I’m getting it out of the way in this first paragraph because you know it’s coming in a game review about a roguelike deck-building game. We all know and love Slay the Spire, but games that follow in its footsteps are tasked with the difficult job of emerging out of its shadow. After launching on the PC last year, Inscryption did so masterfully, earning Game of the Year flowers and accolades. Arriving on the Nintendo Switch a year later, this is a game you need to have in your Switch library.

After around 10 hours, I finished Inscryption on the Nintendo Switch in about six play sessions. I’m not one to crash through a single gaming experience at once. I hop around from genre and console in my time I set aside to play video games. Inscryption, however, demands your attention by setting up a creepy horror tale full of wonderful visuals and addicting deckbuilding gameplay. At a glance, this is a highly stylized card roguelike. In reality, this is a generational game from Devolver Digital.

Like many card games, you’re looking to defeat your enemy by building a strong deck they can’t compete with. In Inscryption, you’re not taking out hit points but rather adding weight to a scale that will tip should your opponent get too far behind in the match. It’s a great twist on the traditional deckbuilding mechanic because momentum is everything, and you can come back after a less-than-stellar start. Although, I can’t say there were many instances where the AI creatures you battle put up a mighty challenge.

In between matches with terrifying creatures, you’re asked to solve puzzles in the room in which you’re playing. The game’s visuals are dark and otherworldly. They are also utilized well here because you are seeing a horror story play out with very little indication of where the story is heading. It’s not even a story I can explore much here (even vaguely) without spoiling the plot. Let’s just say that the deckbuilding and randomized roguelike elements should be enough to sell you on picking this game up.

If those elements aren’t appealing to you, then you might just want to skip this one. While the experience is really wonderful and certainly one of the more memorable games I’ve played in recent memory, it’s one-dimensional. This is a card game with horror trimmings, not a game within some larger experience fit for fans of action, visual novels, or puzzle-heavy gameplay. It’s okay if these types of games aren’t your thing, but despite being an incredible game, I wouldn’t say it’s worth trudging through a genre you dislike.

Inscryption is $20 and is available now on the Nintendo eShop. If you’ve enjoyed this game on PC or PlayStation 5, or plan on picking it up on Switch, let us know in the comments!

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Inscryption

$19.99

9

Score

9.0/10

Pros

• Wonderful deck-building roguelike
• Eerie mystery around every corner
• A game worthy of every accolade it received

Cons

• Lays its cards out early with limited offerings