Tic-Tac-Toe meets RPG in Keg Wars, a browser-based, multiplayer strategy game which will also launch for PS4.
Keg Wars, from Flying Pan Studio, is a strategy game based around classic RPG classes. Each of the classes have different actions paired to them. For instance a barrel will not just occupy space but also detonate if attacked. This will cause damage to the surrounding tiles which could be enough to clear a few spaces for future plays. There’s an archer token which can attack over distances in one direction, while other cards shield or heal existing cards.
The goal of all this is something quite familiar. It’s Tic-Tac-Toe/noughts and crosses.
The addition of cool abilities to each turn really livens up a very familiar formula. The damaging/health-points element of it also means that it’s not simply a case of game over after 9 turns, games can last a lot longer, especially if players play smart and maliciously.
I was pitched Keg Wars as part of the Pocket Gamer Connects PC Indie Pitch earlier in the year. The pitching is quite a quick, intense thing. Despite the short amount of time on hand, it was very easy to pick up and play the game, with only a small amount of time needed to understand the different characters and their effects on the rest of the board.
Perhaps above all else, I enjoyed the tavern aesthetic of the game. I very much enjoy games which place themselves within a setting when they don’t need to. Especially when they have somewhat simple rules which would translate to the environment they put themselves in — Fable II Pub Games springs to mind.
Keg Wars is in development for PS4, with builds currently running on PC and Android. You can find an early development copy of the game on Itch.io.
who made such an amazing game