Foretales Preview: A Charming Deckbuilding Fantasy

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Foretales is a narrative-driven card game developed by Akemi Games and published by Dear Villagers for the Nintendo Switch and Windows PC on Steam. Unlike competitive card games such as Blizzard's Hearthstone, Foretales has a living, changing story that adjusts to players' choices and strategies in-game. By twisting RPG elements into a deck-building game, Foretales sets itself apart from other titles in the genre and emphasizes its unique features throughout regular gameplay.

Foretales takes place in the Harde Republic, a kingdom in the game's dying world doomed by a mysterious prophecy. Players must build their party (and card deck) to survive and progress throughout the story, with different outcomes available depending on how situations are resolved. Players control Volepain, a clever thief that can save or destroy the Harde Republic with his companions. In the first mission, Volepain obtains a Lyre from a local noblewoman, which grants him the power to view future events and how long he has to avert them. Unfortunately, claiming a happy ending is far more complicated than players may first anticipate.

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The mission style and gameplay in Foretales is a unique combination of card game mechanics and RPG dialogue. A series of NPC and Location cards are turned over at the start of each round, prompting players to utilize their Skill Cards or Inventory Cards to progress to different areas or interact with characters. For example, speaking with a merchant, bribing guards, or using Fame can avoid violent confrontations, while attacking or making hostile actions against hostile NPCs initiates combat. Volepain can also collect Inventory Cards by using Skill