Home » Technology » Monster Train in the test: hellishly good Roguelike deck builder – game tests

Monster Train in the test: hellishly good Roguelike deck builder – game tests

“Monster Train” lumps roguelike gameplay and card deck building, mixes a train ride through hell and an epic battle with heaven – and serves one of the best strategy games in a long time.

Hell is almost frozen over and only the last burning piece of hell embers can ignite it again and push back the hordes of heaven. After a devastating attack by the multitudes of heaven on hell, we are the last chance of evil to make a comeback for the inferno. So in “Monster Train” for PC on Steam we board a train to let the flames blaze again.

“Monster Train” is not so easy to squeeze into a genre. On the one hand there are the Roguelike levels, in which random events take place and no game play is like the next. However, more than 200 cards are added here, with which you have to defend the different levels of the train with monsters, magic and traps. As if that weren’t enough, monster ranks can be promoted, different tribes used and cards improved.

The hell train has four levels. During the journey to Hell’s core, every level has to be defended against emerging monsters at the same time. You do this with played cards that become monsters on the levels, but also traps that appear until they are destroyed by the attackers on the way to Hellfire. Both monsters and magic are very balanced, despite the large number of different cards.

Wise clan choice asked

There is even more variety among the different clans to which the monsters belong. Some are rather weak, but remain as “obstacles” for a long time on the field – others have destructive powers, but can only be used temporarily. As a player you choose a main and a secondary clan, you get a levelable champion and can then use cards from the two clans for the respective game round.

This ensures immense replayability, because not only do the different clans have extremely different techniques and monsters, they also influence one another in a wide variety of forms. So that the overview of the hundreds of possibilities and interactions is not lost, “Monster Train” runs on a turn basis and each card clearly lists the effects on the battle when it is played. This way, even beginners can quickly achieve success.

Ingenious planning required

If you have survived a fight with several waves of attackers, you advance a bit to the core of hell. The player can determine the route that the train should take. There are many secrets hidden on the routes, which can have a massive impact on the further course of the hell rescue. Sometimes there is gold on the route that you can invest in your own deck, sometimes there is also a power-up to increase the monster strength or the possibility to copy a particularly strong card.

The game rounds are usually not too long, but they do not become monotonous even after the 20th round. If you have enough of experimenting with cards, monsters and clans, you can still switch to a higher of the 25 (!) Difficulty levels. Even if the lower levels of difficulty begin slightly, at the latest with the final boss you quickly bite your teeth with an inconsiderate strategy.

Hell of fun

If the campaign already plays brilliantly, it will finally be really good as hell in the multiplayer mode “Hellstorm”. Here, eight players match each other for supremacy in hell, who wins with the fastest game round. The special thing about it: There are no unfair advantages, because every player has the same resources and decides whether you make a success or failure.

However, the tight time limit in which decisions have to be made is initially stressful – there is hardly any time here to read effects and skills. “Slay the Spire” has already shown that card games work great in connection with other genres. “Monster Train” also proves that a good balance ensures great fun. Even gamers who are actually not fans of card games will hardly be able to put “Monster Train” down because of the hellish fun.

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