Demon’s Mirror review

When Slay the Spire released in early access back in 2017 it took the gaming world by storm with its unique blend of deck building and Roguelike randomness. Since then a whole host of developers have been chasing the dream of being the next big deck building game, and I’m always surprised by the creativity on display in these lesser-known card-based Roguelikes. The next new exciting Deck Building game that should be on virtual cardboard fan’s radar is Demon’s Mirror, which stands out from the crowd thanks to the grid of gems filling half of the screen.

Despite this rather novel element we’ll get into later, much of Demon’s Mirror will feel lovely and familiar for genre veterans. Fights involve using various cards to beat the snot out of all sorts of fantasy creatures. Some cards simply deal damage whereas some block incoming damage, and you always know what the enemy is planning on doing on its next turn so you can prepare for what’s coming. Once you’ve spent all your energy playing cards for a turn you’ll shuffle your hand away, and this continues until only one of you is left standing. It’s fun, well balanced, and much more complex once you move across to the gem grid.

The six by six square of coloured gems is used similarly to the cards, but to maximise its potential you’ll need to find lines of gems you can link together in a zigzagging line. Blue shield gems grant you block equal to the length of the line, red swords deal damage, and there are also green gems which are needed to power up certain cards and purple diamonds which unleash various powerful effects if you gather enough in a single battle. Drawing lines in your grid costs you the same energy resource as playing cards, so working out where best to use it all is pretty tricky. You’re usually granted a free or cheap first grid use though, which at least means even when the gems aren’t looking too enticing you’ll get to shuffle it up a little.

There are plenty of other ways to manipulate your gems though, thanks to your hopefully well built deck of cards. Often these are rather cheap or even free in terms of energy cost, and swapping two gems or destroying a big square of useless gems is often enough to help ease a massive chain of destruction into place. The way the two systems compliment each other is incredibly clever, and adds a seriously compelling extra layer in combat.

It’s not just you that can take advantage of the grid though in battle, enemies often do too. Pesky foes often drop bombs into the grid, complete with a turn timer and amount of damage it will deal to you or heal your foes. The only way to reduce or negate these effects is by making as large a chain as possible through a bomb before it blows, which is often easier said than done. It’s a clever way to ensure it isn’t just you using the grid, and makes combat have more of a back and forth flow.

As is traditional at this point Demon’s Mirror isn’t just made up of fights, with the Slay the Spire staple of a branching path to choose your fate. There are plenty of battles on the grid, as well as treasure chests containing great goodies, random events that generally give you options to choose between that’ll upgrade your deck, and camps which can either heal you or be used to craft single use scrolls that’ll help you in battle. Choosing the best route for you will ensure your run is more successful, but that’s not easy.

Fortunately if you’re struggling with Demon’s Mirror there are a few options you can meddle with while you’re still learning the ropes. Making enemies weaker and deal less damage can be a life saver, and once you become a card and gem master there’s the option to amp up the difficulty and really test yourself.

I had a great time playing through many a run of Demon’s Mirror, but it does have a couple of issues. I struggled a lot with working out which cards to add to my deck to make it function better, and with so many different options and the extra complication of the gem board the learning curve is pretty steep. The game is also just a bit too derivative of other games in the genre, with more than just a few familiar systems.

Demon’s Mirror is a wonderful addition to the Roguelike Deckbuilding genre, with a novel gem-based hook to ensure it stands out from the pack. It can be a little tough to figure out what cards will best serve you when offered, but with a bit of patience and perhaps a little difficulty lowering you’ll soon be fully immersed in a top tier deck builder.