#Monster train ios update

But on the Switch, I’m never far away from another trip to hell.Friends & Foes updateThe exiled champions have returned to the fold to battle the forces of heaven.This second major update for Monster Train adds new champions, new bosses, new cards, and new artifacts, which combine together to add a significant amount of new strategic options and replayability. Monster Train was an excellent game tied to platforms that made it hard for me to play as much as I wanted. I can pick up my Switch to play for a bit, turn it off, and pick up where I left off long before I’ve forgotten the deck I’ve built. But it’s also been a boon when sitting in a queue for a dungeon in Final Fantasy 14, running on my elliptical machine, or waiting for a friend to log on in Destiny 2. If you’re only able to carve a bit of time out of your day to be away from family or take a lunch break during work, it’s going to take weeks to get your Clans upgraded.īut with the Switch, I can keep improving my account anywhere. But when tethered to a single machine like a PC, it’s easy to fall away from that grind. Every time I finish a run, I’m improving my arsenal of monsters for my next go. Like the greatest roguelites, Monster Train’s learning curve meets its progression loop at just the right spot. But crafty players can use special cards to move units up and down the Monster Train, opening up the playing field and essentially creating Spock’s stacked 3D Chess board from Star Trek. In most cases, my monsters act autonomously once I place them on a floor, and they simply attack what’s in front of them unless commanded otherwise.

To defeat the Angels before they make their ascent, I can use allied units as roadblocks, or deploy spells to slow, stun, and kill the attackers. If Angels reach the fourth floor and destroy my Pyre, it’s game over for that run. Enemies enter my train on the first floor, and if they survive, move up after each turn. The four-leveled combat arena itself feels like a living entity that I control with a variety of cards. The first of the train’s three floors, using the Umbra Clan Image: Shiny Shoe/Good Shepard Entertainmentīut the Clan system is only one of Monster Train’s more unique features. Finding the powerful combos that best suit your playstyle is a rush in itself - like ignoring the instruction booklet and combining two LEGO sets into something better than the company intended. And that’s not even counting the multiple Champions per Clan. There are six clans, which means there are 15 different pairings to experiment with. The new Wurmik clan (added in DLC that’s included in the Switch version) has its own currency that augments familiar cards. Clans like Umbra devour their own units to empower a Champion or beefcake member of your infantry. The various clans get far weirder and more complex later on. Or, I could shift my focus away from spells and invest in a single, powerful Awoken unit that can empower and protect my legion of Hellhornes.

I could go for cards that buff my limited Hellhorne units while focusing on finding an army of beefy Awoken units to protect them. If I’m using the game’s default pairing of the damage-focused Hellhorne Clan and the defense-oriented Awoken Clan, I can see multiple different options ahead of me. This Clan system fundamentally changes how I plan each run. At the start of every run, I select which Clan I want to control and which Clan I want additional support from.

Each Clan has two Champion units to choose from, as well as grunt units, spells, Artifacts, and unique mechanics. Instead of lone heroes, Monster Train features six Clans. Missions get progressively harder, and many runs will end in failure you know the drill.īut Monster Train builds on that familiar foundation with several novel twists. You collect a variety of cards throughout each run, building the best deck you can with the randomized rewards you’re given. Much of Monster Train will be familiar to roguelite players - especially fans of deckbuilding roguelites such as Slay the Spire. Between battles, you can select various boons and upgrades for your army Image: Shiny Shoe/Good Shepard Entertainment

Monster train ios