Part Empire Builder, some roguelike deck builders, The 9 Kings It’s certainly an interesting suggestion. Your pixelated kingdom needs to expand and defend enemy factions, but instead of harvesting resources, growing populations and teaching new skills, its fate is in your hands. With the aim of becoming Hooded Horse’s next hit strategy game, nine publishers such as Manor Lords and Cataclismo became a hit on Steam early access.
In the 9 Kings, place each card in a square, starting with a blank grid and a card’s starting hand. The card can include buildings such as castles, buildings that expand their residence, units that can fight for you at the end of each turn, or items that will buff or benefit. Place your cards and enemy forces from your rival kingdom will be charged into the walls of your settlement. Since this is a Roguelike game, one of the randomized twists for each match is the type of fact you face, so you need to be prepared for some unforeseen circumstances.
Your army will take action in what feels like a mini tower defense or an autobatler style battle, but you can also help turn the tide by controlling the defensive buildings and items you may have placed. For example, you can mark where you want to throw a boulder at a castle catapult. Initially, the battles are small and may become a bit ti-ill, but as they progress (especially with difficult and difficulties), things become more confusing and appear to be hundreds of units. The damage-count gusts are quite fascinating when you reach those big battles.
As the name suggests, there are nine kings to choose. However, if you want to switch playstyles a bit as you progress through the run, you can plunder the army of other kings who will kill in combat to steal some of the unique cards for your deck.
This is an early access launch of just nine Kings, but on the first day they are already tempted by a considerable number of players. Simultaneous peaks of just over 8,000 steam are not sniffed. What’s even more impressive is that it has already hit the sweet spot. This is a very encouraging sign for early access games. At the time of writing, it has been sitting at a “very positive” user rating of 94%, due to a surge in early reviews. If we can keep that up, it will certainly be one of the most rated new log leaks of the year.
The nine Kings are currently on Steam Early Access. Until Friday, June 6th, this already affordable game can be even cheaper thanks to a 35% discount. You can grab it yourself here.
If you’re still not sure about the 9 Kings, there are other great strategy games and card games that will sink your teeth instead.
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