Hello and welcome back, if this is your first time here, I am happy to have you! So many things to talk about in this month's blog. This month I am switching it up, usually, I talk about a recent video game I played within the last month and give my thoughts on the game itself or how its potential production went. Today I am talking about some new trading card games (TCGs) I have recently played. That being Disney Lorcana and Star Wars Unlimited.
Both are the first-ever TCGs that I have played. I have known about some big TCGs like Pokemon and Yugioh to name a few, but those have been around forever and seemed overwhelming to get involved in. Since both Lorcana and Star Wars Unlimited are brand new it seemed like the perfect time to get in on the ground floor of two TCGs that have the potential to go on for years.
I will start by discussing the one that came out first, Disney Lorcana. I love seeing all the artwork on the cards from some of my favorite Disney properties. More than that the game is fun to play. The way the game works is that each player has a deck of 60 cards and each deck can only contain two of the 6 total ink types (Amber, Amethyst, Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, and Steel.) There are inkable and uninkable cards. You ink, or should in my opinion, on every turn going back and forth playing characters and seeing who can get to 20 lore the fastest. If you want to see some games search Lorcana gameplay.
One of the biggest things I love about it is the ability for anyone to pick it up and play. After you play a few hands it is easy to understand the loop. This means that people new to trading card games can have a lower barrier to entry than others. Plus when you throw in the Disney IP appeal, the game then has characters that appeal to people of all ages.
The second game I want to talk about is Star Wars Unlimited. What sets this TCG apart from the others is that it doesn't use turns for its gameplay. Instead of playing everything in one hand or turn there is an action and regroup phase. During the action phase, each player goes back and forth doing one thing at a time. Eventually, a player can claim the initiative, and that stops them from taking any more turns during the action phase but they get to go first during the next one. Each player can play units in the ground or space area. The units of course, and all the cards in general are inspired by Star Wars characters and lore.
The game is so strong mechanically. Because of its unique action and regroup system, it keeps it much more engaging for both players during the duration of the game. Each player also has a leader and a base. There are symbols on the top of the cards called aspects, but just to keep it simple, associated with the leader and base affect what cards you can play in your deck, or should play if your aspect symbols don't match you may have to pay the aspect penalty, meaning it costs double to play the card.
Again I could go super in-depth about the game but I just wanted to talk about how much I am enjoying it, how much I am enjoying both of the games. If you're looking for a new TCG and are a fan of Disney Movies or Star Wars I would recommend going to your local small game shop and supporting them and the games.
Now I am going to talk about FUSE. FUSE is the Department of Interactive Media at Bradley University's end-of-year showcase where we show off the work we can do. It was the biggest show yet with over 25 projects being showcased. If you want to see all the projects that were shown be sure to check out the FUSE website https://bradleyinteractive.com/2024/
SoulSync City had an amazing showcase at FUSE. As a producer, who sees all the hard work the team puts in, to see them enjoy people playing their game and watch the team smile, it just was awesome. Lost Water has so many amazing developers and individuals it was great to watch them enjoy their hard work.
Thank you to everyone who came out and supported the game and downloaded it after the FUSE showcase.
That brings me to the big news SURPRISE SoulSync City has gone gold and is available right now on our itch page https://lost-water-studios.itch.io/soulsync-city please also check out our launch trailer below
Myself and the rest of Lost Water Studios have been working on this game since August of 2023. We have poured everything we have into this game. Play as Mei, take on MODULUS, and fight to #Escapethecity and #Takebackyoursoul
I sincerely hope you enjoy the game as much as we have enjoyed making it. Next month I will do a post-mortem on what went well, what went wrong, and things to keep in mind in the future.
For now, go to the itch page download the game, check out the trailer, and share both with your friends and everyone you know. Let me or the team know what you think. Thank you all for being on the journey with us.
Thanks for reading and take care of yourselves
-Kadin
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