each time until I finally, finally made it.

Summary

And apparently I wasn't the only one to feel this way: As is usual with many games, Inscryption rewards Steam players with achievements when they reach certain milestones. Recently, the percentage of gamers who have received these awards has also been noted there. And it seems that almost half (43%) really did beat the final boss - a figure that I rarely see in this form. This could be because only people who really wanted to play Inscryption bought it ... which doesn't speak against the game.

In other words, a wholehearted recommendation from me? More of an appreciative nod. Because as much as I enjoyed playing the game in the end, once I had understood the story, I really just wanted to finish it. The gameplay is as solid as it is punishing. If you don't pay attention for a moment, you quickly waste a run. The many nice secrets and puzzles that you can find if you look hard enough don't help. If you fancy an unconventional and entertaining experience with a frustration factor, Inscryption is the game for you. Everyone else is best off sticking to Magic the Gathering or Hearthstone.