Deathless: Tales of Old Rus – Review
Follow Genre: Rogue-like, deck builder
Developer: 1C Game Studios
Publisher: 1C Game Studios, FOR-GAMES CR LTD
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC

Deathless: Tales of Old Rus – Review

Site Score
7.6
Good: Intention mechanic makes the game feel more balanced and fair
Bad: Lacking in narrative depth
User Score
8.0
(1 votes)
Click to vote
VN:R_U [1.9.22_1171]
Rating: 8.0/10 (1 vote cast)

If you come for the king, you best not miss. Slay the Spire set the gold standard for rogue-like deck-building games back in 2019. Since then, we’ve seen many entries in the genre that mimicked Mega Crit’s masterpiece, but none that were able to replicate the same lightning-in-a-bottle formula, let alone surpass it. The latest contender is Deathless: Tales of Old Rus, a rogue-like deck builder that takes inspiration from Slavic folklore. Can Deathless crown itself as the new king (tsar?) of the genre or is it just another wannabe?

Story

Our story takes place in a fantasy world called Belosvet. We follow the individual journeys of four traveling adventurers. Our group of heroes consists of warrior Dobrynya, sorceress Vasilisa, ranger Alyosha, and treasure hunter Varvara. Each of these heroes is dedicated to the same goal: aiding those who are too weak to defend themselves from the evil Koschey the Deathless. Eventually, our heroes will come together to form a party and take on this world-threatening bad guy. It’s a paper-thin premise that serves as little more than a framework for the gameplay. Deathless isn’t a narrative-driven game, but this doesn’t detract from the overall experience as the focus is on gameplay more than anything here. If you do want to indulge in the backstory of Belosvet and its inhabitants, you can do so in the so-called Lore Corner, where you’ll find short blurbs about the cards you’ve collected, the monsters you defeated, and any items and relics you’ve found.

Graphics

Games inspired by Slavic folklore have seen an increase in popularity in recent years, with the vast majority sharing similar aesthetics. It’s refreshing to see that Deathless steps away from this. We’re getting bright, saturated colors instead of the muted color scheme and bleak atmosphere we’ve come to associate with the setting, thanks to games like Yaga and The Witcher. The game’s hand-drawn art looks great, although Deathless’ animations are less impressive, with character attacks being animated in the “paper doll” style we’ve seen in games like Fallen Legion. It’s a style we’ve never really liked as it typically looks cheap and flat.

Sound

Where Deathless’ graphics break the Slavic mold, the game’s soundtrack does not. The music sounds appropriate for the setting and atmosphere, making use of traditional instruments. What really impressed us about Deathless’ sound design were the sound effects, though. The ambient noise brings the environment to life, whereas the sound effects from battles add a feeling of heft and impact to what you see on your screen. It’s almost impressive enough to make us forget about Deathless’ lack of voice acting.

Gameplay

A mere five years ago, the combination of deck-building mechanics and rogue-like combat felt unique and special, but we’ve gotten to the point that it’s a familiar sight. That’s not to say that the formula has gotten stale, but a game needs a unique hook to stand out from a genre that’s gotten very saturated. Deathless does offer such a hook, although its core doesn’t stray too far away from what we’ve come to know and love. After selecting your hero of choice, you’re taken to an in-game path with branching nodes. The majority of these hold random encounters with enemies but you’ll also find loot, merchants, buffs, and even enemy debuffs. Along the way, you’ll pick up new cards to improve your deck, representing your hero getting stronger. When you complete a node, you’ll need to choose between three different nodes, with short blurbs indicating what you might expect to find there.

The basics of combat are easy enough to understand. You’ll have a limited number of AP and each card in your hand has an associated AP cost depending on how powerful it is. Deathless’ mechanics are very reliant on applying debuffs on your enemies, weakening them before you can beat them up. You’ll typically find that you’ll need to get past an enemy’s armor before you’re able to dish out meaningful damage, for example. This does work both ways, so if an enemy attack deals four damage, but your armor has a value of five, you won’t take any damage. Deathless’ unique hook can be found in its combat as well. The game uses a mechanic called ‘Intention’, which tells you which moves enemies are planning to use beforehand. This allows you to strategize accordingly, though don’t let this fool you into thinking that this makes Deathless easy, as you’ll still need the right cards and enough AP. This does allow you to mitigate enemy actions, turning an outright loss into something you can survive by the skin of your teeth. It’s an exhilarating and addictive addition that adds a lot to Deathless’ combat appeal.

Replay value is a key element to any rogue-like game, and Deathless in particular handles this exceptionally well. Early on, you’ll find that your playthroughs, called Journeys, will put you to the test, but as you reach key points on each hero’s paths and build up your deck, you’ll find that things gradually get easier in subsequent runs. To beat the final boss, Koschey, you’ll need all four heroes and so you’ll need to complete the Journey with the entire party before you can take him on. This means you’ll need to play through the vast majority of Deathless at least four times, but each hero brings their own unique playstyle to the table, meaning each run ends up adding its own distinct elements. Add to this that there are several difficulty levels, as well as so-called Feats of Glory, which increase the risk-reward factor, and you’ve got a rogue-like deck-builder that will keep you playing for weeks.

Conclusion

As far as rogue-like deck builders go, Deathless is solid but not exceptional. The Intention mechanic keeps combat engaging and ensures that combat never feels unfair while still posing enough challenge. The high replay value also adds to the overall appeal. While we appreciate the more colorful take on Slavic folklore, the paper doll animation style cheapens the visuals, and the game doesn’t have a whole lot to offer in terms of narrative. Of course, those last two remarks don’t matter if you’re just here for the gameplay, and if that is the case, you’ll be pleased with what Deathless has to offer.

VN:R_U [1.9.22_1171]
Rating: 8.0/10 (1 vote cast)
VN:R_U [1.9.22_1171]
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Deathless: Tales of Old Rus - Review, 8.0 out of 10 based on 1 rating
SebastiaanRaats


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