Platform reviewed: PC (Steam)
When Steam Next Fest came around, I wasn’t sure if I would find anything I would like. As always, though, I kept an eye out for any new and upcoming roguelikes that would consume my time. As a note, deckbuilders have also been on my radar recently. So when Roots Devour flashed across my screen, its eldritch horror-like setting grabbed my attention faster than you could chant “Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn.” Another one of my favorite genres. “I must play this!” I thought to myself.
In a flash, Roots Devour was in my library and ready to play. In all my years of gaming, I have only come across a handful of games that grabbed my attention this quickly and held onto it for dear life. I was taught that I was playing this dark being who was summoned forth into a mysterious forest. I was destined to spread my roots throughout the environment in search of blood. How poetic.
Not long after I came into existence, I was greeted by yet another curious…Person? Creature? I wasn’t sure. But she explained my ultimate purpose; to spread my roots, take hold of this forest as my own, and gain extraordinary power! I felt evil. Godly. Ultimately, I was excited to spread my influence. Come to me little cards on this forest table! I am your new god.
Now, I was only able to spread my roots to these cards as much as my blood pool and water meter allowed. But that’s what slaughtering any living being around me was for, right? Humans, animals, you name it. I wrapped my roots around them, drained their blood over time which allowed me to creep deeper into the forest to discover its secrets. Occasionally, I encountered scenarios where I could not reach another card, and I was able to place down a booster pack that spewed out random cards that could aid me in my deck, my hand, or even on the table itself. This proved very helpful, until I ran out of water. Plants need water to survive. And when this water meter was depleted, back I went to my source where I could use what blood I had gathered to upgrade myself. These upgrades made it easier to advance through my new domain.
Overall, Roots Devour did great in its delivery of becoming an eldritch-like being whose sole purpose is to devour its environment and to reign supreme over its new land. I was having to be strategic in spreading my roots, placing my booster packs, and using what cards I had in my “hand” to explore more of this forest and its mysteries. I have very few complaints about this game, and quite frankly only one comes to mind. I found that some of the text overlapped a little too much to the point where I could not find where I was supposed to be clicking to advance the screen. The color scheme of reds, blacks, and whites work very well for this genre, however it collided a little too much when text wasn’t blocked off into text boxes. But this slight annoyance doesn’t overshadow all of the greatness I found within the game.
Final Grade: B+
Roots Devour offers players the opportunity to live the life of a ruinous being spreading its influence across a mysterious and gloomy forest. Its deckbuilding strategies, RNG based booster packs, and upgradable skills gave each attempt a slightly different feel as my roots grew. While I found a slight irritation in how some of the text overlapped, overall this game lands in my top favorites for up and coming titles this year. Don’t mind me while I play through the demo to hone in my skills at becoming the next god.
Preview code provided by Rewinding Games.
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