Huge step up from the previous CCG that Everguild worked on (Horus Heresy: Legions) in terms of the overall production quality, including UI/UX. The game is actually much closer now to titles such as Hearthstone, Legends of Runeterra and Marvel: Snap.

The thing is, Warpforge is extremely similar to the said games and doesn't really bring much to the table in terms of innovation. I guess there are some decent mechanics that help flesh out each race, giving them a distinct identity but... it is just more of the same yet again. Short term the game will attract some fans of the Warhammer 40,000 IP, probably even getting a million or two downloads on mobile but long term the retention will see a great, steady decline unless we see something fresh as far as the gameplay systems are concerned.

Lots of complaints from the vocal, somewhat uninformed minority in regards to balancing and monetization. To be expected. Balancing is fine given the game is still in early access and data gathering (and analysis) was limited. I am confident they'll adjust it accordingly within the constraints of the card game formula. Monetization also seems fine in contrast to other titles on the market. Not overly predatory. Might be confusing to the casual audience though. Just in case you're wondering I don't know what I am talking about, I didn't spend a single dime and yet after having played 40~ ranked games, I won about 35 and I am close to getting to the top 50 rank. If you figure out how the system works, you can build a good deck rather quickly, at least for the time being since the card pool is limited (the game just released).

So, I could see myself recommending Warpforge but again, if it is to last, the design team really needs to step up their game and come up with some cool features/modes. Something that really flips the table and diversifies the extremely repetitive gameplay loop which so many players worldwide are slowly getting bored of.

To give an abstract example: a global faction system of sorts with guilds that pits the players against each other in groups, fighting for control of 'faked' galactic territory. Just the fantasy, gameplay logic remains relatively simple, I am aware that Everguild's resources are limited since they're more on the side of an indie company.

Bear with me; each ranked game win/loss counts towards a % value that is displayed on the galaxy map UI. Guilds of players constantly fight for it within a seasonal cycle and obtain rewards depending on the faction's placing (lots to consider here in terms of design algorithms to prevent very one sided, frustrating outcomes but totally manageable, multiple live service games have successfully done this before).

I think it fits the franchise well and could be a simple way to keep things more interesting within this extremely stale genre. There is also a social component that might help build an actual community around the title. I feel like many card games such as Gwent, Elder Scrolls: Legends and basically all the other major ones still kicking totally missed one of the key aspects of card games: social interaction within a community. One would think that converting the experience into the digital space would actually strengthen it but it would seem it does the opposite.

That is just one example of what kind of things they need to consider to implement if Warpforge is to remain competitive. Introducing new cards and cosmetics just won't do.

Huge step up from the previous CCG that Everguild worked on (Horus Heresy: Legions) in terms of the overall production quality, including UI/UX. The game is actually much closer now to titles such as Hearthstone, Legends of Runeterra and Marvel: Snap. The thing is, Warpforge is extremely similar to the said games and doesn't really bring much to the table in terms of innovation. I guess there are some decent mechanics that help flesh out each race, giving them a distinct identity but... it is just more of the same yet again. Short term the game will attract some fans of the Warhammer 40,000 IP, probably even getting a million or two downloads on mobile but long term the retention will see a great, steady decline unless we see something fresh as far as the gameplay systems are concerned. Lots of complaints from the vocal, somewhat uninformed minority in regards to balancing and monetization. To be expected. Balancing is fine given the game is still in early access and data gathering (and analysis) was limited. I am confident they'll adjust it accordingly within the constraints of the card game formula. Monetization also seems fine in contrast to other titles on the market. Not overly predatory. Might be confusing to the casual audience though. Just in case you're wondering I don't know what I am talking about, I didn't spend a single dime and yet after having played 40~ ranked games, I won about 35 and I am close to getting to the top 50 rank. If you figure out how the system works, you can build a good deck rather quickly, at least for the time being since the card pool is limited (the game just released). So, I could see myself recommending Warpforge but again, if it is to last, the design team really needs to step up their game and come up with some cool features/modes. Something that really flips the table and diversifies the extremely repetitive gameplay loop which so many players worldwide are slowly getting bored of. To give an abstract example: a global faction system of sorts with guilds that pits the players against each other in groups, fighting for control of 'faked' galactic territory. Just the fantasy, gameplay logic remains relatively simple, I am aware that Everguild's resources are limited since they're more on the side of an indie company. Bear with me; each ranked game win/loss counts towards a % value that is displayed on the galaxy map UI. Guilds of players constantly fight for it within a seasonal cycle and obtain rewards depending on the faction's placing (lots to consider here in terms of design algorithms to prevent very one sided, frustrating outcomes but totally manageable, multiple live service games have successfully done this before). I think it fits the franchise well and could be a simple way to keep things more interesting within this extremely stale genre. There is also a social component that might help build an actual community around the title. I feel like many card games such as Gwent, Elder Scrolls: Legends and basically all the other major ones still kicking totally missed one of the key aspects of card games: social interaction within a community. One would think that converting the experience into the digital space would actually strengthen it but it would seem it does the opposite. That is just one example of what kind of things they need to consider to implement if Warpforge is to remain competitive. Introducing new cards and cosmetics just won't do.