I’m neither a hardcore fan nor a hater of deckbuilders, mainly because I think that when a game is truly inspired and brings fun mechanics to the table, it can win you over regardless of any preconceptions.
I’m pointing this out because you’ll notice that this week is absolutely packed with RPGs and roguelites built around card-driven combat systems.
So if you’re into the genre, you’re in for a feast. And if card-based mechanics usually aren’t your thing, I’d ask you to set those biases aside and give some of these titles a shot; you might end up discovering something genuinely addictive.
Wardrum
- Developers: Mopeful Games
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 7, 2026
- Steam Page
Wardrum is one of the week’s more unusual turn-based releases, mixing tactical roguelite combat with rhythm timing.
Released on PC, the game comes from Mopeful Games and Team17, and puts players in charge of a five-warrior warband fighting through a harsh fantasy world corrupted by off-beat magic.
The core hook is timing since attacks and abilities hit harder when performed in time with the tribal drumbeat. Runs are built around party composition, with units such as warriors, assassins, summoners, warlocks, archers, and rogues, each gaining new abilities through branching level-up paths.
Trinkets, ultimate skills, and custom rhythm abilities add the roguelite layer, giving Wardrum a clear identity for players who want turn-based tactics with a more physical sense of timing.
Turnbound (Out of E.A.)
- Developers: 1TK
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 6, 2026
- Steam Page
Turnbound brings the autobattler formula into the growing inventory battler space, with each run built around arranging weapons, armor, consumables, accessories, and trinkets on a grid before combat resolves on its own.
Developed by 1TK the game traps players inside a haunted board game where they fight the saved builds of other players through asynchronous PvP, so every opponent reflects an actual inventory layout.
Tile placement affects nearby items, hero upgrades branch between abilities, and each chamber asks players to adapt around what the shop offers. It should click with players who enjoy Backpack Battles, The Bazaar, or Hearthstone Battlegrounds, but want something that leans harder into grid management, buildcraft, and slow theorycrafting between quick automated battles.
Never Second in Rome (Out of E.A.)
- Developers: Alessandro Roberti
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 5, 2026
- Steam Page
Never Second in Rome left Early Access this week, bringing its text-heavy mix of historical RPG, management, and turn-based combat into full release.
Developed by Alessandro Roberti, it casts the player as a Roman centurion serving under Julius Caesar, starting just before the Gallic War and taking command of a century inside a newly raised legion.
The game is less about cinematic spectacle and more about the grind of military command, with character growth, unit training, staff appointments, notable soldiers under your watch, and attribute or skill checks during narrative events.
Battles use turn-based individual combat that includes both the main character and the legionaries in his unit, supported by a detailed stat system and a clear focus on historical accuracy. For players who enjoy old-school RPG structure, military management, and ancient Rome as more than just backdrop, this is a niche but very specific pick for the week’s recap.
Intersectio
- Developers: Cat in Hat
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 8, 2026
- Steam Page
Intersectio is a compact turn-based tactics game built around the balance between body, mind, and soul. Developed by Cat in Hat, it follows a person trapped between two abysses, with each action shaped by a Focus slider that shifts between physical and mental states.
That system changes the character’s abilities and affects the world around them, giving the game a small but clear tactical identity. It is also a short experience, with an average playtime of up to 15 minutes, three possible endings, and an expanded Steam version that includes an endless mode.
The mood leans psychological and atmospheric, with the dark forest acting as both battlefield and metaphor, so this one fits players looking for a quick, experimental tactics game.
Into the Crypt (Demo)
- Developers: Megaglope Studios
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: 2026
- Steam Page
Into the Crypt demo gives turn-based deckbuilding fans an early look at a first-person roguelike built around class identity, branching dungeon routes, and heavy card synergy.
The demo sends players into a procedural crypt where each descent mixes combat encounters, events, purchases, upgrades, artifacts, and lootable environmental objects and lets players try the Berserker, a class built around generating and spending Fury as a second resource, while other classes, such as Alchemist and Druid, are listed for the full game.
Lots of cards and effects, enemies, items,, and events for players who enjoy Slay the Spire style deckcrafting but want that structure framed through a darker 3D dungeon crawl.
Handmancers (E.A.)
- Developers: 58BLADES
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 5, 2026
- Steam Page
Another interesting project entering early access this week is Handmancers, which brings a first-person angle to the roguelite deckbuilder format.
It builds its combat around rock, paper, scissors logic, where every card belongs to one of those three types, and tactical reads matter as much as raw damage. Players build a deck, upgrade cards, equip artifacts, and face enemies through turn-based fights that reward counterplay, timing, and careful sequencing.
The launch followed a short delay from its original March window, with the team using the extra time for balance work, polish, and an additional boss. For players who want another deckbuilder but are tired of the usual energy economy, Handmancers has a sharp hook and a clear Early Access roadmap ahead.
The Vow: Vampire’s Curse (Demo)
- Developers: Mimyr Games
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: 2026
- Steam Page
The Vow: Vampire’s Curse demo arrived, offering an early slice of Mimyr Games’s dark fantasy roguelite deckbuilder with turn-based tactics.
The setup is simple and moody, with the player bound by a vow to save their fiancée while surviving seven cursed nights against a spreading vampire threat. Combat takes place on a dangerous grid where movement matters, and the deckbuilding layer defines how each run plays out, from card choices to tactical synergies.
There is also a day and night rhythm, with daytime preparation used to strengthen defenses before the next assault begins.
Rainbow Legends
- Developers: Unpixel Cloud Cedar Studio
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 6, 2026
- Steam Page
Rainbow Legends puts a smart territorial twist on the roguelite deckbuilder format. Developed by Unpixel Cloud Cedar Studio it is built around tile control with each round ending in a territory count that decides who takes the hit.
Cards have shapes and ranges, so placement becomes part of the deckbuilding puzzle, while buildings, traps, runes, and core defenses add a board game layer to each fight. The structure also gives players eight classes, five storylines per class, more than 100 relics, upgradeable cards, battlefield events, puzzles, and random encounters.
It should work well for players who like deckbuilders where the board state matters as much as the hand, especially if they enjoy territory pressure, positional tactics, and relic-driven buildcraft.
Serial World (Demo)
- Developers: Serial Project
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: 2026
- Steam Page
A game I talked about a few hours ago is Serial World, which debuted with a demo giving players the first public taste of Serial Project and Kakehashi Games’ colorful roguelite deckbuilding RPG.
The demo follows Milo after he discovers a monstrous door near Bricktown and ends up exploring Plains World, the game’s first dungeon, with three starter Anima: Porcupint as the attacker, Tanibo as the defender, and Reptibud as the healer.
Combat is built around deckbuilding and party synergy, with players mixing creature roles and card tactics while moving through dungeon floors filled with enemies, merchants, and other encounters.
After finishing the main demo, players unlock Martalon as an extra Anima and a Hard Mode option, giving the preview a bit more bite for deckbuilder fans who want to test the game’s combat loop beyond the opening run.
Five More Minutes (Demo)
- Developers: PurpleTurtle
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: 2026
- Steam Page
After the colorful creature-driven deckbuilding of Serial World, Five More Minutes shifts the focus toward nostalgia, memory, and the strange pull of games we keep returning to.
Developed by PurpleTurtle and published by Zugalu Entertainment, the demo now available presents a roguelite deckbuilder built around videogame eras from the 1990s and early 2000s, with each run shaped by cards, memorabilia, character growth, and genre fusion.
Its three starting archetypes already give the structure some personality. The Hero leans into RPG-style scaling, the Cop brings a survival horror edge through resource pressure, and the Mascot plays with movement and platformer-inspired tricks.
The result is a deckbuilder that treats genre as both mechanic and theme, making it a curious pick for players who like card-based runs but want something more reflective than another dungeon crawl.
The First Spine – Arena (E.A.)
- Developers: Teddy Gandon
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: May 6, 2026
- Steam Page
After Five More Minutes turns genre memory into a deckbuilding hook, The First Spine: Arena goes in the opposite direction with a free-to-play competitive format built for direct tactical duels.
Teddy Gandon’s board-and-card battler puts two wizards on a 7×7 grid and asks each player to push toward the opponent’s side through creature summons, artifacts, and spells. Cards are not just effects fired from the hand. They become pieces on the board, with movement, attack values, terrain interaction, and positioning all shaping the match.
Lava, water, ditches, key zones, card crafting, deciphered spells, and level-based matchmaking give it the structure of a PvP tabletop tactics game with collectible card progression.
Sunyata CCG (Demo)
- Developers: Nagarjuna Games
- Platforms: PC
- Release Date: Q4 2026
- Steam Page
To close the recap, Sunyata CCG demo keeps the focus on cards but moves from arena positioning into a more traditional collectible card duel with a few tactical twists of its own.
The demo lets players try constructed decks built around Ice Mage control, Tree Evolution scaling, Dragon Riders, or Zombies that can pressure the enemy castle without spending mana. There is also a draft mode, where players pick one or two mana types from Nature, Fire, Ice, and Food, then build around the available pool.
The cards are more interactive than usual, with creature buttons that can summon tokens, trigger spells, evolve units, equip weapons, or attach riders to dragons. PvE against AI and PvP against a friend are both included, making this a useful sampler for players who want to test the game’s mana system and deck archetypes before the full version expands into additional elements like Water, Electricity, Steel, and Gold.
