Alina of the Arena

Alina of the Arena, developed by PINIX, is a meticulously crafted 2D action roguelike that plunges players into a dark, unforgiving world where precision, speed, and strategy are paramount. This game stands out in the indie scene for its polished combat system, atmospheric pixel art, and challenging roguelike mechanics that demand both skill and adaptability. Right from the outset, Alina of the Arena hooks players with its slick gameplay and tense encounters, offering a brutal but fair experience that rewards mastery and perseverance. The heart of Alina of the Arena lies in its fast-paced, fluid combat. Players control Alina, a warrior with an arsenal of melee weapons and special abilities, navigating through increasingly perilous arenas populated by a variety of deadly foes. The combat is crisp and responsive, allowing for a satisfying blend of light and heavy attacks, dashes, parries, and powerful charged moves. Each enemy type exhibits distinct behaviors and attack patterns that fo...

I absolutely love tactical grid based combat, and Alina pulls it off while mixing it with a perfect streamlined rogue deck builder to near perfection. Now while CCG+Grid is one of my favorite systems for PVP I generally don't really enjoy mixing those two for Rogues/Single Player content, generally either wanting action, deck, or grid, but NOT mixed. There are a few games that can pull it off, but they always end up feeling at odds with themselves due to the grid often being at odds with the usual more fun deck building aspects like putting together infinites and wacky combos which tend to be at odds with positional gameplay since your combos here are supposed to be about the grid and not the deck. Similarly I like squad combat but hate having it mixed with deck building, so it is refreshing that we get to just stick with one character. Yet Alina blends these perfectly rather than being at odds with each other, fulling letting you focus on positional, stats, combos of both board and...

This is for me one of the more immersive roguelike card games out there. While you play the cards, it’s very easy to imagine the scene in your head: You attack using your greatsword, dealing lots of damage, but exhausting you every swing. The fight has been going on for a while, and you need a respite, but two enemies draw close. You bash a guy with your shoulder, making him tumble behind, hitting the guy behind him, both out of balance. You take the chance and breathe, now having more freedom to fight. They come after you. Now rested, you slash 3 times to the guy in front, killing him. The crowd goes while. Somebody throws a sword near you. You walk towards it, and then throw it to the other guy. Not enough to kill him, but now you only need one swing to finish the job. This can be very easily inferred from the cards and mechanics, since they are descriptive, but also abstract enough that they can apply to many situations. I could go on and on about the mechanics, like th...

i love it too much, i have to forbid myself from opening steam because i know i will be playing it all day

Awesome game! Simple enough mechanics to pick up quickly and the weapons lend themselves to fun mechanics that will make you want to try them out in multiple runs. The difficulty ramps up hard in the last few acts and at the higher difficulties, but experimenting and developing your strategies makes them manageable with preparation. Absolutely worth your time and money, even at full price.

God