Steem Monsters Early Review:
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Having played for a little over a week now on the game test server as a Monster Maverick, I thought I'd share some early thoughts on my gameplay experience thus far.  

1) This early game is intended for rapid iteration.  
2) The number of combos becomes bottlenecked the lower the mana cap.
3) The number of counter strategies works well provided a high enough mana cap.
4) Neutral cards are very much needed by all.

Matches are fun to watch, but serious players may feel compelled to find a battle and rematch right away.  This can take the fun away, but I would argue it gives a competitive advantage in not wasting time when you dont feel like it.  It was a good feature to add the 'Skip to Results' function.  This game is resolved instantaneously as the match is made, so its actually quite convenient to play on the go or in times of limited available time.  Additionally, I find this game convenient in areas with sketchy internet reception - again because games are actually resolved instantaneously.


Mana caps are going to be a key component to gameplay tactics and strategy, but the lower these caps go the less fun gameplay becomes.  The reason is due to the fact that various cards become undeniably dominant in certain situations which actually bottlenecks certain gameplay techniques if unable to develop a viable counter strategy.  Unless the mana cap is large enough to allow strategy flexibility, often the number of available counter strategies becomes bottlenecked as well.  

In a 15 mana cap session, I noticed that basically 1 to 2 team formations basically became pretty dominant.  Alternatively, the higher the mana cap, the more pressing the need for expensive legendary cards.  So there's some balance needed in all of this.  It may be difficult to mainstream this game if it proves to be too expensive.  

That said, Im sure it can be just as fun as a niche experience.

More cards are definitely needed to make gameplay much more fun, but this is definitely a good start.  Until then, neutral cards are almost a definite must have.  Many double up capabilities such as sneak or snipe which is almost a requisite to be competitive.  

Steem Monsters is not going to be a game for anyone who isn't willing to shell out a pretty penny to play.  Its definitely on the right track right now, and I am curious how the gameplay experience will be for Steem Monster runts who may not have too many leveled-up cards at their disposal.

Im sure it will still be fun, and a whole new experience as is, provided they continue to be matched up to each other accordingly.