Hello there ladies and gentlemen! Hello there ladies and gentlemen! Are you ready to rock? Are you ready to rock? Well whether you are ready to rock or not, it doesn’t matter. We did a Power Chord PAX East 2022 hands-on, showing off the rock-themed deckbuilder. This isn’t Rockband so there is no real reason to get ready.
In this Slay the Spire musical hybrid, players will take their band from beginning rockers to Rock legends. Power Chord is a deck builder Roguelike created by Big Blue Bubble. If you are a fan of card games, roguelike‘s, metal music, or just looking for a new indie game, then stay tuned.
Hands-On Experience
During our hands-on experience at PAX East 2022, the developers took us from card battler rookies to potential legends. During our preview, the developers allowed us to play past the typical demo length and gave us the chance to battle a path’s mini-boss and boss.
At first look, combat in the game seemed sporadic where you aren’t quite sure where that damage is coming from. Upon further evaluation, each bit of damage is clearly forecast at the beginning of the round; ultimately it is up to the player to decide how they want to attack the demonic band or defend against upcoming damage.
At the start of each round, the player draws a hand that they can use against the opposing demonic band. Each card is color-coordinated to the band member that can use the ability. Each round the player can only use cards equal to the amount of power they have in stock. Players can choose to attack, buff, and prepare defenses with the limited power they have.
Each character has its own unique abilities. The drummer helps guard allies, tanks damage, and occasionally deals damage. The bassist inflicts A.o.E damage to enemies and can apply debuffs lowering their armor or damage.
The guitarist is similar to a barbarian; as he takes damage either to his armor or health, gains a buff dealing out additional damage. Finally, the vocalist is able to either buff and amplify an ally’s abilities or deal damage to enemies while gaining health in return.
Each battle has a different overall objective. Enemies in the battle will have different effects that you will have to be prepared for. Researching your enemies by highlighting them rather than attacking mindlessly will get you further.
Power Chord Combat
In Power Chord, players will have to manage each of their band members’ health. At the start of each combat, each character’s natural armor regenerates. Unlike armor, any health damage sustained in the prior combat will carry over to the next fight.
Players can heal their allies either by pathing to a healing slot or using their singer to heal allies. Certain battles, shop purchases, or after combat rewards can unlock permanent equipment that can buff allies in future combat. Players can choose the path they take while moving across the board.
At the start of combat, the mission objectives will give a clue about what the special enemies’ abilities are. Players are able to adjust their battle style to accommodate these changes however, at the end of the day, the players assembled deck is all that matters.
There can be times when you will not draw a card for a certain band member, so a well-balanced deck is key. From the demo, combat appeared fair and easy to understand. Hopefully, the game’s difficulty will increase as the player clears levels or a select path.
Impressions
Going into Power Chord, we wanted to take a blind approach to the demo. Ultimately this approach felt more rewarding as we were able to get a better understanding of the game Big Blue Bubble is trying to showcase. Although we had to ask the developer for help at times, the core gameplay remained consistent, and once we understood the changing variables we were able to fly through the battle.
Obviously, if you build an unbalanced deck, combat will not be as fun; so, finding a balance of cards for each character will round out the deck.
After a brief discussion with the developers, we easily found ourselves getting lost in the demo. In fact, as we played through the demo, we lost track of time and found ourselves wanting to play more. As someone who typically isn’t into Deckbuilders or roguelites, this was a breath of fresh air that felt well polished. Hopefully, the game will be out sooner rather than later.
The Power Chord demo is currently available for PC, on Steam. If you like Deckbuilders & roguelites, then you should have fun with this demo.
