If Balatro’s captivating blend of roguelike antics and poker wasn’t intense enough for you, maybe this Edgar Allen Poe-esque riff on solitaire will be. The ominously titled Forbidden Solitaire drags you into a dungeon straight out of the scariest mid-’90s adventure that never existed, with your skills with a deck of cards being your only true asset.
As a gothic horror game, Forbidden Solitaire channels a lot of distinctly ’90s intrigue. The premise starts with a strange, controversial CD-ROM from 1995 that you just happen to find at a thrift store in 2019. Installing the contents opens a Pandora’s box that would seem completely leftfield if not for the recent memory of Balatro’s card game absurdity.
The upcoming game has you poking through some godforsaken catacombs, facing rounds of solitaire at certain intervals. As ever, the rules are a constant source of worry, and you’ll want to be wary of those joker cards. A typical run will last between two and three hours, so it’s something that’ll require proper attention when you decided to jump in.
Developers Grey Alien Games and Night Signal Entertainment are proficient at these off-kilter nostalgia trips. Home Safety Hotline places you as an operator on an early 2000s service for helping deal with household invaders of various sizes – conventional rats, these are not. 2022’s Night Signal pits players against a television set that won’t stop receiving inexplicable broadcasts.
Not necessarily projects you want if you’d rather not think about what goes bump in the night. If you’re keen for some analog chills though, these new games are all worth a look.
Forbidden Solitaire doesn’t have a release window yet, but watch this space – and avoid unlabeled CD-ROMs in the meantime. Check out our lists of the best roguelike games and best zombie games to prepare for whatever might be around the corner.
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