Well it’s summertime for me now, so you know what that means reader!? “You’re going to blow up the sun or forge a giant air conditioner to stop global warming.” What, no. That wasn’t even close to what I was thinking in the slightest. No, what it means is that I have over three months to churn out whatever reviews I so desire before school kicks in again. A free schedule to get some personal work done and not have to delay big projects that were promised weeks ago. Hooray for me and my manchild brain! Anyways, with that embarrassing introduction sequence out of the way let’s discuss today’s topic. Deckbuilder roguelikes, a subgenre we have definitely not covered in the past in any sort of manner. “What are you talking about? You talked about Inscryption and Slay The Spire before, and they were both deckbuilder roguelikes.” Oh look, if it isn’t captain obvious trying to remove the comedic build up of this review. With all jokes out of the way I have been growing quite fond of deckbuilder roguelikes. I used to hate card games in general, but it wasn’t until Slay The Spire that my heart began to open up to them. Soon I tried out Inscryption, which is probably still my favorite deckbuilder roguelike, and my appreciation has grown bigger since then. I love deckbuilders now. They aren’t for everyone, but I understand the audience who are in love with them. Forging a collection of cards, making the right moves, outsmarting your opponent, and being rewarded for not just playing wisely but knowing what cards will accommodate each other. The synergies of your cards and being able to keep up an effective combo. It may sound like I’m describing a fighting game, but trust me when I say playing a good deckbuilder feels like this. I’ve been seeking out more deckbuilder roguelikes recently and one I discovered late last year was Griftlands which goes for a more campaign driven approach. It was also developed by Klei Entertainment, who have a great track record and are well known for their hand drawn indies. They actually go really far back.
The company was founded in 2005 and ever since then they have released a handful of titles. Eets, Shank, and a sequel, but what really kicked off their success was Mark of The Ninja. A sidescrolling stealth game with an interestingly presented narrative. It was a vaguely told tale about honor and triumph, but morphed into this hideous message about becoming a monster overtime. It was one of two games of 2012, the other being Spec Ops: The Line, which got players to think if what they do in modern video games is always morally right. Have we ever thought about the people we kill amongst all the mindless gorey fun? Mark of The Ninja was really well received when it originally came out and some of that success had to do with it being released on the Xbox Live Arcade. A subscription program that offered lesser known games for free and allowed independent developers to get their name out there. Microsoft continues this method through Xbox Game Pass, but back then a lot of indie developers got their names out with the Xbox Live Arcade. After Mark of The Ninja, the team at Klei Entertainment would go on to make Don’t Starve one year later. A top down survival game where the player would have to forge a shelter, survive the monsters of the night and wilds, and most importantly don’t starve. It was an interesting take on the survival genre, and the multiple characters and updates made Don’t Starve an infinitely replayable game either by yourself or with friends. Afterwards came Invisible Inc an isometric stealth game, and Oxygen Not Included a 2D survival simulator where you and a team of friends would manage a large spaceship and prevent it from blowing up in the vast depths of space. Klei Entertainment was setting a good example of what indie developers should do, and while some releases weren’t as successful as others they at least put effort into their work. Including their most recent one which spent a long time in the works.
Griftlands was first revealed back at E3 2017 as a deckbuilder RPG with an open ended world to explore similar to the likes of a classic JRPG like Final Fantasy VI or Octopath Traveler. It had a compelling world, conflicting factions, and choices with dire consequences, but Klei was setting the bar too high for themselves. Griftlands seemed like a difficult idea for a small studio, and at the same time they were busy working on Oxygen Not Included. The production of Griftlands had to be pushed back and when Klei finally got to working on it they had to scrap the open ended world as it was too much. They had to substitute it for something else and they struggled for a while to find out what. Soon the idea smacked them in the face and Klei decided Griftlands would be…. a roguelike. Which isn’t anything new for an indie studio, and seeing the approach they were going for Griftlands would now be a difficult project to pull off. Yet, they somehow managed to make an intriguing campaign driven roguelike with the moral choice and compelling world they wanted. Griftlands is amazing, spectacular even and I would go as far to say this might be one of my new favorite roguelikes and deckbuilder. There’s a lot this game does right and even though there are faults the pros outweigh the cons. Today we’ll be talking about Griftlands and why it deserves your attention. Out in these parts you do what you gotta do.
Story
We all know the sci-fi scenario of mankind inventing advanced space travel hundreds of years from now. They have forged space shuttles capable of traveling lightyears within a few days. They discovered new planets, resources, and even species similar to our very own. We befriended and together we formed new societies where we can coexist together. At least that’s what we think, because in reality we would probably influence our sh*tty lifestyle onto their own. Everyone still hates day to day life, their jobs, each other, themselves, and what brought them to this miserable scenario. There is still crime, poverty, hunger, mass political corruption, and people doing what they can to make a living no matter how bad it can be. The game takes place on one specific planet which we’ll call the Griftlands. Where illegal activities seem to peak the most and the lowlifes of the galaxy seek basic work. Our story focuses around not one, but three protagonists who all have their own goals here in the Griftlands.
Our first protagonist is Sal Ik-Derrick, a young woman who was sold as a slave at a very young age. She seeks revenge against Kashio, a well known criminal who sold her years ago, and to do that she has to find some leads. The other two stories get more interesting from. Our second main protagonist is Rook, an experienced spy seeking a mysterious device deep within a location known as the Bog. The hideous swamp is guarded by the Boggers who worship a monster within it, so he’ll have to rely on one of two factions to enter. Working as a double agent he’ll either partner up with the Spark Barons who lead work operations in the area, or the Rise who are a small worker’s union who wish to revolt against the Spark Barons. To make matters more complicated the Spark Barons are led by Fellemo who used to go on dangerous missions with Rook back in the day. Finally there is Smith Banquod, the middle child to a wealthy family known as the Banquods. Each of his three siblings used a bit of the family’s wealth to reach massive success and become powerful individuals. His younger brother Theroux became a merchant, twin sister Mullifee became a law officer for Admiralty, and oldest brother Vixmalli became the leader of an ever growing religious group known as the Cult of Hesh. Smith on the other hand never sought out success. He stayed by his parents' side and often went to bars to spend time with friends. One day his parents die of a terrible accident and their inheritance is passed down to his siblings. However, when the time comes for Smith to collect his part the rest of the family denies. They order the house guards to lead Smith out and this enrages him. He plans to get revenge on his siblings for treating him like garbage, but slowly discovers there’s a darker picture lying underneath. The cause of his parents death weren’t all that specific, and his siblings while possessing high roles seem to be more corrupt than he thought. It’s time for him to get to the bottom of things. All three characters will have to navigate the Griftlands, make unlikely allies, side with powerful factions, and decide whether to help others or themselves along their journey. You do whatever you can to survive grifter.
Gameplay
Griftlands feels more like a traditional pen and paper RPG than a deckbuilder roguelike to be honest with you. Sure there are the roguelike rules like how the perks and cards you are given are always randomized, encounters are always randomized, and whenever you die the run is over. It’s standard roguelike stuff, but what Griftlands does compared to other roguelikes besides Hades is try to tell a decent narrative. Each of these characters have their own adventures to partake in and with it comes numerous choices. Missions with varying difficulties will be offered to the player and depending on how many people they help more rewards will be given. NPCs you interact with are recurring characters in between runs rather than being randomly generated assets. The missions they assign are random, but they will always tie back to helping them and the faction they are part of. Making choices that help them will make you a more likable person to them, but making choices that harm them or are unfavorable will make you unlikable to them. Make enough good or bad choices and these NPCs will either permanently love or hate you. Your relationship with characters is especially important whenever you enter a negotiation which is a big part on how you solve problems.
There are two types of battles during Griftlands. The first are actual battles and the second are negotiations. You and the person you are up against will take turns, and on your turn you will draw a selection of cards and play whatever is in your hand as long as you have enough energy points to do so. If you knock down the enemy’s health to zero before they do then you win the fight. Pretty understandable so far, but in negotiations you lower the risk of a character disliking you or having to kill someone in general. NPCs who favor you will sometimes offer support during negotiations, or when you are up against a person who favors you then you’ll have an easier time persuading them. The person you are up against will sometimes spawn in support arguments and much like a regular fight you’ll have to prioritize what to target next. GMTK one time made a video titled, “Can We Make Talking As Fun As Shooting,” and it’s a question I’ve always asked myself. Can dialogue sequences be made fun besides having some really good writing? Griftlands is probably one of very few games out there besides Disco Elysium to make talking fun. You and your enemy exchange conversations and you do whatever it takes to persuade them. Convince, threaten, shout, calm them down, and other speech methods. A majority of times I tried to talk to characters rather than physically fight them, because there were always more benefits and it allowed me to skip risky portions to quests. Plus there are downsides to always engaging in fights.
Combat in Griftlands is still really good though and more of a last resort when negotiating goes wrong. It functions very similarly to negotiations. You and your enemy take turns and energy determines how much you can do within one turn. Your enemy will sometimes bring in back up, but you can prevent yourself from being overwhelmed by bringing in allies yourself. Some missions will give you a partner to work with, other times a person who favors you will join the party, or you can purchase a pet who will always stay by your side. Your goal is to defeat the enemy, but never to kill them. When a foe is near death then a white flag will be put up to signal surrender. You have the option to spare them or kill them. If you choose to kill then you won’t ever see them again now that they are dead. Plus you gain a powerful weapon that can be used once during combat. However, kill too many enemies and people will start to look down upon you. Negative cards will be thrown into your deck and take up unnecessary space. These moral consequences are what gets the player to think if what they are about to do is right. Consider all the options they have and try to take the most safe approach out. You won’t be given every reward possible, but you don’t need them to win.
Whenever you complete a combat encounter or negotiation scenario you gain a card part of the one of two systems. Cards tend to vary and depending on what deck you form you either get a set of cards which synergize with each other or help keep up a devastating combo. You have attack cards, defense cards, cards which buff you, cards which inflict a status ailment onto the enemy, healing cards, support cards, and much more. Completed missions will offer you shills which are Griftlands main currency. They can be used to purchase more cards, purchase pets, to bribe a person, or refill on health or resolve at bars. You can also obtain mettle which can be used to buy permanent upgrades to characters and carries over to future runs. Cards can also be upgraded when offered the chance or when you use them during combat/negotiations enough times. Two upgrade types will be offered and you have to decide which one sounds best. Maybe you’ll get an upgrade which attacks twice, or one that does high damage but must be expended for the rest of a fight. An upgrade which increases the amount of turns a buff will last or adds a new buff entirely. Some upgrades will even change the way a card works and expand your style of play. It’s a cool system and it adds to that sense of choice. To the builds you can form each run.
One final explanation I want to give is how each character functions. You can’t just have three protagonists with different stories, but they all play the same. Sal is the all rounder and is the character they intend the player to finish the game with first. Rook and Smith on the other have unique mechanics which can turn the tides of a difficult fight quickly. Rook gains charges during each turn and they can be spent to power up attacks. There are also overcharges which are for specialized abilities. Smith on the other hand can drink alcohol which gives him empty bottles. These bottles can be used to attack enemies and inflict ailments. Drinking allows you to pull one use cards which offer buffs, ailments, or occasionally negative effects. Smith also builds up moxie which is a status ailment unique to him alone. If he can attack an enemy enough times and build up moxie then when his turn is over he heals to the number of moxie he has. There’s also special abilities characters have during negotiations like Rook’s gamble which can power up abilities and side effects as long as the coin lands on a specific symbol. However, this section is starting to last really long and we need to move on. Hopefully you can fulfill your journey and find your place out here in the Griftlands.
Thoughts
Griftlands was a game I struggled to get into at first, but when I took the time to understand it quickly hooked me in. This is my favorite deckbuilder roguelike at the moment and I would even say I love this more than Slay The Spire. Now that’s a really bold statement to make as I do have to admit Slay The Spire is a better video game than Griftlands. One of them focuses on gameplay more, doesn’t dump as much exposition onto the player, and has cards which synergize better. It has more of those “Ahah!” moments I love to see in video games. Having a deck centered around doing damage equal to the amount of blocks I build up and trying to find cards which increase my blockage crazily. Griftlands doesn’t have any interesting build diversity, so why do I like it more than Slay The Spire? What Griftlands lacks in overpowered build creation it makes up for with choice. Moral systems which get the player to think.
Both combat and negotiations are fun in their own ways. Negotiations allow the player to take a safe way out and understand their enemy afterwards. Sympathize with them or understand why they do what they do. Battles on the other hand are risky, but satisfying when you pull them off correctly. Getting the revenge your opponent deserves or showing them who's boss. The rewards you earn are always fulfilling and even if you get a selection of rewards you don’t like then you can exchange them for money or something better. As a roguelike Griftlands must offer risk reward scenarios and it does so pretty well. Now let’s address the elephant in the room. The story and amount of dialogue Griftlands has compared to other deckbuilder roguelikes. The stories of each character are actually really good and the way they are presented kept me interested. Their not amazing stories and to be honest I’ve seen them before, but done much better. However, they got me to care about the world I am in and the consequences of my actions. Random events will make each run and playthrough different, but you’ll always encounter specific events or bosses important to the story. It helps give the player an idea of what to expect next and what they can do to prepare.
The animation is really good. Griftlands has this art style that reminds me of every adult cartoon nowadays. It’s one that I've gotten really annoyed by, but here it’s an exception. I always love seeing developers tackle hand drawn arstyle, because it’s better than photorealism. It’s fine and all, but every game is practically photorealistic these days and it allows developers to get away with terrible game design. It’s loving to see more of what developers don’t do that often, and even with the animation Griftlands maintains to be a rock solid designed game. The music is laid back and helps offer this chill sense when playing the game. That you really are in the far off world and you don’t know what could be thrown at you next. Yet, you keep calm and fly forward towards the next new dawn. It’s also really nice that the characters spout out mumbo jumbo, because in a far off world they would speak a language different from our own.
Now this wouldn’t be a review without complaints and I do have quite a list. I’m fine with the amount of dialogue the game dumps on the player, but it’s not as fun when the same dialogue is being dumped again on a future run. It’s a good thing they have a fast forward button otherwise it would have made me drop Griftlands quickly. Money can be difficult to rack up during early sections of runs, but halfway through you should have more than you really need. It’s to the point where if you are offered the ability to bribe you can do so without worrying about not having enough to purchase a card or health refill you need. Plus you won’t really need to purchase stuff late into runs as you’ll accumulate so many cards that you don’t need anything else. On consoles you navigate the map using the right joystick which I don't really like and you there’s no option to remap where the navigation stick is. The left joystick is used for literally everything, so I don’t understand why the right joystick had to be it. It’s also used to highlight text during conversation, which could also be mapped into the left joystick.
It’s not a huge problem though, but my final complaint is that while Griftlands is a great deckbuilder roguelike the roguelike aspect doesn’t compliment the approach it’s going for all the time. It’s going for a campaign driven RPG approach. It wants to tell a story and have effects for your actions. Permadeath can either add or subtract from your experience depending on who you are. Add, because it makes you play carefully and decide between options. Subtract, because it feels demotivating to lose forty minutes of progress and witness the same story events again. I got really far into Rook’s campaign only to die at the final boss and lose everything. At that point I swapped over to the story mode which is nice to offer. It allows new players to get used to the world and grasp the mechanics easily, and when they are ready they can swap over to the roguelike modes. However, it does remove a lot of the challenge and strategy that the roguelike aspect offers. Still though, it doesn’t harm the overall experience.
Griftlands is a rock solid recommendation in my book. It’s not for everyone, but yet again not every game needs to be for everyone. It has personality, charm, and even going for it to stand out. New difficulty modes are unlocked with successful runs and they change how you approach the game. Took me around ten to twelve hours to finish one of the three stories and there were still loads of things to do. Griftlands is packed full of content and I’m excited to step back in and see what I’ve missed. Finish the other two stories and just continue playing for how well designed of a game it is. It’s also one of the more well balanced deckbuilder roguelikes out there and probably a good starter if you want to get into the genre. The game goes for twenty dollars which is a great selling price. I can’t wait to see what Klei Entertainment has in store next, and maybe I’ll check out one of their previous games like Mark of The Ninja which I’ve been meaning to play. In the end I am going to give Griftlands a 9/10 for excellence at best.
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