Every summer, Steam puts the vast majority of their catalog up for sale. And every summer, gamers joke about feeling their wallets flying magnetized towards the Steam stores as the massive sales see games being bought in a higher volume than any other time of the year.

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Often times this ends with having a couple of games in my Steam library that go unplayed, assuming they were ever installed. You lose all of the impulse control you’ve built in life and buy games on a kneejerk reaction just for seeing them at seventy, eighty percent sales.

There’s no shame in that, but once summer ends you probably realize that you have a fleeting interest in any of the new acquisitions Sometimes you end up gravitating back towards the same handful of games you play during the rest of the year and glance at the grayed-out titles every once in a while. This year, though, there’s a game that shouldn’t slip through the crack for you

For the King is hard to explain succinctly. It’s best described as an adventure tabletop game with turn-based combat and RPG elements, so there’s a bit of something for everyone. Developer IronOak Games and publisher Curve Digital released it in April of 2018, to which it’s received overwhelmingly positive reviews.

The game itself is relatively simple, which makes it delightfully accessible for anyone who might be intimidated by strategy games. Players choice between a handful of traditional classes – blacksmith, minstrel, hunter, or scholar – to adventure through the land of Fahrul in an attempt to quell the rising chaos and bring the King’s murderer to justice. More classes are unlockable through progression, each of which is equally unique and versatile.

A given class emphasis one of seven stats to utilize their playstyle, but any class can equip any found gear (though effectiveness will vary). These abilities will be tested in combat, games of chance, tests of ability, and random events that keep the game from ever feeling stale.

While the game itself is enrapturing, my favorite feature has been the Lore Store. Players use the in-game currency of lore to unlock powerful and interesting items, encounters, and encounters that then appear in the game to add a new dimension to play. This isn’t a microtransaction, and it isn’t paying to win, but a classic case of unlockable content rewarded by progression.

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There are six game modes available, five of which can be done solo. Each game mode is made to be short, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised to see the hours you wrack up on this game without even trying. Without a doubt, For the King is the strategy game you don’t want to miss.