Whilst navigating the halls at Brilliant Indie Treasures, Cards On The Table caught my eye. As I walked past its station a player in front of me was winning a card game with a pair of 21’s. The developer noticed my pause and eagerly explained the concept of his poker roguelike to me.
He explained that Cards On The Table took inspiration from how wacky a card game can easily become. I made a joke that he must’ve been getting a lot of comparisons to the hit game Balatro, something I admitted that I was doing myself in my head. He grimaced jokingly, explaining that the comparison was natural, but once you play it yourself, you can immediately see and feel the differences. And honestly? I think Cards On The Table is better.
So what’s the deal? Well, we find ourselves thrust into a wizard’s poker tournament, but our deck of cards is not your regular deck. As we face each opponent, we are challenged to make the best five card run we can by drawing cards from our deck and discarding, then playing cards into specific positions because our card suits have powers. For example, the club suit might lower the number on your opponent’s card opposite it, meaning you can stop opponents straights or pairs. That’s just one example. There’s new suits, like Void, which just wipe cards blank.
As you climb the ranks and keep beating opponents, you unlock new cards to add to your deck and start crafting your deck. Every run is different and Cards On The Table is extremely addictive. The developer had to tap me and ask me to step aside to let other players have a go – that can only be a good sign for its full release!
Cards on the Table is currently awaiting its full release date on Steam, with a play test available now.