Inkbound totally gets it.
It understands what makes a Roguelike really compelling and exciting.
Still, it’s not an easy thing to do.
Inkbound
The magic revolves around, I think, an equation of powerfulness.
And Inkbound absolutely understands that.
I’ve made myself coo with delight.
I mentioned Hades there - Inkbound is much more like Hades than Slay the Spire.
Also, you’re in a 3D world and you run around it in real-time.
And there are NPCs to talk to with illustrated character portraits.
And when you progress from a chamber, you choose which kind of chamber comes next.
There’s one huge difference though, and it’s combat.
It’s governed, though, by turn-based principles.
You have an amount of energy you use to move and attack, and abilities have varying costs.
Where it gets interesting is movement and enemy intention.
This denotes where an enemy will attack.
If you’re in that area, you’ll be hit.
And enemies mix things up with their behaviour too.
It’s a balancing act that requires concentration and forethought - and it’s a lot of fun.
And all of that, I’m sold on.
Once you get used to that core loop and learn how to read it, it works very well.
It’s a bit crude by comparison, and lacking detail, particulary in characters.
I’m also unsure about the decision to make this an online game.
We’ll see, I suppose.
So I have concerns, but I’m also pleasantly surprised by what I’ve played.
