As We Descend

A new, stylish roguelike deck-builder for PC has been released through Early Access: As We Descend. What sets this game from the Swedish duo Box Dragon and Coffee Stain apart from its competitors?

Roguelike deck builders are very popular right now. Examples include Balatro, Drop Duchy, Monster Train 2, 9 Kings, Die in the Dungeon, and StarVaders - just to name a few, while Slay the Spire 2 is also on the way. This popular genre is also overcrowded, so it's important for new games to stand out. As We Descend, from Box Dragon and Coffee Stain, attempts to do so by incorporating city management and politics alongside tactical combat, where positioning is also important. The game takes players to a dystopian underground world where they command the last survivors of humanity in a city. They must fight against decay and powerful monsters while the city descends further into the underground, visiting various biomes. Occasionally, the city pauses so that expeditions can set out to find valuable items and resources.

These turn-based combat expeditions involve actions and units represented as cards. It is important to place units strategically in the Guard Zone at the front or the Support Zone behind the line to evade enemy attacks, for example. Therefore, it's not only important to choose the right cards, but also to position them correctly. Monster Train 2 emphasized this concept with its three-level system for placing units. New squads of units can be recruited by utilizing scavenged technology. Each squad is a unique archetype with its own set of cards that can be added to, removed from, or upgraded. Units can be equipped with special perks that grant special abilities or bonuses. Combining different units and their perks creates synergies that add tactical depth. Perks, combos, and synergies offer depth and the ability to tailor the deck for success in each battle encounter, although the balance fluctuates greatly due to random factor and the Early Access phase. In the city, players must negotiate with factions, win allies, and make decisions that affect the entire settlement. This management aspect is unusual for the genre, and these actions are carried out by playing cards.

After a failed "descent," players return to the beginning but retain some progress, ideally making the next run easier. However, players can currently master the metaprogression too quickly, and its impact is not significant enough. Currently, only two out of three player origins are available, so much of the content that would increase replayability is missing. This is especially true since the current version's scenario and story raise more questions than they answer. In general, there should be more variety and content. On the other hand, the game excels in its visual design and user interface layout.

Box Dragon, based in Gothenburg, Sweden, is developing As We Descend. "Our team comes from all over the world and we're united by our passion for sharing stories. We each bring something unique to the table and we're always looking for those who can bring more diversity to our studio. As a small team, we all work together with the best of our ability and weave our craft directly into the game," Box Dragon says. As We Descend is their first game. The PC game development studio is backed by Coffee Stain, which is also publishing the title. Coffee Stain Publishing is best known for publishing Valheim (Iron Gate AB), Deep Rock Galactic (Ghost Ship Games), Huntdown (Easy Trigger Games), Songs of Conquest (Lavapotion), and Midnight Ghost Hunt (Vaulted Sky Games), as well as Satisfactory and Goat Simulator, which were developed in-house.

As We Descend was released on 28 May 2025, for PC in Early Access. The developers estimate that the game will remain in Early Access for around a year, depending on player feedback. Following the initial balance update, they plan to enhance the pacing, power curve, progression, and agency over deck-building. This includes speeding up runs slightly, providing more meaningful choices in the City, advancing the narrative, improving the consistency of synergy for multi-unit combat, and expanding the Codex.

Conclusion

As We Descend manages to gain a foothold in this crowded genre, it stands out from its competitors - not just visually. However, it currently lacks balance and additional content/variety for subsequent playthroughs, making it ideal for Early Access.