Recent reviews by RedBadger

Pretty fun video game. Shoot some things, pick some things up, rinse/repeat. E!D!F!

Not a fan of where they're taking this game. They're more focused on payouts than players.

This game taught me how to program

I liked it, there's a plot twist in the middle and the main character shows up towards the end. Also, the finale was a surprise, so it was an overall good story through and through.

Much better than Hearthstone

Granted, I've only played around with the main game a bit. However, I will say that I find the mechanics a lot of fun to interact with and the design is fresh. The game feels streamlined and comfortable and is fun to play. What I really wanted to say with this review is how I feel about the aftermarket place. Understand that my feelings may change weeks from now depending on how it shapes up, but I do think that the business model behind this game isn't necessarily a bad thing.

My problem with most digital card games is I don't feel a sense of ownership over what I'm paying for. The aftermarket gives me a chance to get rid of extras and replace them with different commons I may not have picked up from the minimal amount of packs I plan to buy. This is already an interesting angle as it's close to how a regular table top card game works. And as for the initial $20? You go to a local game shop and have interest in a game you see? You're going to pay to pick up your first deck. You want to make changes to that deck? You're going to pay to buy a couple of pack or to get the "best" singles on the marketplace. This doesn't looks like a gatcha grab pay to win business model to me. The fact that it's integrated to a secondary market makes the cards I'm paying for have more value. (This is where I may change my mind in a few weeks after seeing how that works out).

Finally, the pay to play barrier could be a good thing for the game as not everyone will always craft the best cards in the game or pay for the most expensive pieces on the market to follow the meta. The price to build a deck is real which will make people work harder to play with what they have or the limited amount of pickups they purchase over time. This can lead to a more interesting world in match making. "Why did my opponent only play one of that "busted" card? Well, he only had one. He added 2 of another card I've never seen to act as second and third copies." Or, man! I've never seen anyone play those two heroes together. They actually work well in my opponent's deck." The business model here has the potential to breed creativity in the players of Artifact which makes for a much more interesting game on a casual level. On a competitive level? You might get into trouble.

But how much do truly competitive players spend on other games in the genre? Or, other card games in real life? You want the latest Magic deck that topped? That's gonna cost you a good chunk of change only to rotate a few years later. (Unless you're into extended or legacy).

I will admit this may all be wishful thinking, but I'm excited for the future of this game to see if it shakes up positive or negative. I haven't spoken much about how the game itself plays but I don't intend this write up to be this type of review. To go into that shortly though, I think it's fresh and I am highly interested to play around more with it. I do wish there was slightly more rewards offered to the modes, but what's there is appealing to me. Thumbs up until the future changes my mind.

Ugly characters, ugly map, makes me sad "';..;'"

This is the only game on steam that you need.