Card of Darkness is a brilliant puzzle game from the minds of Zach Gage and Pendleton Ward. You navigate a grid of face-down cards, each pile hiding monsters, weapons, spells, or treasure. The goal is to reach the exit of each floor, but there's a catch: once you start a pile of cards, you must clear it. This simple rule creates deep tactical dilemmas as you balance your health and resources against the ever-increasing complexity of the deck.
Art style by Pendleton Ward
Challenging, procedurally generated levels
Dozens of unique weapons and magical spells
Quirky bosses with unique mechanics
Deeply strategic puzzle-based combat
HP is your most valuable resource. Before opening a new stack of cards, look at the potential monsters already visible. If you have a weapon that matches a monster's strength exactly, you'll clear it without taking damage. Plan your route to minimize chip damage.
The core of the game is deciding which stacks to commit to. Once you touch a stack, you must exhaust every card in it. This forces you to predict what might be lurking under the top card and decide if you're strong enough to survive the whole pile.
Not in the traditional sense. You don't build a deck; you navigate a deck that represents the dungeon floor.