FIRST CLASS

Satan's favorite deckbuilder returns aboard MONSTER TRAIN 2

- Abbie Stone

I've been more hyped for this sequel than I am for the return of Christ. And if you didn't care for that bit of blasphemy, then Monster Train, a game about helping the demons of Hell defeat the goody two-shoes of Heaven, is likely not for you. Everyone else, though, should get ready to play a roguelike deckbuilder that's every bit the equal to Slay the Spire and Balatro.

Hyperbole? Hardly. Monster Train was a great game that shamelessly ripped off and smartly built on Slay the Spire's structure with a welcome layer of tower defense. Structurally, this sequel is near-identical. You still occupy a fancy four-floor train, with a fragile pyre you need to protect occupying the top floor. Every turn several enemies rudely break into your train via floor one. The fools telegraph exactly how they're going to attack so you can plan accordingly, and any surviving enemy at the end of each turn ascends closer to that pyre.

To defend it, you have a deck of spells and the all-important monsters that you strategically place on each floor of the train. It's often as chaotic—and exhilarating—as playing three games of