Iris and the Giant

Iris and the giant is definitely something that I would play in my spare time. As a deckbuilding game, it does its job, managing to mix in its story depression and greek mythology ( which is something a little odd, but strangely fitting). As for its gameplay, it's.. interesting: definitely not worth ''masterpiece'' title among the other titles ofg tis genre but its simple, quick but with some level of depth. Noteworthy is the minimalistic art, fitting to the story ( ''feeling blue'' so to speak) and sort of calming. Unfortunately, the game does not ''give'' enough for me to give it more than 3 stars.. but perhaps it's personal: the theme involved could be more attractive to someone else. So yes, a nice game that for a quick card match and even for some more ''challenging'' quests among the reimagined fiends of Greek mythology.

The game is certainly fun, but it can bug out. The 'signs' are supposed to make the game harder for one game and make the next run harder. (or at least the text says it is for 'the next game') However, for unknown reasons and with unknown frequency, they get bugged and start applying to every game until a new 'sign' is found. If this is intended, the card text is wrong. But also if it is intended, it is a massive difficulty spike. This bug was reported on the steam forums in 2021 and still exists on this version as of Jan 2023. No response from dev. Can be fun (as a rogue-lite type deck builder), but the bug makes it very hard when it happens, so you randomly get sideswiped into consecutive runs where you are unusually squishy. Would be a solid 4.5 or 5 were it not for the bug. But the existence of the bug is -1, and the fact it has been known and unfixed this long is atleast -1 more. If I am made aware of this being fixed and can confirm it, i will happily raise the rating.

... but it's just irritating bugfest. The first part of a game "path of the giant" went smoothly and is really nice experience. But when I started the second part "path of the ferryman" it all went wrong. There is reoccuring annoying "crystall bug" in which game brake and You are forced to play once again in another (suboptimal) sequence. There is a "sign of [enemy type]" bug. In which not only next game but all games to the next sign are flooded by one type of enemy. There are still mechanics (like changing bonuses) that does not work and was never fixed. In general, don't buy this game. It's only worth it for free.

This is a good game, but it's far too buggy. As much as I enjoyed it initially, I got fed up + uninstalled it because of the bugs.

Playtime: 2h41m (beaten the Giant, first of three paths/campaigns) **Intro** IATG is a turn-based strategy game in which you play a card each turn (some cards allow further plays) to battle monsters. In turn the monsters in the first row or those with ranged attacks attack you. Cards can hurt monsters, defend/heal you or draw/steal cards. Each card can only played once. You get new cards from chests or abilities. Killing monsters and finding gems gives you XP, which can be used to buy abilities or chests. **The Good** - IATG has a cool, clean style that represents most game elements really well. - There's a solid variety in monsters and enemy abilities. - The little story elements are nice. **The Bad** - The game is terribly unbalanced. Even on the "super-easy" Story difficulty it took me several tries to reach the giant. - Some monsters require specific cards to beat, making the game too random. - I have no idea how you're supposed to win without maxing the Shield upgrade. - You have to replay the exact same levels every time you die. - The exact same story elements play each time. - Puzzle levels also remain exactly the same. - The game does a little zoom each time a new level starts. This can be skipped but not disabled. - While being branded as a deckbuilding game, cards are one-use only and very basic. There's no real strategising here. **Conclusion** Iris And The Giant has some really solid content, but there's very little of it. I already dislike how roguelikes make you start over constantly, but at least every other one i have played had randomisation. Here you have to sit through the exact same stuff a bunch of times hoping you draw the right cards this time. This game shouldn't have been a roguelike in the first place.