I’m specifically interested in this one-on-one style, apart from roguelike/RPG deckbuilding games.
Those are fun too, but a different style.
Would Inscryption count?
The only other single player game of that type I know of is the Yu-Gi-Oh video games.
Here is an actively maintained, FOSS implementation of M:TG, Forge: https://github.com/Card-Forge/forge
It freely allows you to construct decks with any card (you can even make your own). Can do multiplayer (client/server), multiple different modes like planechase, archenemy, commander, etc. You can download other people’s decks from the internet and play against the AI. The AI is alright for the majority of decks. There is even an '97 styled adventure mode that is pretty true to the original.
Thanks for the heads-up! I’ll have to give it a try.
I use XMage for this on Windows.
Faeria
Tuggowar
Balatro is like poker on crack. Or are you just looking for deckbuilders?
Attack the spire is a superb game that is a deck builder
Slay the Spire is great for sure, but for this I’m asking about deckbuilders with the style of deck-vs.-deck like Magic. In other words opponents use cards as well, and you may unlock the cards they use yourself as you play.
Monster Train is close to this, but has its own spin leaning into roguelike design as well.
I suppose it kinda follows a few different formats, but inscription is built like this amd is a lot of fun
Gwent. It’s amazing and it comes with a free open world RPG side game.
I think you can play it standalone too
Long ago there was elements the game. It was an excellently designed game that had a lot of potential and was fun to play. Lots of deck building options. They came out with like one expansion that showed more potential but it stopped being worked on. If I recall later into the game the grind to collect rares was really annoying.
Unfortunately the site’s completely dead now but after some googling there seems to be a fan base trying to revive it, idk how that’s going but I’m going to check it out.
That was the first thing I thought of! What a throwback. I loved that game, even if the art was a little lacking.
It really was amazing. Such a unique design for a card game nothing is quite like it. I checked out the most popular app of it and they recreated the game! Unfortunately, it’s an exact recreation which means the grind of the old game is still in place which is really disappointing. I’m convinced it would be a popular game if it was closer to a modern online TCG and I didn’t have to spend hours to grind out new cards for a deck.
Oh, no offline version I take it? 😔
legends of runeterra pvp is on maintenance mode but it’s still playable. i don’t play it anymore but at its peak i strongly preferred it (as a homebrewer / ranked mode grinder) to the two in your title.
Thanks! However I was asking about single-player games without microtransactions.
There are several single player Magic The Gathering games, but I think only the first one from 1997 gives you full deck building flexibility. The sequels just have a bundle of pre-builts to choose from.
The 1997 version has one-on-one Constructed and Booster Draft modes, in addition to a roguelike-RPG game mode.
It looks like its abandonware at this point, but someone claiming to be the OG dev commented on a Reddit discussion about it fairly recently: https://old.reddit.com/r/Shandalar/comments/1as2cg6/here_is_shandalar/
If you liked shandalar, you should check out forge like someone suggested in another comment on this thread: https://github.com/Card-Forge/forge
It’s a free, fan made, FOSS game that implements even the newest cards coming out, and it has a shandalar inspired adventure mode for you to play, where you can defeat all color wizards, collect cards, play drafts against AI and such, it is a great time.
I’m having trouble installing Card Forge. There does not seem to be an executable anywhere in the download?
In the link you can go to releases, there is a installer that is a .jar file, should be called forge-installer.jar or something like that, it installs and in the folder there should be forge.exe and a forge-adventure.exe, the shandalar inspired adventure is the forge-adventure.exe
Thank you, that did it. I was under the impression that *.jar files are exclusively used in Linux, but obviously I was wrong.
Nah *.jar are java files. Think og minecraft.
https://www.starrealms.com/digital-game/
Space based and had physical version, too.
Free to try vs ai.
One-time $5 purchase for full game and cheap expansions, too.
Space-based has me interested, I’ll give it a look!
Okay this is going a little bit left field, but Esports Godfather was one of my surprise hit releases of last year, and its currently on sale as well.
It’s not purely a card game as there are other parts to the gameplay, but at its core is effectively a deck builder, and one where you play out games 1-on-1 like you desire.
It plays way better than you might think at first, trust me.
