REVIEW: Touhou Lost Branch of Legend

I’ve seen barely anyone talk about this game, but I love it. It’s a Touhou fangame, and it’s a deckbuilding roguelike very much in the style of Slay the Spire.

Yes, I know, there’s like 30 games out there in the style of Slay the Spire these days. But this one might honestly be one of my favorites. Between this and Monster Train, I haven’t really felt a desire to go back to Slay the Spire.

The structure is as you’d expect: You pick a character, you get a starting deck, and you start doing battles. You pick your “path” among battles, random events, and shops. You get different artifacts (called “Exhibits”) that give you passive abilities that will sway your playstyle.

First off, I love the art. For me it’s one of my favorite-looking deckbuilders and favorite-looking Touhou games. The danmaku-style attack animations are an incredible touch.

Secondly, I love the different permutations and decks you can go for. The game uses a very streamlined “mana color” system for playing cards. Unlike Magic the Gathering, you don’t have to worry about actually drawing cards randomly to get the colors you need. You automatically start each turn with the same colors (for example, “3 red mana and 2 yellow mana.”) Different colors can be used for different cards, which invites different strategies.

Every time you start a run, you not only choose which character to play as but ALSO which color deck you want to start as. This level of choice reminds me of the fun of starting a Monster Train run.

If you’re into deckbuilders or Touhou, give it a shot! It’s still in early access, and some lines are still being fully translated into English, but it’s completely playable in its current state.

Find it on Steam!