Hexeract Reviews

Rad little game. I managed to make into the top 10 after a few runs. Fun for the min-maxing gambler in us all. A stripped-down Balatro that would have been neat with a bit more content, but accomplishes what it set out to do.

Definite hidden gem here. There is a ton of depth to what you can do, and the gameplay itself is very well-designed. I keep feeling like I'm done with it, but some new strategy will start itching into the back of my brain while I'm doing something else and I'm back trying to push into the top 5 on the leaderboards lol. While it doesn't explain itself really at all as far as any advanced mechanics, usually looking into what an effect even is will start sparking off ideas for new builds. Even when you get to the inevitable roguelike "reload the first powerup" stage, there are usually 2 or 3 things that could pop up that you can continue with for the first stage of a good build. Considering the price it's an insanely easy recommend, but even not considering that, this game is absolutely worth your time.

This was supposed to be a positive review. I actually really enjoyed this game, until I noticed a quite irritating thing, that sadly was big enough for me to tip the scale. There is no save and continue option. If you close the game, your progress is lost. If you want or need to take a break, game has to be constantly running in the background. It wouldn't be that annoying if the runs were short and dynamic, but they are not - especially if you are doing good. I'll just leave this here as a beware for new players. Maybe it won't matter for you, but it does for me. I'll be happy to change my review if the save&exit/continue is applied. As for the game itself: It's simple, but engaging, also pretty addictive. And surprisingly challenging. I don't think it has enough content/mechanics to keep me engaged for a longer period of time, but for what it is now (and how much it costs) it's perfectly sufficient with potential for future development. I'd personally add hex count and deck statistics. It'd be really helpful in terms of shopping decisions. Pros - simple, yet interesting and well executed idea - despite being seemingly simple, it has quite depth to it and many strategic options - engaging, forces you to think and plan ahead, especially on higher levels Cons - still a bit rough on the edges when it comes to UI - minor translation errors - a few minor bugs (I run into a bug, where every Hex upgrade I got was gray, despite what I choose) - might get boring after a while, without updates or new content ideas (leaderboard alone isn't enough to keep me going) - you can't save the run [!]