Delightfully-themed Demonic Deckbuilder Power Chord (opens in new tab) has unleashed its mightiest lineups, arriving out of Early Access and into a full release. In Power Chord you “Assemble Earth’s mightiest musicians, each with their own unique cards and gear, to fight your way through the hordes and destroy the only guitar powerful enough to reopen the scratch between worlds.”
We first got a look (opens in new tab) at the uniquely-themed Power Chord in late 2021, when a demo first showed off its stylish aesthetics and explosively metal sounds. It stood out from the pack at the time because it was so clearly trying to do something new and interesting that others in the genre weren’t. It combines multiple characters, but isn’t purely class-based.
For those who want some variety to their roguelike deckbuilding, even if it’s not the most deep and complex experience, you should check out Power Chord. It’s not a perfect game by any means—probably not one you’ll spend hundreds of hours in—but it is a fun ride. I have a feeling it’s going to be slept on by those who would most enjoy it.
For my part the best bit of Power Chord is that it wants you to work around four different characters. Each member of your band has their own cards and style of play, and that means you’re trying to figure out how to synergize four themes rather than just go as hard as you can on a single overpowered strategy like in Slay the Spire or its ilk.
Our Wes Fenlon felt similarly about his demo (opens in new tab) with Power Chord: “This means red cards only apply to your guitarist, who in my demo specialized in building up multiplicative damage for big hits. The drummer’s blue cards were more about building up armor to tank damage.”
“These sorts of deckbuilders always demand careful consideration of the order you play spells and manage buffs, but it’s especially true in Power Chord. Once or twice I juiced up my guitarist to prepare for a big hit, then realized I didn’t actually have any red attack cards for him to shred with,” he said.
You can find Power Chord on Steam for $20 (opens in new tab), though it’s 10% off until February 2, 2023.
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