Floppy Knights, developed by Rose City Games, is a hand drawn ‘Living Card Game’ style deck builder with a turn based grid combat system mixed in. Join the inventor Phoebe and her robot best friend Carlton as they summon units and monsters to fight enemies on floppy disks.
The hand drawn visuals are created by Marlowe Dobbe, who also drew Dicey Dungeons, so safe to say they are gorgeous and cutesy. The whole vibe of the game is straight out of a book the player would have read in primary school. This isn’t a bad thing, nostalgia being as powerful as it is, however it may turn some players off.
The aim of the game is to fight off the enemy combatants using Hero cards and a constructed deck, as well as tactical awareness and decision making on the game board (grid). Each unit has four stats; movement, damage, HP and range, which allow for a wide variety of combat encounters and strategic plays. Each unit has one free attack per turn, but can attack additional times depending on the cards in the player’s deck. There is an energy system that allows the player to summon multiple units or use multiple move/attack cards each turn.
Why are Phoebe and Carlton fighting monsters on floppy disks you ask? Well like any kid trying to find their way in the world, Phoebe has to manage chores, odd jobs, parental overwatch, and of course find her way through a robot invasion, all using floppy generated monsters!
To start, Floppy Knights feels pretty basic, but the longer spent playing the more flexibility the player has with their deck and the game board itself. There are three main deck types that you can mix and match to make the strongest deck for your playstyle. As an avid card game fan myself, I was pleasantly surprised with the depth of Floppy Knights to the point hours had gone by without me even realising.
I would recommend this game to anyone who enjoys a card battle, especially since it’s on game pass.
Sam Russell