Due to a busy lecture schedule, I didn’t have much time on Game Access to try out the indie games presented here. Besides, there were a huge number of them this year, but I finally tried one of them – the roguelike train Fogpiercer, based on the mechanics of the famous Into the Breach from the creators of FTL: Faster Than Light.
The unique title was created by the Czech-Slovak team of Mad Cookies Studio of three people. He released the sci-fi event Cardbob last August and has now been working on Fogpiercer for about 8 months. The comparison with Into the Breach is not accidental; even game designer Krystof Klestil called this game a great inspiration. But our task here is not to protect people from alien invasion with the help of mosses. Instead, you’re excited about a train passing through a snowy landscape.
Based on the demo I tried on Game Access, the game looks almost like a pure roguelike rather than a roguelike. You start each run by selecting your carts and then hit the road. It, like the already mentioned FTL, consists of an interlaced map on which you have to decide which path to take. Sometimes you’ll find a fight, and sometimes you can rest at the station, where you can upgrade your carriages.
It is the carriages that play a key role because they give you cards. Therefore, deck building is extremely important and determines what options you will have in the fights themselves. They are turn-based and take place on a relatively small grid. In addition to maps that can be offensive, defensive, etc., here you will be able to move your train. Its position determines where you can shoot and whether the enemy will hit you. Thus, it is very important for success.
The tactical options are quite large as you unlock more options as you run. For example, from a basic attack you can get a better card that not only deals damage but also moves the enemy vehicle. As with Into the Breach, it’s very useful to try to move enemies so that they hurt themselves rather than you.
However, sometimes you have no choice but to simply smash them with the locomotive. Although it costs you your life, it prevents further damage, and such an attack is very powerful. There are other interesting mechanics associated with the train, such as the fact that if one of the cars is completely destroyed, all the others behind it will be disabled, causing you to lose valuable cards.
UX map.
I never, ever thought that using cards in deckbuilding games was like this:
– thorough
– simple
– difficult
– goodBlasphemy!!! pic.twitter.com/nBYdEfRhCp
— Christophe 🕹️⚒️ (@lentsius_bark) May 7, 2024
Although I only managed to complete one location, which ends in a rather difficult final battle, the game quickly hooked me. Into the Breach is one of my favorite roguelikes, and Fogpiercer borrows enough from it to offer a similar, very enjoyable experience (if you’re good at it) but also enough new things that you don’t feel like you’re replaying the same game.
Considering how short the title was in production, I was quite surprised by the capabilities that Fogpiercer already offers. In addition to PC, according to Klestil, it also works on Steam Deck, for which this style of game is made. Interestingly, by the way, it is created on the open source Godot engine, which is constantly gaining popularity among developers, especially after last year’s controversy surrounding Unity.
In any case, development will take some time, according to Klestil, about a year. There should also be a public demo released by then, likely as part of the Steam Next Fest. At the same time, the creators are looking for a publisher and have already established contacts with several companies.
The game doesn’t have a Steam page yet, but you can follow development updates on Twitter.
It’s time to use those cards!#deckbuilder #GodotEngine pic.twitter.com/qV0zrbVqq1
— Christophe 🕹️⚒️ (@lentsius_bark) February 9, 2024
Source :Indian TV
