SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech

One of the more interesting things about the SteamWorld series of games is how its unique style and personality has managed to seamlessly fit itself into multiple genres. For SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech, the series ditches its sci-fi settings and brings the steampunk vibe to a fantasy role-playing adventure, with a touch of card gaming tossed in for good measure. It's an odd combination, but once again, it feels like a natural fit and somehow just works.

Right off the bat, it's hard not to get drawn into SteamWorld Quest, thanks to its presentation. The hand-drawn artwork is gorgeous, injecting life and personality into the characters and into the world as a whole. It creates a fun world that you want to be a part of. It's easy to pick up the basics of the card-based gameplay, but that will only get you so far. And there lies the game's biggest hurdle. To get the most out of the gameplay and combat, you've got to put together the right combinations of characters, equipment, and cards. This means spending a lot of time farming for materials and crafting cards, then testing to see how they might work. Trying to find the right mix you're comfortable with can be a long and drawn out process that interrupts the otherwise smooth flow of the game. Still, when it all comes together and everything clicks, SteamWorld Quest creates an adventure that's easy to lose yourself in.