Rungore is a fast paced card combat game with the trappings of a roguelite. You fight one enemy at a time. Before each battle, you usually select three items from a random assortment of cards and armor. After selecting your items, the characters fight automatically in real time but you can use cards to make the battle much easier.
The cards you get can range from effects such as giving your character bonus armor, dealing extra damage, and applying the marked status effect. The marked status effect is used for bonuses on other cards such as dealing extra damage to marked enemies or receiving extra armor.
The enemies get progressively difficult so using up all your cards early would make boss fights much harder. Thankfully you do see a preview of the enemy and their abilities on the screen where you select your three items. You can use this information to determine a general strategy. For example, one enemy will double their attack every turn. Using stun cards to delay the enemy from attacking would be beneficial. You could also stack armor cards to prevent damage to your health or stack damage cards to finish the enemy before their damage gets too high.
The fights can get difficult so in typical roguelite fashion you will eventually die. Once you die, you can spend your earned coins on passive upgrades. The upgrades range from things such as unlocking more card choices or improving the armor pieces available. Armor provides a permanent upgrade to your run by either increasing passive stats like health or by increasing the effectiveness of cards such as increasing the armor gained.
There are different classes to unlock as well. Each class has a different passive ability. For example, Knight Guy is the first class available. Knight Guy will restore health after every battle. Knight Guy does look a little grumpy but that may be because he is not a day person…
There are some pretty tongue in cheek scenarios in this game. One such scenario was encountering a rat that claimed it knew kungfu. If you choose to get lessons from the rat you will get an extra card. The humor may not be for everyone but the sense of silly levity is spread throughout the game.
Overall, Rungore is a nice, light romp. The game feels pretty fast paced. The only complaint I have is that the card mechanics could feel a bit more tactical. Early on in the game you don’t really have many different strategies to employ and every fight starts to feel the same.
Additional Info
Steam Store Page : https://store.steampowered.com/app/2113040/RUNGORE/
Review Score: 82% positive with a total of 158 reviews as of this writing (11/29/23)
Developer: YOUR_MOM’S_HP, RavenJm
Publisher: GrabTheGames, Gamera Games, UpgradePoint
Release Date: Oct 12, 2023
MSRP: $14.99
I received a key from keymailer. Thank you so much for the key!
Time spent: 1.2 hours
Achievement Score: N/A
Ducky Obrien 