Tactics CCGs are popping up everywhere these days. Duelyst really set the stage for how you can combine the fun of a card game like Hearthstone with the turn-based tactics gameplay of something like Final Fantasy Tactics to really spice up the digital card game experience. With Hand of the Gods (aka SMITE Tactics), Hi-Rez Studios is tapping into its popular SMITE MOBA IP to take its own crack at what is a nascent, but quickly growing genre.
Hand of the Gods just launched into Early Access recently, so we wanted to jump in and find out what it’d be like to play SMITE as a turn-based tactics card game hybrid. What was immediately apparent is how well suited the IP is to this sort of game. A bunch of gods directing their armies against one another in battle just makes sense. Hi-Rez opted to select a single god from seven pantheons (Chinese, Mayan, Egyptian, Greek, Hindu, Norse, and Roman) to be its leader for the pantheon’s set of cards. The leader functions similarly to a class in Hearthstone in the sense you can spend two mana in a turn to utilize its special ability. For example, Ra, the leader of the Egyptian pantheon, can heal units in a column using his ability.
The game mostly follows the same formula as Duelyst. You have a fairly small game board, place your units (ranged/melee), and it essentially plays out like a card game from there. The only thing is you have to take positioning on the board into account. Of course, you do this in a standard card game, but there’s a lot more to consider on a tile-based board. Instead of a physical hero walking around the map you have a structure with 25 hitpoints that must be protected. As far as I can tell, there aren’t any other interactions with the map, which is a disappointment. In Duelyst, contesting Mana Tiles (tiles that provide an extra mana crystal when stepped on by your units) is an important aspect of gameplay. Games like Shardbound really step things up where you have all sorts of considerations, such as proximity to terrain, line-of-sight, etc.
Despite my disappointment here, the gameplay of Hand of the Gods is quite sound. I’ve been really enjoying the different way each pantheon plays, particularly Ra. Ra’s units synergize around healing, so it’s possible to get some really out of control units going, like a huge Sobek, who gains stats when friendlies are healed. You can also take advantage of Ra’s healing to give Neith a global range on her ranged attacks, making her a huge threat from the back of the board. I’m also digging Bellona. She focuses on manipulating units on the board, using her spells and ability to move units around. This can be used to bait out the enemy, only to whisk your juicy unit away to safety. It can also be used aggressively to move your units in for the kill. Spells like “Pinned” stun any enemies that are moved during your turn, which can set you up to stun multiple units in a single turn, possibly changing the tempo of the game. There are tons of combinations and fun ways to play already.
The main issues with the game right now, from what I can tell, are mostly Early Access user experience stuff. Pack opening animations are obnoxiously long. The deck editor could use a lot of work. It needs filters and other sorting options. And there’s also a lot of hidden information in the game. It just doesn’t do a good job of explaining various mechanics. These are the sorts of things that can be easily addressed, which is encouraging, because there’s a solid game here to enjoy if you’re a fan of tactics CCGs like I am. I’d encourage anyone into tactics CCGs or even just fans of SMITE to grab the game free on Steam and check it out.