The trend of digital card games seems to have no end in sight, and Capcom is the latest publishing giant to fall in its jaws.
Capcom has just announced Teppen, a new digital card fighting game that pits several of the publisher’s biggest hits against each other in what can only be described as tactical mayhem. Popular characters from the company’s line up are present, such as brawler Ryu from Street Fighter, Mega Man from, well, Mega Man and the fearsome wyvern Rathalos from Monter Hunter.
If you’ve been playing any of the popular digital card games and watch streams or YouTube videos by popular players, you’ve probably already seen this being played by some of your favorite influencers under the codename “Project Battle”. It plays like your usual digital card game: pick characters, you place them on the board, you strategize, and if you play your cards right (pun intended), you win! Teppen gives a new spin on it though, by introducing real-time responses, called Active Responses. You can counter and defend in response to your opponents’ offensive moves. This concept is pretty uncommon in the mostly passive genre.
The game is technically “free to play,” but it's the worst kind of free to play. Like Blizzard’s Hearthstone and Bethesda’s The Elder Scrolls: Legends, it has in-game purchases that provide various extras to your playing experience. The main question is how much of these purchases will be pay-to-win, though?
To be honest, I get the hype and why these huge companies are entering and taking advantage of this new market in strategic types of games. These are companies that have been in the industry for so long, and have created worlds and universes filled with so much lore that the next logical thing to do is go back to gaming’s roots, which is basically strategy games. This is also happening to the MOBA sphere, what with Dota 2’s Auto Chess and League of Legends’ Teamfight Tactics.
For those who want to see and experience some Capcom vs. Capcom action, Teppen may be the game for you. It’s currently being rolled out worldwide for iOS through the App Store and Android on the Google Play Store.