Everybody loves an amazing, well-known game, but sometimes the ones that stay with you are the underrated adventures. Games that might not be perfect or balanced in a way that makes them easily palatable, but which are still quite enjoyable.
8 Best Deckbuilders for Beginners
It’s time to duel! Oh, wait…
The deckbuilder genre has a lot of underrated games, but here’s our list of several that you should absolutely play.
They all have unique styles and challenges to excite even the most tenured strategy fan. So get ready to pick a card, any card.
10Nadir: A Grimdark Deckbuilder
Into Dante’s Inferno
Nadir: A Grimdark Deckbuilder
If you’re going off the metrics,Nadir: A Grimdark Deckbuilderwon’t necessarily impress you with its critical rating. But as someone who actually played the game, I can attest that it’s something other than a flop.
For one thing, Nadir has an extraordinary visual aesthetic. It’s Gothic, grungy, and full of black, white, red, and blue colors. It also features a unique twist, wherein the cards you play charge your opponent’s deck and also trigger their special abilities.
Meaning that you are really playing against yourself as you navigate through a world inspired by Dante’s Inferno.
The only real downside to the game is the balance is pretty poorly skewed, meaning you’ll be dying again and again until you’ve grown sufficiently to beat the demons arrayed against you.
9Abalon: Rogue-like Tactics CG
Tabletop Dungeon Crawling
D20Studios, WhisperGames
Turn-based, tactical deckbuilder
Release Date
July 27, 2025
You don’t normally think of a tactical adventure when you think of a deckbuilder. But Abalon managed to capitalize on a tactical focus and made a deckbuilder with elements of tabletop RPGs. What resulted was a surprisingly fun adventure.
Players only have a deck of 20 cards, but you may use them in nuanced ways, even altering the environment to your advantage. At least when you’re not assailing your opponents with a scrum of squirrels.
The main downside to Abalon was its minimal aesthetic, which has a punchy top-down style more fitting in the NES era than on PC. But it’s still very worth your time.
8Neurodeck: Psychological Deckbuilder
Fight Your Fears
PC, Nintendo Switch
Goblinz Publishing, Maple Whispering Limited, Forever Entertainment
Rogue-like Deckbuilder
June 14, 2025
There are a lot of deckbuilders inspired by Slay the Spire, but none quite like Neurodeck. Not because of its visual style or gameplay, both of which are fun. But because of the focus on mental health and defeating our phobias.
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It will steal your heart.
You’re literally facing off against the stuff of nightmares, drawn in inky black silhouettes and all capable of ruining you.
As you work your way through a subconscious labyrinth, you’ll gradually meditate and improve various aspects of yourself, which in turn impact the cards in your deck.
The biggest hurdle this and many others on this list have to surmount is one of balance. Expect to lose several times until you get the hang of things and can make your way to the very end.
Ignite Your Soul!
PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5
SHUEISHA GAMES
Cyberpunk, Deckbuilder, JRPG
July 09, 2025
On paper, SOULVARS doesn’t scream deckbuilder. It looks more like a beat ‘em up. But this unique Cyberpunk adventure seamlessly fuses deckbuilders and JRPGs in an intoxicating mixture.
You’ll make use of Soulbits to pull off powerful combinations of attack moves, and each foe is a puzzle of sorts. If that wasn’t enough, there’s also a great retro pixel art style.
It won’t be easy, but those who stick with SOULVARS will find a compelling hybrid adventure worth their time.
6One Step From Eden
Heaven Won’t Wait
One Step From Eden
One Step From Edenwas absolutely inspired by the Mega Man Battle Network series of games. Which is a sort of rarefied air for the deckbuilder genre, with the only other recent entry of note being Card-en-Ciel.
The game is set in an apocalyptic world where the only refuge is Eden itself. It mixes rogue-like, deckbuilding, and real-time elements during combat. It also features candy-colored visuals.
Best of all, there are nine playable classes you can try your hand at, utilizing your deck of cards in a fast and furious fashion.
5Cultist Simulator
Everybody Loves Tentacles
Cultist Simulator
The works of Lovecraft are all the rage long after his demise, but none quite so sinister as Cultist Simulator. It takes place in 1920’s London, and has you mix cards with an unspooling narrative of eldritch horror.
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Deck-building Roguelikes make up a fairly small gaming niche, but within this genre are some stellar titles that you just can’t miss.
Every choice you make in the game matters, and affects how the story unravels. There’s also a legacy system, where your inheritors can benefit from your actions.
While the subject matter is dark and dire, the visuals in the adventure are a bit underwhelming. But that’s just one small note of discontent in this rogue-like deckbuilder.
4Wildfrost
Frigid Delights
Chucklefishmakes a point of publishing cartoony games with strong gameplay, such asWargroove. In Wildfrost, not only did they publish another winning adventure, but they also published a really enjoyable and unique take on the deckbuilder genre.
What’s most distinct is that your cards don’t attack every turn, but count down and attack in a set pattern. There are also helpful companion cards, elemental combinations, various tribes, and much more as you try to rekindle the sun.
When you aren’t trying to defeat frosty foes, you’ll upgrade Snowdwell and unlock fun new gear and cards for subsequent runs. Just don’t expect the game to be easy just because it’s cute sinceWildfrostis brutally difficult.
3Gordian Quest
Why Knot Play?
Gordian Quest
You’ve probably heard the legend of the Gordian Knot, but Gordian Quest is something altogether different. It’s a tale of dreadful curses and managing a band of heroes trying to save the world, in true fantasy fashion.
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Despite being from a relatively small studio, they didn’t go small with the game. It features great artwork and tons of different modes, from traditional Campaign to Skirmish and Realm. There’s also procedural generation, meaning every playthrough will be a little different.
The only downside is that the balance of the game, and occasionally the storytelling, can be a bit muddled. But if you’re not a stickler, you’ll find something to enjoy in this ambitious deckbuilder.
2Nowhere Prophet
Witness Me!
Nowhere Prophet
Nowhere Prophet is a fascinating game. It takes a visual style that wouldn’t be out of place inMad Maxand mixes it with mechanics from The Oregon Trail and even permadeath. This should already clue most of you in about how difficult this deckbuilder truly is.
You play a mystic guiding your crew across the wasteland, and it won’t be an easy trip. You’ll easily lose many followers along the way, but fret not, since you can always recruit more.
Once you’re in the thick of things, you’ll find a solid combat system and many unique cards to tweak your deck with.
Make clever use of convoy cards and action cards to twist things in your favor. Otherwise, you’ll just be another stain on the sand.
1Fights in Tight Spaces
Black, White, Red, Fight!
PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S
Deckbuilder, Beat ‘em up
Jun 20, 2025
Everybody who’s seen a martial arts movie probably dreams of showcasing some sick moves of their own. And while that’s pretty unlikely in real life, it’s a guarantee inFights in Tight Spaces.
Even thoughFights in Tight Spaceshas an incredibly minimalistic aesthetic, it’s a tremendous deckbuilder where strategy is paramount. Momentum and tactics are everything, as well as upgrading your cards and using them wisely.
The only negative is that the rogue-like elements can be a bit grindy, and the game forces you to make every move count. But once you master it, you’ll find this is one of the best-underrated deckbuilders in recent years.
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Kickstarter funded tactical CCG Shardbound is now available on PC via Steam Early Access. We also received a new trailer announcing the game’s Steam release.
