I had tested other online card games before this one. On November I got into this game called Alteil. For me the game was a horrible fit. Unable to trade, too much money for too few cards, the Return mechanic rendering a good deal of ploys powerless, and the final nail in the coffin, “nerfs” and “buffs” that did more harm than good. This was the perfect storm of bad and I wondered “why did I even bother with that “game”?
It was also there in that game that I heard of this one called Shadow Era. Some people panned the game as being a Magic: The Gathering knockoff mixed with World of Warcraft card game. In my mind’s eye there’s nothing wrong with that as long as they bring something new to the table. If not for the panning it received I wouldn’t even know this game was around. After my horrible, HORRIBLE experiences with Alteil I needed an alternative (besides Urban Rivals). So enough of my bitching about one game and get to the review of the other product.
Interface: The game can be either downloaded onto your computer, web browser, iPhone, Android or tablet. Yeah, this game really gets around. Please, keep the obvious tasteless jokes to yourselves. I don’t own any of those portable devices so my focus will be on the computer downloadable and browser versions.
There is little difference between the two. One critical difference was in the load time between the two. When you log on from the browser, depending on your connection could take a bit to fully load and until it fully loads you’ll spend time gawking at the World Map where you can face NPC’s (non-playable characters for those not in the know). The downloadable version has a direct link to the server so no wait time, but things are rather HUGE in that one. The card close ups the buttons are big. On the plus side those with eye issues will be able to play easily.
When you play the game for the first time, it talks you through how to play the game so that’s always a plus. Well with that said onto the gameplay.
Gameplay: As I mentioned briefly this game seems to be the answer to the question “If Magic: The Gathering and World of Warcraft TCG’s had a baby, what would it look like?” Again, nothing wrong with a little mimicry after all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The game starts you off with a few choices in Heroes. By picking one of them you will also get a deck of 30 cards.
Heroes have Life (indicated by the droplet of blood in the lower right hand corner) and Shadow Energy (indicated by the purplish orb in the bottom right hand corner once you start playing), an Effect and Type (indicated by a box in the upper right hand corner of the card). So far the only way to win the game is to beat the opponent’s Hero to 0. As this game becomes more developed that we get alternate win conditions.
The next type of card you will want to familiar yourself with is the Allies. Unlike Heroes, they hold no Shadow Energy and are able to attack without weapons.
These would be Abilities. As the name would suggest, they grant the people they are cast positive or negative effects on their target(s). Items also count as these. It helps not to think too hard about it.
Weapons are another card of interest. Give them to your hero and they’ll be able to attack. On the left hand side is how much damage the card can inflect. I’ll talk about what the anvil is for in a moment since it’s also shared by…
Armor. Armor reduces the damage one takes from straight up attacks. As of now, no armor reduces the damage you take from effects. The lower right hand side shows how much the damage is reduced to its wearer.
Now that I’ve done a brief intro on all the card types, time to touch on the objects I passed over. Did you remember those numbers encased in a circle in the upper left hand corner of all the cards, except the Hero? That is the resource cost. To obtain resources you place a card from your hand into the resource area (otherwise known as Sacrificing) as the first action of your turn.
The Anvil is found on (most) Armor and Weapons. This represents the durability of the card. As the weapon swings and the armor absorbs combat damage their durability goes down by one. The moment it hits 0 they go right to the Graveyard. You can only have one of each attached to your Hero and by attaching a new one the old one goes to the Graveyard.
With all of that cleared up, onto a brief what to know about deck building. Since unlike Magic: the Gathering where lands control what could go into your deck shadow Era had to use a restrictive method since any card could be used as a Resource which in theory could allow you to use any card in your deck. The linchpin here is your Hero. Outside of Neutral stuff you can only include stuff that relates to the class and or faction. The games balance would be so out of whack otherwise. Before I go on I should let you know that the restriction only applies to deck building so if you somehow snatch a card from your opponent that doesn’t correspond to your Hero’s class of allegiance you can use it anyway.
Features: Unlike a certain other “game” I used to play religiously you’re able to purchase individual cards. Yep, single cards. So unlike that other “game” that if the packs screw you over you’re pretty much crap out of luck and that’s that you got an alternative way to nab those few cards you’re missing. The merchant system acts like a real life market. Cards will sell out and restock. The cards you sell (yes, you can see those extras you’ll bound to end up with) will end up in the market.
To buy cards you use two kinds of currency. Either Gold, which is obtained from winning fights and selling cards or by buying Shadow Crystals which can also be obtained by leveling up. Shadow Crystals are the only way to buy decks and booster packs. You can buy a booster and deck for 100 shadow Crystals (roughly $1) each. So unlike that other “game” it’s quite affordable. Your poor wallet/credit card/bank account will thank you.
Speaking of bells and whistles the game also has a test server which can be located here. Unlike another kind of game I used to play regularly the PLAYERS are allowed to test out features and cards before they are released onto the main server and there input is placed into consideration, not just the elites.
Before I go on, the staff plans on releasing new sets every six to eight months to start, though with any luck we might see four sets a year once they get a nice grove down.
Issues: This game just got out of beta about a month ago so expect some errors. Sync errors are still being snuffed out as we speak and as they are found so bare with the staff. There are also some errors which caused some phases to be skipped. Just go to the message board and let them know what fresh hell you stumbled into and what time it happened.
Final Judgment: If you’re looking for something that’s like Magic the Gathering but doesn’tcost as much as Magic then try this out. Being familiar with that game willhelp get you through the learning phase that much faster and you don’t sufferfrom being land screwed. A major plus in my book. Now, I’ll close with me playing a match. This video was a pain in the ass to upload with my jacked up router, so until I can go out and get a better one don't expect too many videos.
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