Night Things & Monster Compendiums
Graphic Novels I Almost Forgot About #1
The monster compendium already intersects with many forms of play. Shelving the possible opportunities for exploration, discovery, and collection gameplay for the moment (Subnautica, Pokémon, Slime Rancher), I'm mainly thinking about repetitive PVE interactions.
Munchkin: 2001 multiplayer tabletop card game. Satirical RPG
Cards include Door Cards (monsters, traps/curses, classes/races) and Treasure Cards (weapons, armor, items, +LVLs).
Gameplay: Player vs. Player. Players start at LVL 1 with no class or race. Players start their turn by "Kicking Down the Door," aka pulling from the Door Card pile. Pulling a monster card will enter the player into a battle. If the monster is a lower level than the player and their combined item bonuses, the player will win and can draw an assigned number of treasure cards. If the monster is a higher level than the player, the player must roll a 5+ D6 to escape or will lose a level to the monster. If the player does not pull a monster card, the player can choose to "Look for Trouble" (Playing and battling a monster card from their own deck) or "Loot the Room" (Drawing a second Door Card into their hand)The player ends their turn by equipping treasure, playing actions, and discarding (discard goes to the player of the lowest level).
Players can hold up to 5 cards by the end of an action. Players can equip a limited number of items at a time. Players can also discard treasure cards for gold (1000 gold = +1LVL). Cards can be traded between players at any time.
Players' goal: Get to LVL 10
Slay the Spire II: 2026 roguelike deck-building game
Cards include Attacks, Skill Cards (Defense/Bonus LVLS), Power Cards (Static Bonus LVLS), and Curse Cards (-LVLS)
Gameplay: Player vs. Game. Players start each run with a basic deck. Players progress via a branching map, choosing between enemy encounters, merchants (shops), treasure/rest stops, and random encounters.
Each combat round, players draw 5 cards from their personal draw pile. Actions (Playing Cards) are limited by an energy budget that resets at the start of each round. The player is attacked between rounds, with opportunities to defend or negate damage during their turn. Cards are reshuffled and redrawn from a personal discard pile, similar to Dominion. Players improve their deck throughout the run (usually at the end of combat), choosing new cards, upgrading existing cards, and acquiring items with persistent bonuses.
Players' goal: Progress and defeat the current run's boss.
Also See: Dominion
Dominion
Dominion: 2008 multiplayer tabletop card game. Base for the "deck-building" genre.
Cards include Treasure Cards, Action Cards (+Actions or Treasure), Estate Cards (+ Victory Cards), and Curse Cards (-Victory Cards).
Gameplay: Player vs. Player. Players start with 10 basic cards in their draw pile, improving and expanding this deck each round of the game. Cards are not usually discarded; rather, they are recycled back into the player's personal draw pile. Each round starts with the player drawing 5 cards from this draw pile, followed by an action, buy, and cleanup phase.
Players' goal: gain victory points by buying cards (upgrading their deck).
Letsplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hf1dnfRdRh8
Shrooms and Gloom adds an element of exploration to the traditional deck-building game with first-person navigation, interactive obstacles, and a secondary, non-combat-oriented deck. Gameplay becomes much more intensive and immersive; boss and item introductions have room for more drama and narrative setup.
Undertale (Enemy Encounter Loop)
Gameplay: Player vs. Game. When encountering an enemy, the player has the choice between Fight (antagonistic route), Act/Interact (Pacifist Route), Item (healing and utility), and Mercy (Spare or Flee). Assuming the pacifist route is chosen, the player must learn how to peacefully defeat the monster through trial and error. During the enemy's turn, the game transforms into a bullet hell.