Poxnora

Have you ever wanted to build a collectible card deck where your creature cards would come to life on a strategic map? And where if you defeated your opponent, your cards could “level up,” becoming better versions of themselves? Regardless of whether you knew you wanted such a mish-mash of features, developer Octopi has granted your wishes in its online CCG PoxNora. And once you figure out how it works, it’s addictive.
Although every aspect of the game is reminiscent of many established genres, there’s nothing else quite like it. It’s like “Magic the Gathering of Might and Magic.” Or “Warhammer the Masquerade.” The gameplay is simple: Create a “Battlegroup” (deck) using “Runes” (cards). Take your Runes to a “Battlefield” (map) and take turns placing Champion Runes (your dudes) and attacking with them until you or your opponent loses. The winner gains “Champion Points” (CP) for their Runes, with more CP awarded to the Champions that did the most in battle, and the loser gets a few courtesy CP for their trouble, just to be nice.
Strategy factors a great deal in PoxNora, and so does having the best cards and swanky upgrades for your Champions. The front end is a little awkward, and the game has no tutorial, causing some initial confusion. (The gameplay is explained in documentation on the site, but most players never read it, learning as they play.)
The real pleasure of PoxNora is the joy of discovery, or at least of discovering new ways to kill your opponent. Though it is free to play, the Runes cost about 25-30 cents each, and you buy them in packs (credit card required), just like in Magic Online. There is also the option to play PoxNora completely free using the sample decks. They can’t gain CP, as you don’t own the Runes, and you can’t modify them. But it is a safe way to explore the game before you sink cash into it.
Each of the battles takes roughly an hour to finish, and there is the option of calling it quits in a friendly way. So far, there’re enough people ready to play that you only have to wait for a few seconds to get into a game. Matches can be played for their own reward or for “Rank,” which currently means only for bragging rights.
Octopi has a lot of features planned for the game, including a single-player campaign with ’bots, cash prize tournaments, and more detailed battle stats. Though the game is still new and lacking a few features, its core is solid, with its strategy and role-playing elements adding a great deal to its CCG gameplay. Your other games will be jealous.

This article originally appeared in Computer Games Magazine #193