Poker Quest combines a roguelike structure (procedural generation, permadeath, meta-progression options) with a unique combat system driven by poker hands.

Key gameplay elements include:

• Poker-Driven Combat: This is the game’s defining feature. During turn-based battles, instead of drawing skill cards from a custom deck, you draw cards from a standard 52-card poker deck (e.g., King of Hearts, 7 of Spades).
  • Your equipped items and abilities are empowered by the poker hands you can form with the cards in your hand. For example, a sword might require a “pair” to activate, while a spell might need a “flush” or a “straight.”
  • Bigger and better poker hands (e.g., three of a kind, full house) typically trigger stronger effects or more powerful versions of your abilities.
  • You strategically choose which cards to use and which abilities to activate each turn, trying to maximize damage or defense while considering future draws.
• Roguelike/Roguelite Structure:
  • Procedural Map Generation: You traverse a world map similar to “Slay the Spire,” with branching paths leading to different encounters (fights, shops, events, casinos, mini-games, castles).
  • Permadeath (Optional): Players can choose to play in a “roguelike” mode with permanent death and no permanent upgrades, or a “roguelite” mode with some meta-progression.
  • Daily & Challenge Runs: Features daily runs with fixed seeds for competitive play and challenge runs with game-changing modifiers.
• Hero Variety: Players choose from over 20 unique heroes, each starting with a specific set of equipment, unique abilities, and preferred playstyles, encouraging diverse strategies.
• Extensive Item System: Discover thousands of unique items throughout your runs. These items are the core of your build, as they dictate which poker hands you want to form and what abilities you can use.
• Monster Variety: Encounter hundreds of unique monsters, each with their own attacks and mechanics, requiring adaptive strategies.
• Resource Management: Beyond cards, you manage resources like health, food (used for moving on the map), energy (for class abilities), gems (to draw extra cards in combat), and poker chips (currency for shops and upgrades).
• Deep Strategy: The game tests not only your tactical combat decisions but also your understanding of poker probabilities and how to leverage your hand to activate the most effective item abilities.

Distinguishing Features of Poker Quest:

• Novel Combat System: The direct integration of a standard poker deck to power abilities is highly unique and sets it apart from other card-based roguelikes (which usually feature custom card decks).
• High Replayability: With numerous heroes, thousands of items, hundreds of monsters, procedural generation, and various game modes, each run feels fresh and challenging.
• Strategic Depth: Despite the element of chance from card draws, the game demands significant strategic thinking in item selection, ability activation, and resource management.
• Blend of Familiar & New: It takes inspiration from popular roguelikes like “Slay the Spire” (map) and “Dicey Dungeons” (dice/card-driven abilities) but creates a fundamentally new combat experience.
• Scalable Difficulty: Offers options for casual play or hardcore roguelike challenges, catering to different player preferences.

Where Can You Play Poker Quest: Swords and Spades?

Poker Quest: Swords and Spades is available on:

• PC:
  • Steam: The primary platform for the full game on Windows and macOS.
  • Web Browsers: An older, pre-alpha version of the game was available on various web portals (like Playsaurus’s own website or Itch.io), which served as a testing ground during development. The full, updated game is predominantly on Steam.

To play the complete and most updated version, Steam is the recommended platform.

Why You Should Play Poker Quest: Swords and Spades:

If you’re looking for a truly innovative take on the roguelike genre, Poker Quest: Swords and Spades offers a fresh and deeply engaging experience. Its central mechanic of using poker hands to fuel your heroic abilities is brilliant, forcing you to think about card probabilities and strategic combinations in a way no other RPG does. With a vast array of unique heroes, countless items to discover, and procedurally generated worlds, every run presents new challenges and opportunities for creative builds. It’s a game that will appeal to fans of roguelikes, deck-builders, and even those who enjoy thinking about poker odds, all wrapped in a charming fantasy package. Get ready to put your poker face on and embark on an epic quest!