Before exploring the prism, a few quick notes. First, I am a gamer not a collector. I understand the secondary market has a strong grip on certain games, but I care most about the table top experience. Secondly, I don't care about the various acronyms—TCG, UCG, CCG, LCG, etc. I use the term “expandable card game” as a means of encompassing the myriad of card-based games which release a base/core set of cards, then periodically release new cycles of cards which enhance and iterate on the base experience. Fair enough? Third, there are too many expandable card games for the average person to have played them all. I have played twenty two, which is a good number, but does not include some of the more well known games (e.g. Yu-Gi-Oh, Summoner Wars, and others). So, I would not take this post as the be-all end-all, just a conversation starter. And lastly, this is a living page. As I play more such games I will be updating the post. There are a couple dozen new games due for release in the next twelve months...
Here are the facets I chose to look at:
Best Art
The Crunchiest
Most Overrated
Most Underrated
Least Deterministic
Most Deterministic
Most Customer-Friendly Business Model
Complexity
Entry-Level
Mid-Level
Complex
Most Unique
Most Thematic vs. Most Abstract
Best Multi-player
Best Cooperative
Without further ado, on to the prism of expandable card games. We'll start with a banger of a facet.
Best Art
This is an extremely difficult category given card art is one of the three pillars all expandable card games stand on, i.e. most games have at least 'good' art. What we can say with more certainty, however, is that newer games are generally better than older games. Compare early cards from Magic: The Gathering or Vampire: The Eternal Struggle to games on the list below and there is a world of difference. This is not to belittle what was happening in the 90s. Those efforts were necessary to pave the way for the expectations that have created the beautiful art in the following games:
(Honorable Mentions: Marvel Champions: The Card Game and the past +/-decade of Magic: The Gathering—comparing old to new is night and day.)
5. Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn (aka Ashes Reborn) - Its summoning cards use a template, unfortunately, and some of the ally cards are a little corny, but all other graphics of Ashes cause pause for appreciation. The game's secret: white backgrounds and minimal borders create positive space to let the colors pop. Another high point is that some cards have multiple color-variant versions within the same release. Compare all this to most other card games, old and new, and you see how the designers take full advantage of a card's real estate to maximize artistic potential. Foils would perhaps have been too much ecstasy.
4. Flesh and Blood – The overall quality of FaB art is fantastic. The foils, regardless cold, rainbow, etc., look superb and can catch the player looking dreamily into their depths while playing. And card borders are thematically unique to the faction. It's only the inconsistency of style which knocks the game back a little. The heroes Prism and Dash, for example, look like anime, and subsequently clash with the gritty, grimdark stylings of Rhinar and Chane, who in turn clash with the superhero look of Bravo and Katsu. All these heroes come from the same lore/world? Individually, however, they look superb. The game helps keep the bar high.
3. Lord of the Rings: The Card Game – FFG could have gone the Highlander CCG route (the easy route) and used movie screen shots. They didn't, thankfully, instead going with an original, classic take on Tolkien's fiction. The result is unique art which genuinely reflects the source material, something which makes the game truly special. It's my least favorite cooperative card game, but certainly not due to the art. It is an excellent representation of the books and the imagination present there.
2. Android: Netrunner – Where Flesh and Blood isn't always consistent from a style perspective, Android: Netrunner is. This is all the more noteworthy considering almost a decade of content was published. From day one's core set to the swan song of “Reign and Reverie”, A:N looks amazing. The central motif is cyberpunk through and through, and the art is so good some people hang it on their walls.
1. Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game – The neo-samurai look of this game is phenomenal. Mixing the traditions of the Orient with psychedelic zen, the game's bright colors and bamboo serenity are a true joy to look at on the table. I don't think any media—even beyond table top games—do fantasy Japan so well. (Maybe the Nioh games?)
The Crunchiest
I'm aware satisfaction and engagement are subjective. Uno may be crunchy for Person A while Person B looks to hex-and-counter war games for a bite. Interest and intelligence are relative. But I think there is something semi-objective that can be said about expandable card games. At the deepest level, the best games deliver on meaningful choices in a thematic setting; a player's decisions, long and short term, give the best rewards in flavorful fashion. Still subjective, I know, but hopefully the following list helps.
5. Warhammer 40k: Conquest: With two win conditions that players must constantly pay attention to, as well as a good selection of thematic, faction-specific cards, and a clean set of first principles, this is a game that gets deeper the one gets into it but never overwhelms. More mental RAM needed for game decisions rather than deciphering rules, it's an experience that perpetually surprises and rewards in line with the lore it's based on.
4. Flesh and Blood – I have Flesh and Blood on the list for one major reason: it's constantly flowing, and flowing forward. It isn't about bogging down and defending everything every little move, rather, how much damage is a person willing to take in order to do more damage themselves next turn. This forward-leaning tug-of-war, coupled with a balanced rule set and splendid card art, make this game a brain treat each play.
3. Star Wars: Destiny – Like Flesh and Blood, Destiny is likewise a game with excellent flow. One action, and on to the other player's turn, one action and on, and on. The decision space offers a few things to consider, but not an overwhelming multitude. Save asynchronous character combos and being able to attach lightsabers to Ewoks and other unlikely situations, theme likewise feels well represented. The Emperor is truly terrifying, just as C3PO and R2D2 play supporting roles, and so on. And while the dice are... dice, the diversity of card actions to manipulate game state is excellent. This game packs a lot into 20-30 minutes.
2. Marvel Champions: The Card Game – Arkham Horror is my favorite cooperative card game, but Marvel Champions hits a sweet spot of so many things: length of gameplay, card combos, ease of setup, Goldilocks decision space, art... It just feels good to get in a Marvel session. Every turn you're doing something, accomplishing something, making progress in not easy, not difficult fashion. It's a chewy game.
1. Android: Netrunner – Is there anything as satisfying in expandable card games as pulling an agenda from the corp deck? And conversely, anything as satisfying as laying a trap for the runner and watching them barge into it? Neither gets old. The Corp anxiety of an exposed agenda just as entering unknown ICE likewise have a sweet degree of tension few other card games emulate. There are a lot of great expandable card games out there, but this one pings so many primal human things that get people excited beyond card games—looking at you, Las Vegas.
Most Overrated
I have not played Lorcana, Star Wars: Unlimited, or Metazoo, and therefore cannot put them on this list. But they're looking that way...
5. Flesh and Blood – Yes, this game is great. Yes, it may eventually replace Magic as the de facto best face-to-face tournament scene TCG (if it hasn't already). And yes, unlike Magic, there is a sound, considered game system beyond collectibility. And that is where I think the game is overrated. The butterflies and bees that we are, we flock to the latest and greatest and extol their virtues. In other words, it's too early to say a lot of things about FaB. So relax, let's see what happens. Maybe all the hype is true, maybe not. Give it a few more years.
4. Keyforge – It pains me (just a little) to put Keyforge on this list. I like the game. I like that constructing three keys is the way to victory—not reducing hit points to zero, etc. I like the high degree of randomness. It's different. But I can't help but think the gimmick of being a unique card game bolsters its appeal more than actual gameplay, especially given the game's theme is soulless. As of the writing of this post, the revival of the game has drawn some attention, but I'm not convinced there is enough to bring it back to life the same way that games like A Game of Thrones: The Card Game, Ashes, Netrunner, or others have had successful 2.0s. Speaking of the devil...
3. Game of Thrones: The Card Game (2ed) – This is another game I like. Thematically, it captures Geroge R.R. Martin's world extremely well (character-based Houses—with a dead pile!!). But gameplay is not as balanced as global competitions and hype may have had it. A flighty experience, a best-of-three or -five is a better way of determining the better player than best-of-one. (RNG, card draw, and resources being the three main factors.) Certain houses were likewise OP at varying phases of the game's lifecycle given FFG chose a phased approach to releasing deluxe House packs (i.e. certain houses got better cards earlier). A good but flawed game that I'm not sure was worth the tournament hype it had.
2. Magic: The Gathering – Magic, Magic, Magic. This is the giant of the genre. It is the most popular. The most traded. The longest-lived. The most communal. The widest spread. The most superlatives. It's also the most-overrated. The first reason is that the market for trading and selling Magic overshadows the actual game. But secondly, and more importantly, it was the first out of the expandable card game gate. This means it does not have the decades of lessons learned which other such card games have been able to take advantage of. Mana screw is a real thing, and OP decks, depending on the format, can decapitate fun. Sure, Magic has reinvented itself numerous times over the years in order to retain relevancy, but I remain uncertain that the principal rule set holds up to card games released later. The fact that in the past couple of years Magic has sold its soul to famous IPs does not help their case, either.
1. Pokemon – The primary reason Pokemon is overrated is because of the degree to which collectibility overshadows the game itself. Most of the online content surrounding the game is related to trade not gameplay. The game itself is normal, average, nothing to loft to heights of praise or sharply criticize (save perhaps the amount of re-shuffling and shuffling and shuffling and shuffling...). Gameplay is reasonable fun, but definitively out of proportion with the craaaaaaaazy amount of collectibility that inhabits the game.
Most Underrated
It's impossible to be everywhere on the internet. The quantity of content related to expandable card games is vast, so vast. But in my humble experience, the games below do not receive the love they deserve compared to the singularity of their gameplay experience—regardless dead or alive.
Honorable Mention: Spycraft CCG
5. Redline - The production of this game (components and rulebook) is a clear step below the heavy hitters out there. But beyond this, Redline is a game worth trying. Combining Battletech CCG and Warhammer 40k: Conquest, with a splash of X-Wing Miniatures Game, the game feels like mechwarriors battling for strategic battlefield positions unlike any other expandable card game. With dials for hidden movement, excellent mech upgrades, a nice critical hit system, and a simple resource system that partially advances M:TG antics, this is worth looking into.
4. WWE: Raw Deal – I don't like professional wrestling. It's cheesy. But this is a thematic, fun game. It does tug-of-war better than any game I've played—including Flesh and Blood, which in some strange twist of reality is the game's closest comparison. Players build chains of attacks, which likewise function as resources towards bigger, badder attacks in the future. Back and forth, back and forth, players steal momentum from one another, hoping to land bigger and bigger blows, until one player has an attack the other has no answer for - the signature move. This is a dead game, unfortunately, but if you have a chance to play, don't let the theme fool you. It fits perfectly, and is a lot of fun.
3. The Spoils – I understand it was The Spoil's financial situation which ultimately brought it down. Otherwise, this game had a bright future considering how solid the rule set is and how interlinked the central mechanisms are. This game was made for tournaments, that's how refined it is. It's art and style will not be everyone's cup of tea (including mine), but beneath the cheese is a good game that rewards intelligent decisions and preparation. (Hey, Neuroshima people, still waiting for the reimplementation...)
2. 7th Sea – First released nearly twenty-five years ago, 7th Sea continues to be one of the most unique expandable games out there. Gameplay multi-layered, players have more than the usual number of ways of using their band of pirates and swashbucklers to defeat their opponents. From boarding parties to cannons to adventuring, the seas are alive in this overlooked little gem. The rules are a touch complex, and pure math can sometimes float too close to the top, but it remains a worthwhile experience.
1.Warhammer 40,000: Conquest – Like Android: Netrunner, Warhammer 40k: Conquest is a game that fell victim to licensing issues. The difference is, FFG lost the license to Conquest after only three cycles of content (compared to A:N's eight). Conquest rose in popularity quickly but fell just as, which is a shame considering the rules/mechanisms are robust and the theme really comes through—a difficult thing to do with the 40k IP. The major factions are present, the unique characteristics of Warlords are front and center, and planetary takeover is the name of the game—just what you'd hope for in Warhammer. If you can find a copy, try it. It's solid.
Most Deterministic
Chess is an example of pure determinism in gameplay. Every possibility is known from the start as well as every move thereafter. Expandable card games are not chess. Players accept a degree of randomness, mostly in card shuffle but potentially also in dice rolls or token draws. These are the games which have the least amount of randomness.
5. Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn (aka Ashes Reborn) – Players choose their five starting cards. Creatures and spells generally cannot be utilized without first putting a summoning card in play. Resources, while dice, are limited in number and modifiable on every turn at the price of losing a card. Overall, players' awareness of the board state and its possibilities is higher than other such dueling magicians game.
4. Lord of the Rings: The Card Game – No dice. No bluffing. No dials. Just straight card draw. There is deck shuffling for randomness, but everything else can be estimated. (Shadow effects are a result of deck shuffling, remember.) Pre-match deckbuilding and in-game strategic decisions play the strongest roles in the Lord of the Rings: The Card Game experience. Of all expandable card games, it is the most labyrynthian. The walls visible, figure your way out through deckbuilding.
3. Flesh and Blood – Two factors play into this. One, Flesh and Blood learned from literal decades of similar games' mistakes and inconsistencies to make gameplay fair and balanced. Two, the game was designed to be competitive, which means it's success hinges on tournaments, a scene which benefits from avoiding random, luck-based results. Players need to feel in control rather than the game. Flesh and Blood is not chess, but it's tight—percentage points tight.
2. The Spoils – Resources are 98% available and economy size is controlled by round. In attacking, there are no dice or other randomness. Pretty much the only random aspect of The Spoils is deck shuffle, meaning knowing your deck and your opponent's deck is critical. Not chess, but certainly more on that side of expandable card games.
1. Vs. (System) – Champions of Vs. will tell you that almost—almost—all variability and randomness have been removed from the game. Players shuffle their decks, but that is pretty much it. As long as players are familiar with the game's cards (i.e. action possibilities are finite), head games can and do occur. Said champions argue that Vs. is the expandable card game with true tactics and strategy. Marvel chess anyone?
Least Deterministic
These are the games where randomness and luck play stronger roles than most other expandable card games. It's no surprise dice play some role, but not in every selection. It's a list for players who may like a bit more chaos and unpredictability.
5. Space Hulk: Death Angel – One, single, cursed die. That is the decider of fate in this tense cooperative game of space marines blasting aliens to paste in the corridors of a derelict space ship. Ok, ok, the die is not the actual decider of fate. But there are times it certainly feels that way. Get your Space Marines facing correctly, get the attack actions lined up, spend a few support tokens to take out as many blips as you can, and... you roll blanks... But when you win, it feels twice as good.
4. Star Wars: Destiny – Dice, this time more than one: many. Destiny is heavily based on dice. And while there are innumerable ways to manipulate them, at the end of the day it's still possible to roll blanks five times in a row. Destiny is a deceptively deep game but everything still rolls with the bones.
3. Game of Thrones: TCG (2ed) – In this version of Game of Thrones, the sequence of card draw is important, extremely important, so important that games often can be lost for it (particularly early in the game's lifecycle). Shuffle your deck “wrong”, and your chances of winning drop. Perhaps worse yet, players draw only one (sometimes two) cards between rounds. It's extremely rare to see the bottom of the sixty card deck you painstakingly built. I never really liked duplicates, either... (The multi-player version, however, is one of the best of any expandable card game.)
2. Magic: The Gathering – Commander format would seem to remove Magic from this list, but knowing Constructed and Limited are still popular modes means that it definitely belongs here. Commander format, in fact, was created to get around one of the game's major flaws: mana screw. No luck, no mana, no fun—mana screw. Thirty+ years after the game's creation this problem still exists, meaning you can make the most optimal decisions every turn and still be left without resources. That is non-determinism at work. How this ever became a tournament game I'll never know.
1. Arkham Horror: The Card Game – In Arkham Horror skill tests are decided by something called “the chaos bag” for goodness' sake. If that doesn't spell “non-determinism” then I don't know what does. Moreover, the game's skill tests have an auto-fail function. No matter the efforts players make to maneuver themselves into highly favorable positions, pull the tentacle token and it's all been in vain. Tack onto this the variability of scenario setup, the compounding punishments of the skull, tablet, heart tokens, and all the other joyful finds in the chaos bag, and you have a game in which players must embrace a larger degree of the unknown to enjoy.
Most Customer-Friendly Delivery Model
There are multiple ways to consume expandable card games—core sets, booster packs, booster boxes, deluxe sets, limited release, base packs, starter sets, two-player starter sets, hero packs, etc., etc., etc. The games are accessible to consumers in a variety of ways, some more, some less. Here are the games which are most consumer friendly in how they publish games for consumption:
5. Flesh and Blood – Living Legend Studios, makers of Flesh and Blood, have made a game that is aware of both sides: playing and collecting. For people who are into the game as collectors, the avenues are there to pursue your passion. But for people who enjoy the game for the game's sake, FaB does not require the same degree of financial investment. Valuable cards from a gameplay perspective, while not as desirable from a collector's perspective, can usually be acquired at more reasonable prices given how two versions of cards are published. Thank you.
4. Arkham Horror: The Card Game and Lord of the Rings: The Card Game – Both these games began their product lifecycle journey the opposite of consumer friendly. FFG got the memo, however, and have begun consolidating and re-printing these products in a way they should have done from the beginning. There is something to be said for maintaining momentum with small, monthly releases, but as many people know, playing catch up, getting a pack here and a pack there but still missing a pack, is painful. The fact these games are now available in consolidated releases is wonderful.
3. Pokemon – Given Pokemon is foremost a collector's “game”, it's no surprise the game's producers have found ways of making product accessible. They were one of the first to release pre-con starter decks that could be played out-of-the-box. And expansions and cycles just keep coming for reasonable prices (off the shelf, that is). And so while this has one of the world's largest catalogs of cards at large, new players can still easily jump into the game through a variety of release products.
2. Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn (Ashes Reborn) – If it weren't for the Reborn reboot, this may have been #1. The game's model has always been: buy the core set, which includes seven heroes playable out of the box. If still interested, buy the hero packs you like, don't buy the ones you don't. The reboot Ashes Reborn asked players who invested in 1.0 to buy an upgrade box to achieve 2.0, but it was not necessary. For kitchen table play, 1.0 is valid. Other than this, the release model has been extremely friendly to players.
1. Marvel Champions: The Card Game – It's been 30+ years since Magic was released and expandable card games finally have a shining example of how to release content in super customer-friendly fashion with Marvel Champions. Buy the core set, which includes five heroes and three villains playable out of the box. If you're interested in more, you can buy individual hero or villain packs (pre-constructed decks). Who is your favorite Marvel hero? They are available in a small package, no need to buy multiple packages and piece them together. If you're looking for larger dose of the game, you can buy campaign expansions which include two playable heroes and five villains. You can own a little or own a lot, have loads of fun regardless, and not miss out on any overpowered cards selling for a fortune on the secondary market.
Complexity
The bar I use to measure the three upcoming categories (entry level, mid-level, and complex) is simple: how easily can a 10-year old learn the basics and within a few games put up a respectable fight at the kitchen table (not tournament table). All the games at 'A - Entry Level' fit that description. The games at 'B - Mid-Level” are a struggle for the 10-year old to put up a fight. The adult will always win save rng. In “C - Complex” games, not only does the adult always win, but the 10-year will most often not understand why they lost. There are too many factors at multiple levels that need to be juggled at one time. I understand this is a subjective means of measuring complexity. I'm also aware the tournament table is something different than the kitchen table, not to mention many games have multiple formats. Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game, for example, has Skirmish format, a shorter and simpler version than Stronghold format, which is the game as designed—the game proper. I considered the “game proper” in all instances below and stuck with the kitchen table for measuring complexity.
A. Entry Level
5. Space Hulk: Death Angel – While Space Hulk is notoriously difficult due to rng, gameplay itself is easy to understand and get into the flow (and that is despite the rulebook). Players have a choice of one of two actions on their turn, and that's it. Choose the optimal action in balance with the other players, make a good tactical choice how to apply the action, and the rest is up to the die. Each Space Marine does have it's own unique set of actions, but this still provides a chewy level of decision making that even kids can handle.
4. Battletech TCG – Like many expandable card games, Battletech is both straight forward and deceptively simple. If you want, it can be a deep, nuanced affair with sweat and blood. It can also just be a fun affair of tossing mechs on the table and launching missiles back and forth. The rules are simple and battles resolve quickly in clear fashion.
3. Magic: The Gathering – I put Magic here, not from a collectibility perspective, rather for the rules. There have been Magic releases which require calculus to count up damage, but by and large the game remains open to newcomers due to the simplicity of its rule set. Depending which format you play and who people play with, it can still be a welcoming experience, even after thirty years of content and adaptation. Sticking with a casual mindset, Magic is fun and easy to get into.
2. Marvel Champions – Hero decks are preconstructed and deckbuilding itself is made easy by limiting players to only one color per hero. Resources are printed on cards, so no tokens to complicate things. We attack, the villain attacks, and back and forth we go. Some card combinations may be a little esoteric, but by and large most heroes come in with fists swinging, and there really isn't much more a person needs to know. While the Expert and Heroic levels of difficulty might be considered more Mid-Level in terms of difficulty, the Standard experience is something my nine-year old can handle.
1. Star Wars: Destiny – The rules are literally printed on two sides of a standard sheet of paper. That's it. Destiny is so easy to jump into. There are multiple layers to explore beyond, but I started playing this with my seven-year old son, and it worked. Dice being dice, he sometimes wins games going full aggro, and when considering a few more control strats puts up a legitimate fight. This and Marvel are the two best introductions to expandable card games in existence today.
B. Mid-Level
5. Android: Netrunner – If Android: Netrunner had died an early death, I don't think it would be included on this list. But the fact the game has 8 cycles of content, 5 deluxe boxes, 1 campaign box, and all over 6 years of production means that the number of card abilities and interactions is extremely high. Combine this with the asymmetrical setup as well as the steep learning curve of the rules naturally leads to a complex environment that is highly satisfying for experience players but daunting for newbies.
4. Warhammer: Conquest – Despite the game's middling degree of content (only three cycles), it remains an excellent mid-tier game in terms of complexity. There are always a few variables to consider, but never too many. Theme is interwoven well with mechanisms. And with a solid resource system and excellent bluffing possibilities, it makes for an all around good game that engages the brain but no to the point of burning it out.
3. Ashes Rise of the Phoenixborn/Ashes Reborn – While Ashes is a Magic-wannabe in terms of setup (dueling wizards using spells and creatures to defeat one another), it learns lessons/adds layers that Magic does not have. The order of doing things is extremely important. Sometimes one wrong move is irreversible. Given the dice are malleable means resource management is critical. And managing exhaustion is likewise a critical component. Knowing who and when will be available/unavailable is critical. Overall the game has a short but steep learning curve. An experienced player will always beat the newbie.
2. Keyforge – Keyforge gets publicity for its unique position on the market, but behind the singular decks is a solid rule set that takes a bit for players to get their heads around. Not a fighting game, players need to think laterally about how “resources” can be deployed, and what paths are multiple and inter-connected toward accomplishing goals. Granted, a lot is predicated on the quality of the unique deck you purchase, but all things being equal the better player will always win.
1. Arkham Horror: The Card Game – Setup is perhaps the most complex part of Arkham Horror. Otherwise, designers have found a way of extracting unique story and agency from a fairly straight-forward set of rules. Card actions and interactions can be riddled with questions, but just going full aggro is rarely a path to victory. You need to work around bad luck and use your brain.
C. Complex
5. 7th Sea CCG – With one or two more icons per card to manage, not to mention a relatively large board and a dozen or so possible actions each turn, this can be a bit of a bear to play—just a bit. Smoke does begin to puff from the ears the deeper one gets into this game, something which event cards throw further fuel to the fire on. The learning curve for this game is not particularly steep, but it is long.
4. Flesh and Blood – Flesh and Blood was released as a tightly competitive game, which automatically means understanding of the nuances and card pool is king. Every round involves estimating minor gains and losses against a set of factors with only the slightest room for error. Going back to the intro of what makes a competitive game, I'm not able to play this in a fun way with my young son. He doesn't understand the nuances and always loses. Someday this will change, but for now this game requires a brain.
3. Star Wars: The Card Game – Star Wars, yeah! Lightsabers, blasters, X-Wings, shoot 'em up! Yeah!! No, wait! Not in Star Wars: The Card Game. An abstract experience heavily dependent on resource management, risk management, and card actions, this game requires lateral thinking in order to be successful. Where Star Wars: Destiny has players swinging away at each other with blaster and saber, this game is considerably colder and more punishing for those who do not understand the theory.
2. Doomtown: Reloaded – Getting your head around Doomtown: Reloaded takes some time. With cowboys at the Ok Corral, many players enter the game thinking it's a shootout. It is, kinda, if you consider poker hands six-shooters, then add an element of area majority, then make the victory conditions subject to a trifecta of factors that are dependent on one another. Complex, it's not for the expandable card game feint of heart. But once you get it, it's highly satisfying—and the shootouts emerge as shootouts.
1. Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game – I've heard that the rule set for the original Legends of the Five Rings card game (the CCG) was impenetrable. Which is saying a lot considering the LCG is quite complex. With two resource pools instead of one and two decks to manage instead of one, the intricacy of decisions multiplies. Despite the zen-like images on the cards, players' brains are in fact burning getting to optimal decisions. Long-term paths to victory are hidden in the bamboo, and only visible to players who've explored the game and understand the interactions and implications. Once there, this is a hugely satisfying game.
Most Unique
I think it's fair to say Magic: The Gathering and games like it (Ashes, Summoner Wars, Mage Wars, Sorcery, etc.) represent the core theme of expandable card games: magicians dueling with cards representing spells and conjurations. Which games stray furthest from this model?
Honorable Mention: Spycraft CCG
5. 7th Sea – 7th Sea nevertheless makes pirating a dynamic, fun experience that foregoes the Magic model almost entirely. It's theme comes through in the crew, cannon, captain, and ship cards, transforming the table into a sea with ships battling it out to be the last floating. One of the first games to introduce a (quasi-) environment, it still feels unique all these years later.
4. Vampire: The Eternal Struggle – While Vampire can be played 1v1, it's best played multi-player. One of few expandable card games to be explicitly designed for multiplayer, it's worth seeking out if your group is looking for such an experience (and if you can find a copy). The most enjoyable aspect of the game is that players' resources and health are the same thing. You spend resources to do things, all the while weakening yourself, which makes for an interesting decision space. Card art covers the spectrum of average to hideous, so be prepared for a laugh or two. Just don't doubt the system. It works, and works on its own terms.
3. Doomtown: Reloaded – Weird West in art but something colder and more abstract in experience, Doomtown: Reloaded is absolutely worth a play for anyone looking for an expandable card game far beyond the standard, Magic experience. With cowboys, zombies, bandits, and thieves, the Weird West theme is present in art, which is still not as unique as the game's win condition. A fluid concept, it depends on in-game status, making for a tense, brain-burner of a game.
2. Android Netrunner – One of the most popular expandable card games of all time, Netrunner is also one of the most unique. Poker elements and asymmetry alone are enough to set it apart, but add in the cyberpunk theme and singular win conditions and you have one of the most unique games of all time.
1. Hecatomb – Foregoing cards for plastic hexagons, Hecatomb is one of the most unique by physical design alone. The hexagons were sold like any TCG, meaning that you could collect, play, or both. The edges transparent, the hexagons could be stacked for bonuses and abilities and more than that, could be stacked on the table . I even considered Neuroshima Hex for this list given the similarities...
Most Thematic vs Most Abstract
What does Most Thematic mean? To me this means the manner in which a game's rule set, card actions, art, and table presence combine to immerse the player in the scenario the game wants to create. Most Abstract is therefore the opposite—the game whose actions and mechanisms are furthest from the theme and lore. These require the most imagination. Let's look at both
A. Most Thematic
Honorable Mentions: Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn, Flesh and Blood
5. Magic: The Gathering – As a business and sub-culture, M:TG has become bigger than it can handle. But at its base level: tapping sources of mana to conjure powerful spells and creatures, the game does capture the feel of dueling wizards. I side with people who believe Planeswalkers destroyed this element, but out of respect I will include the game here for its original release. The crack in the facade is the lack of table presence. The way cards are laid out (typically a semi-mess), not to mention the lack of a hero or faction doesn't help players immerse themselves in the setting of a magic duel. The game's other aspects—experience and art—are primarily what put it on this list.
4. Mage Wars (including Mage Wars Arena) – The game feels like what the box cover and title indicate. Two wizards enter an arena and duel each other with spells and conjurations. Ok, it has a board and some additional tokens, but it has the table presence Magic lacks. Not a combo free-for-all, however, players must be selective (i.e. wise) which spells they want to use that round, and are free to imagine the board should the cardboard be unavailable.
3. - WWE Raw Deal – I know, I know, professional wrestling, (aka men slathered in oil wearing tight clothes bouncing around in a rope ring) is not everyone's cup of tea, including me. But this game is just so damn thematic. Players choose a wrestler, build a deck, and start play building a chain of moves in a center line between players. The bigger the chain, the more resources to play stronger cards/combos. With a unique mechanism to escape being pinned, the game likewise prevents one player from running away with things, forcing the player who is ahead to really calculate when to attempt the “killing blow”. Try this game. You won't regret it.
2. Android Netrunner – You can almost feel the 'trodes burning. The runner, by setting up their rig and attacking the corporation's servers, is a cyberhacker jacked in and slicing. Building hardware, installing programs, uploading viruses—the world of the game comes alive. True, it is difficult to personify a corporation on the table, and A:N does it only in the abstract sense. But applying the terminology (archives, R&D, ICE, assets, etc.) and the matrix-esque board state which evolves into view gets the corp over the immersion hump to create an engrossing experience.
1. Arkham Horror: The Card Game – The only expandable card game (I've played) which creates a physical space for each scenario, not to mention card actions that evolve to fit the desired scenarios, the result is gameplay that is extra thematic. Designers have created scenarios for trains, insane asylums, highway chases, the void of space, etc., and all feel physically represented on the table. Top that with the manner in which player card actions and mechanisms match their items and attachments' real world equivalent makes for an extremely immersive game.
B. Most Abstract
5. Battletech TCG – If there were no Battletech board game or video games, this game might not be on the list. But as it stands, there is a notable lack of nuance in comparison. Operating on a more basic level, players do build mechs, attack, and take down HQs, but do it all without the upgrades and detail of those other experiences. A fun, casual game, but imagination is required.
4. The Spoils – Point blank: theme is non-existent. This is pastiche rather than a setting. The game's mechanisms, while super chewy, are not tied to lore or a world. I so badly want to see this re-released with a real IP—existing or original. (Neuroshima!!)
3. Keyforge – I have a love/hate relationship with Keyforge. On one hand, the mechanisms are great. They are often indirect, lateral moves that keep the game moving perhaps more in a circular motion than back-and-forth. But they are not tied to anything. It's just generic, cartoony space-alien stuff. Add to this the fact that each Archon (player) is tied to three different houses further dilutes any chance at theme. Good game without a soul.
2. Star Wars: The Card Game – There is undoubtedly a large number of people who bounced off this game. Yes, it's non-standard in terms of resources and win conditions. But I would guess the biggest reason is because theme was not direct. Compare to Destiny, which gives players the direct conflict they were perhaps looking for. Great game, just very light on theme despite the massive IP.
1. Doomtown Reloaded – As described in Most Complex games, players likely come to this game expecting a wild cowboy shoot out. The game is most definitely a wild shootout, but not along stereotypical lines—thematic or otherwise. A game for which many other themes would easily fit, the most thematic aspect of the game is that shootouts are decided by poker hands. The rest, well, you've got to get the imagination whirring.
Best Multi-Player
The majority of expandable games are designed for two people. And while some have multi-player variants shoehorned in, few play well at more than two. In fact, I have found only four, and here they are. (I assume there are more, so do let me know in the comments.)
4. 7th Sea CCG – Given the sheer number of cards a player can have on the table at a given time, this game can be chaotic with more than two. But it still plays well. The fact players can gang up on weakest player, however, limits the true competitiveness of the game. For casual play, however, it can be rollicking (swashbuckling?) fun.
3. Game of Thrones: The Card Game (2ed) – The second edition of the Game of Thrones LCG is the best expandable card game designed for two-players that also plays fairly at multi-player. And the mechanism is simple. At the beginning of each round, players select from one of the available role cards, cards which limit what they can and cannot do until next round when they must select another card. In essence this eliminates the problem of players ganging up on the weakest. The fact the role cards are also thematic makes multi-player super fun.
2. Shadowfist – This is Shadowfist's first appearance on this post. In other words, it doesn't work well in a lot of ways. But as multi-player, it has stood the test of time. I have played this only once with three other people, but it was memorable. Dynamic, interactive, and fun with a wild theme, it comes recommended for a group.
1. Vampire: The Eternal Struggle – Vampire was released at the same time as Magic: The Gathering, and while the volumes of people still playing are significantly smaller, it is still being played by a hardcore group. Of importance is that it was designed as a multi-player game, meaning that whereas games like Game of Thrones have multi-layer bolted on, Vampire is a more the merrier, sit-down experience. I played this only once, but it was memorable. The multi-player appeal is clear as day. So much potential for a re-release or re-theming.
Best Cooperative
Not much else to say. The title says it all. The only comment I would have is that there is not much competition. The number of games is growing, and some competitive games are developing PvE modes, but still very few to choose among.
Honorable Mentions: Keyforge (PvE mode), Legend of the Five Rings: The Card Game (PvE mode), Ashes Reborn (PvE mode)
5. Lord of the Rings: The Card Game – This is a coconut game, i.e. there are players who swear and die by it, and those who bounce. I enjoy the game, but in comparison to the games below, bounce. Too much puzzle and not enough story. But that is precisely the reason people who love it, love it. And to be completely fair, the art is phenomenal and quantity of content vast.
4. Space Hulk: Death Angel – This is a small game dependent on one f#$%^ die, but everything else about this rocks and rolls. There were only four small expansions released, unfortunately, but each expanded space marines walking through corridors and blasting bug aliens in fun form.
3. Marvel Champions – Combotastic fun that plays well at any player count, players can take on the role of any of their favorite heroes and take on any of their favorite villains. While oddly lacking narrative (strange for a comic-based game, no?), everything else about this hero vs. villain experience ticks the boxes of what people want out of such a game.
2. Earthborne Rangers – The newest game on this list, it takes the lessons of the other games here and evolves them into an open world, nature-centric experience that is wholly unique. Miyazaki in art, Colorado Rockies in exploration and discovery, and pure satisfaction watching the world interact with itself and you, the players. Some people may miss an emphasis on conflict, but for curious people interested in discovery, the game is amazing.
1. Arkham Horror: The Card Game – This is the perfect blend of evolving narrative, rpg-esque hero upgrades, and thematic mechanisms—and I don't even like Lovecraft. It turns out giving players agency in the stories makes all the difference. Still churning out high quality content, this is the cooperative game that just keeps on giving.
And that's it, my limited view to the prism of expandable card games. With dozens upon dozens of dead ones waiting to be played, and more than a dozen due to be released in 2023, 2024 and beyond, the horizon is (relatively) bright for such games in the future. I hope one day to revisit this post and revise as needed.
Are there enough to make a best solo card game list?
ReplyDeleteI haven't played any of them solo except Marvel Champions. Given that most of these games were designed to be the best of what two people dueling with cards can be, instinct tells me that only the cooperative games have any chance of being reasonably enjoyable at one person.
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