Deckers, published by Deep Print Games/Pegasus Spiele and designed by Richard Wilkins, is a cooperative deck-building game that builds directly on the DNA of 2018’s Renegade, offering a bigger, more cinematic take on cyberpunk hacking while retaining the tense puzzle-like feel that made its predecessor so distinctive. Where Renegade was cerebral, puzzly and abstract, Deckers expands the scope considerably, delivering a game that feels more tactile, thematic, and accessible without losing sight of its roots.
From the outset, Deckers makes its lineage clear. In Renegade, players were hackers infiltrating a dystopian network, manipulating nodes and outsmarting AI bosses in a tight, unforgiving puzzle. It was a game that demanded precision and rewarded mastery, but it could also feel solitary, even in cooperative play, because so much of the tension was internal — calculating moves, anticipating AI responses, and trying to optimize every turn.
This focus on solitaire decisions was potentially because Renegade’s designer is Richard Wilkins (AKA Ricky Royal) who is well known for his solo play videos and even his adaptations of existing games for solo players. Deckers takes that same premise — hackers versus overwhelming artificial intelligence — and blows it up into something larger, more cinematic, and more varied that still retains the heritage of Renegade but shows how much Ricky has developed as a designer since his original idea.
Here, players face off against one of nine supermassive computers (SMCs), each with their own unique defenses, personality, and narrative framing. The dystopian setting is richly drawn: society has collapsed into moral decay, and “Mother,” a sentient machine, has turned against humanity. Thematically, it feels like a natural continuation of Renegade’s world, but with more narrative scaffolding and a stronger sense of immersion.
Mechanically, Deckers retains the cooperative tension of Renegade but layers in more variety. Players build command decks, deploy abilities, and coordinate to overcome dynamic defense systems. The modular setup (thanks to multiple SMCs, server segments, and optional objectives) ensures that no two games feel alike.
Compared to Renegade’s abstract puzzle board, Deckers feels more tactile and thematic, with standees, dice, and a larger array of components that make the experience more visually engaging. Not least worthy of praise is the storage system, which is made up of simple cardboard trays and tuckboxes — but all richly decorated and highly functional.
When I started playing, I found that Deckers encouraged more conversation and collaboration than Renegade, with players debating tactical choices and reacting to unexpected twists rather than silently calculating optimal moves. That said, I did play Renegade a lot more solo than I have Deckers as my kids are now older, but I still feel that Deckers has the more cooperative feel — especially at exactly two players which feels pretty optimal.
One of the most striking differences between the two games is pacing. Renegade often felt like a solitary brain-burner, even when you were playing with someone else — mainly because its puzzle was so tight and unforgiving. Deckers, by contrast, feels a touch more accessible and streamlined. This makes Deckers easier to introduce to new players, while still offering depth for veterans. I can’t remember all the details about Renegade now, but I seem to feel that there are more SMC’s here, more replayability, but most pleasingly, no less depth in terms of challenge.
The production values are also a step up — and not just because of the custom storage. Deckers comes with over 170 cards, some fantastic player boards and a range of tokens and standees that give the game a really strong presence on the table. Where Renegade sometimes felt austere, Deckers embraces its Cyberpunk aesthetic, and that makes it easier to draw in players who might otherwise be intimidated by a purely abstract puzzle.
The artwork is bold and thematic, reinforcing the setting, whilst the components are designed to make the game feel immersive without sacrificing clarity of use. It’s clear that Deep Print Games and Pegasus Spiele wanted Deckers to have more table presence, and they’ve definitely succeeded.
Replayability is high thanks to the seven different SMC’s (plus two upgraded ones), each offering unique challenges. This echoes Renegade’s AI bosses but expands the concept with more variety and narrative flavor. Each SMC feels distinct, with its own mechanics and personality, and this ensures that players will want to return to the game to face new challenges. The variable bronze and silver objectives (which are optional, but give you bonuses) and modular setup also add variety, making each playthrough feel fresh. For fans of Renegade, this feels like a natural evolution — the same tense hacking battles, but with more breadth and lots more thematic richness.
What struck me most in playing Deckers was how much more collaborative it felt compared to Renegade. In Renegade, I recall that players spent much of the game in silence, calculating moves and trying to optimize their turns. In Deckers, the variety of card effects and situational reasoning encouraged a lot more joint reasoning with players debating tactical choices and reacting to unexpected twists.
I wouldn’t call it a social game, but it might be close to another 2025 favourite —The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship — in the way that each player has their own situation to deal with (which only they understand) but overall success requires everyone to solve the same overall challenges within the same space. Failure to at least consider what your teammate(s) are doing is likely to result in failure.
Despite my overall enjoyment of it, Deckers is not without its challenges. This remains a challenging game that can sometimes feel frustrating, especially for younger or less experienced players. The game also has a steeper learning curve than it initially appears, with a lot of cards, abilities, and mechanics to keep track of. For new players, this can be overwhelming, and it may take a few plays to fully grasp the depth of the game — though I was glad to see the excellent manual guiding players on certain aspects of setup to make sure it’s as smooth as possible. The bottom line here is that for those willing to invest the time, Deckers offers a rich and rewarding experience.
Thematically, Deckers leans heavily into its cyberpunk setting. The narrative framing, the artwork, and the mechanics all reinforce the idea of hackers battling against overwhelming AI systems. This makes the game feel immersive, and it adds a layer of storytelling that I felt was less pronounced in Renegade. The dystopian setting is compelling, and it gives the game a sense of urgency and weight. It’s clear that Richard Wilkins wanted Deckers to feel like a natural continuation of Renegade’s world, and he succeeded.
Deckers is a worthy pseudo-sequel to Renegade, retaining the cooperative puzzle-like tension while expanding into a more thematic, cinematic experience. It may sacrifice some of the razor-sharp abstraction that made Renegade so unique, but in return it offers greater accessibility, replayability, and immersion. For me, the throwbacks to Renegade are clear — the same sense of battling against overwhelming AI systems — but Deckers feels like the bigger, bolder sibling, one that invites more players into Richard Wilkins’ fascinating cyberpunk world.
Deckers is available now from Amazon
