iOS Universal •
Ever since Tinytouchtales arrived on the scene back in 2015, we’ve been wondering about their next big project. That’s what happens when you release one of the best mobile games ever created, which is exactly what they did with Card Crawl. We shouldn’t have to wait long to experience what they’ve been working on, as yesterday they announced that Card Thief has been submitted to Apple and it’s release is imminent.
I’ve been lucky enough to have gotten my hands on Card Thief for the past couple weeks and I think it’s going to be a huge hit for Tinytouchtales. Maybe not as huge as Card Crawl, but that’s only because this is a deeper, more complex, and more strategic title and might not appeal to those who aren’t willing to put in the time to really figure out the underlying mechanisms. In other words, it’s perfect for the Stately Play audience, and exactly what we’ve been waiting for.
Don’t go into this expecting Card Crawl 2. Other than the magnificent art (which is simply spectacular once again. Mexer really deserves a lot of credit for making these games come to life), the games have absolutely nothing in common. Card Thief uses a clever stealth mechanism which allows your thief to sneak around a castle made of a 3×3 grid of cards. You’ll need to avoid or, better yet, pickpocket guards and other enemies while extinguishing torches and searching for the Chest. The goal is to grab the chest and escape, which is actually quite easy. Like Card Crawl, the true goal isn’t just getting through the deck, it’s pushing your luck to see how much loot and goodies you can acquire without ending up behind bars.
We just submitted Card Thief version 1.0 to the App Store. The first prototype was done on the 25th of August 2015. #gamedev pic.twitter.com/boGiSqBYpA
— Card Thief (@cardthiefgame) February 12, 2017
The game has a ton of special items you can unlock and take with you on your quest, and each can be leveled up by fulfilling certain obligations during your adventures. Chests can be opened after each successful run with more valuable chests having a better chance to earn you coins that will advance your story. Less valuable chests can simply be filled with trash, making your successful run feel a lot less successful. In a genius move by the developers, you decide how valuable the chests are. The longer you wait to pick up a revealed chest card, the more it will increase in value. Of course, the longer you wait the better chance that you’ll never be able to actually snag the chest in the first place. Every game of Card Thief is full of deliciously evil decisions like this.
The game is big, too. I’ve been playing for weeks and haven’t seen half of the equipment and only a smattering of the different enemies that fill the different castles you unlock as you earn more and more coin. Like Card Crawl, you’re not going to get bored. There’s already a Daily Heist you can undertake as well, comparing your score to all other thieves worldwide.
No word on when Card Thief will actually land on the App Store, but it won’t be long now. An Android version is currently in the works and should be coming soon as well. We’re as excited about this one as you guys are and we’ll try to get a review up as close to its release as we can.
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