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Squirrel's Pick Squirrel's PickThe best game on this page. If you only try one, try this.
AdventureTacticalPvP
Dice-Based Dice-Based
$19.99 ~35 hr median no co-op 88.7% of 6k
The Squirrel's verdictGordian Quest keeps the deck-built-fights-and-story structure but swaps Hand of Fate's board-hopping brawler for turn-based party combat across a full campaign, median 35 hours. Multiple heroes, branching skill trees, and difficulty options including permadeath. Suits players who want the card-driven RPG framework without real-time combat or dungeon-board management.
Not for you if you want short roguelite runs rather than an 8-15 hour-per-act campaign, or dislike combats that repeat once your deck settles.
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Closest Match Closest MatchThe most similar game to the anchor, by what players say.
ActionTurn-Based TacticsMartial Arts
$24.99 ~32 hr median no co-op 90% of 4k
The Squirrel's verdictEvery card in Fights in Tight Spaces is a move, attack, or environmental interaction played out on a fixed grid — enemies can be thrown into each other, walls can be bounced off, and positioning determines whether combos land. Runs consist of back-to-back combat puzzles with no overworld or story cards between them. At $24.99 with a 32-hour median, it fits players who want card-driven tactical combat as the sole focus.
Not for you if you want overworld exploration and narrative encounter cards between fights, or dislike reported balance issues and DLC-integration complaints from reviewers.
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Hidden Gem Hidden GemLoved by the players who found it, but still under the radar.
DemonsChoices MatterDungeon Crawler
Moral Weight Moral WeightHard choices with real consequences are central here.
$7.49 ~17.8 hr median no co-op 92.9% of 743
The Squirrel's verdictPyrene places you on a grid of face-down cards: you move across the board, flip encounters, fight enemies, and collect gear as each tile resolves, with no separate combat phase or real-time action. Card selection leans toward picking the strongest available options rather than building around synergies. At $7.49 with a 17.8-hour median, it suits players who want a card-on-a-board dungeon crawler with a light footprint.
Not for you if you want meaningful deckbuilding strategy, enemies that feel distinct from one another, or combat with more than a handful of mechanics.
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Turn-Based TacticsTactical RPGDungeon Crawler
$19.99 ~28 hr median no co-op 86.1% of 3k
The Squirrel's verdictThree-character hex-grid positioning is the defining mechanic in Trials of Fire: ranged kiting, party formation, and card-based combos across a post-apocalyptic fantasy world. Deckbuilding deepens as you level up and equip cards across nine classes. At $19.99 with a 28-hour median, it suits players who want positional tactical depth layered on top of a card-driven run structure.
Not for you if you want real-time action combat rather than slow turn-based hex positioning, or dislike games where kiting dominates strategy.
5
Poker Quest: Swords and Spades
PCMac
Mouse onlyProcedural GenerationMedieval
$14.99 ~19.4 hr median no co-op 86.9% of 718
The Squirrel's verdictPoker Quest uses a standard deck of playing cards as its combat engine: fights resolve through poker-hand building and card math across a roguelike run structure with unlocks between attempts. There is no overworld dungeon board or narrative encounter cards. At $14.99 with a 19.4-hour median, it suits players drawn to number-driven hand optimization and fast run pacing.
Not for you if you want physical brawling, dungeon-crawl staging, or story-driven encounter cards rather than poker-hand math resolving every fight.
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Dungeon CrawlerRetroPerma Death
$9.99 ~33.2 hr median no co-op 85.9% of 377
The Squirrel's verdictCard Quest is a pure turn-based card combat game: every dodge, block, and strike is a card play, and equipment swaps out entire card sets rather than building a deck from scratch. There is no overworld board, no real-time movement, and no choose-your-own-adventure story cards. At $9.99 with a 33.2-hour median, it suits players who want combat resolved entirely through card sequencing.
Not for you if you want the tabletop board layout, real-time brawling, or the story and encounter cards Hand of Fate is built around.
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Dungeon CrawlerTurn-Based TacticsMouse only
$19.99 ~19.5 hr median no co-op 79% of 3k
The Squirrel's verdictBanners of Ruin keeps the deck-building-drives-the-run structure but drops the real-time brawler entirely: combat is turn-based, card-only, and built around a party of hero characters with individual talents and equipment rather than one card-dealt adventurer. Suits players who wanted Hand of Fate's deck construction without the action combat. Median playtime sits around 19.5 hours.
Not for you if you came for real-time swordplay and dungeon-crawl exploration rather than turn-based party card combat.
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Budget Pick Budget PickThe best game here for the least money.
Turn-Based TacticsTacticalProcedural Generation
$4.99 ~8.1 hr median no co-op 81.6% of 925
The Squirrel's verdictNecroking keeps the deck-building-as-dungeon-design idea but drops the brawler combat for auto-battling units across a 4-zone arena, resetting your deck each level. At $4.99 with an 8.1-hour median, it suits Hand of Fate players curious about the concept stripped of action combat, not those who want the risk-reward strategy layer to hold up over repeat runs.
Not for you if you valued Hand of Fate's hands-on combat and want strategic depth that doesn't flatten into repetition after a few hours.