Stacklands (2022)

It has a pleasant and engaging set of systems fueled by deck building that feels complementary, not shoehorned in. Difficulty is reasonable, and provided meaningful experience that informed each future run. Some fiddly controls couldn't deter my enjoyment, and this'll stay in my rotation for some time.

Stacklands is a really enjoyable game. It combines a clever survival loop of exploration and optimization, it is easy to grasp the core concepts and get your runs moving, and it definitely grabs your attention with the "just one more turn" hallmark of the best of these type of round, time, or turn based games. The only real drawback here is the Switch, or rather how uninterested this game is of making use of what makes the Switch great. It's fine when docked on to your tv or monitor, just as if it were still running on the PC. I'm thankful the developers have brought it over so Switch players can get to play it, I am just recognizing not optimizing it for a 6.2 inch touchscreen is a missed opportunity.

Despite less-than-intuitive controls on Switch, Stacklands provides a fun and rewarding gameplay loop that any deckbuilding and roguelike fan can enjoy!

Stacklands rounds out to one of the most immediately accessible and engaging card-based roguelites I’ve played this year. It took practically no time to learn, and it will consume so many of my hours to come.