I love a little game of Solitaire. If ever I’m stuck for what to play, consumed by analysis paralysis when all games just blur into a single, unappealing mass of pixels, I play Solitaire. I was incredibly disappointed to find that my Chromebook didn’t come with the classic card game pre-installed when I bought it earlier this year. It’s a betrayal akin to that of phones now coming with Facebook and TikTok pre-loaded instead of Snake.
I also loveBalatro.I’ve written hundreds of articles for TheGamer (no spaces) this year, and I’d wager I’ve talked about Balatro inat least 98 percent of them. That’s no exaggeration, but don’t go and check. What do you mean you’re already sifting through my post history to prove me wrong? Stop that!
No, that wasn’t a ploy to get one more click on every feature I’ve written this year (although, if you did, thanks!). I just want you to know thatI love Balatro. It’s either the best or the second best game I’ve played this year, and I’ve put more hours into forming perfect poker hands than I ever thought possible.
Released in February, it’s only natural that it’s already formed spin-offs, Balatro-likes, if you will. I enjoyedDungeons & Degenerate Gamblers, which is Balatro but blackjack with a D&D skin, but Solitomb has blown everything else out of the water.
Firstly, and most importantly, you’re able to go and play Solitomb right now. For free.In your browser. I’d advise chucking the developer a few quid to install it on your machine, but you do you.
Onto the game itself. I consider myself quite the Solitaire aficionado, to the extent that I started timing my runs and entered a little speedrunning competition with myself until I could clear the board in under a minute. There’s nothing more satisfying than watching the cards swirl away with that whirring brrr noise as you smash a new high score.
Solitomb doesn’t have that, at least not that I’ve seen. It’s hard as nails, which means that I’m yet to complete the four screens playable in this demo. You see, it works like this.
You have your playing cards arranged like standard Solitaire. Except, they don’t have suits. Instead, they have different icons denoting their role in the game. Swords boost your attack, shields your defence, and potions your health. Monsters, on the other hand, do damage. You have to clear all the monsters in the central four columns in order to progress.
To beat a monster, you need to firstly have enough defence to withstand its attack (or else take a blow to your hit points), and then have enough attack to destroy it. Remainders carry over, so if an eight-attack monster attacks you when you’ve got seven attack and seven defence, you’ll take one damage and the monster will change to be a one-attack monster. Your attack and defence stats are now exhausted, meaning you now need to pick up more attack and defence cards in order to finish it off or beat another monster.
It’s a great premise, but there are layers of complexity to it. A dash of poker means that, if your stack of cards is a flush (all attack cards, for instance) or a pair, you’ll get a bonus to the attack and defence afforded to you. This makes preparing your hands by stacking the playing cards Solitaire-style incredibly important. But dither too long, spend too many moves perfecting your approach, and the demon you’ve entered into a pact with will start consuming your soul. Wait, I didn’t mention the demon who consumes your soul yet?
Solitomb has layers of difficulty and strategy that I’m yet to fully unlock, but successful runs have the same effect as new high scores in Balatro. Just as it’s getting frustrating, as you want to give up, you make it to screen three and the challenge becomes palatable again, exciting again.
The monster-slaying and demonic possession is less of a story than a narrative framework for the card game to live within, but I’d love developer Jakub Wasilewski to expand on this in the Extended Edition that’s coming to Steam. The one thing Balatro lacks is that Hades-esque narrative bridge between each run, and Solitomb has the perfect opportunity to include a little more worldbuilding to make it really stand out.
Even without that, in its current state it feels like a cross between Balatro and Dark Souls, which is a combination I never thought I’d see, much less fall in love with. Play Solitomb now, git gud, and let me know if it does the swirly clicky thing when you beat the fourth screen.
