Drop Duchy Review

Drop Duchy is a unique hybrid of a puzzle game that feels like a classic block-placing, line-clearing title we have all played, combined with a rogue-lite deckbuilder. Developed by Sleepy Mill Studio and published by The Arcade Crew, this title has you stacking blocks to build your army, protect your castle, while gathering resources. When you are defeated, the game is not over — you will use experience and cards that you have unlocked in previous runs to get stronger so you can fight off the enemy forces to protect your realm. To be completely honest, I never knew what a duchy was (a country or territory ruled by a Duke or duchess), but now, because of this game, I have expanded my vocabulary!

When you begin, you can start a new run, examine different missions available to challenge, see the Progress Tree (which is like a skill tree where you can unlock new cards for your deck), or check out the Collection of every card that will be available for you to use. Jumping into a run, you will have to select which mode you want to play: The Tutorial, where you are introduced to the mechanics of the game and learn how to clear blocks to acquire resources while fighting off the enemy, or Classic for those who already know what they are doing and just want to start a run.

Your primary goal is to progress through the land to defeat the three mighty bosses that are trying to invade. To accomplish this, you will need to collect the resources you find to upgrade your card deck and improve your strategy to defeat the boss of that region. Tetromino-shaped pieces fall from the top; they come in a random order, and you will need to place them. When you clear a line, an exploration is triggered, finding resources like grain and wood that you can exchange for items or gold. If you clear multiple lines at once, you will get even more resources to use.

Speaking of the land, Drop Duchy has a beautiful hand-drawn look to it. It’s simplistic and almost feels like tiles from a board game like Carcassonne have come to life. The music is relaxing and calming, which fits in with the aesthetic very well, and the sound effects while in battle make it feel like you really are in a fight. There is no blood or gore here — just pieces to place and resources to collect while you battle against the enemy troops.

If you have played Tetris, then you know how the controls work. I’m playing using an Xbox controller. To move the block, you use the D-pad; trying to use the thumbstick will not work. You can rotate the piece with the bottom or left face buttons, press down on the D-pad to shift down, and hitting up will do a quick drop. There is the option to hold blocks in your reserve with the right face button, and finally, if you want to speed up, use the top face button. You can see which three blocks are coming up next to plan ahead. When all the blocks are placed, you are presented with a stat screen showing the resources collected. As an example, the game gives you information regarding how many supplies you collected in Resource Details, such as finding 72 wood and 90 grain. It also tells you things like that the Wood Clearer card harvested an additional 64 logs.

After each round, you receive a new random card to add to your deck. Try to be strategic, as you can create powerful combos by mixing these new cards with the ones currently in your deck. The upper-right corner of the card shows its level; they can be upgraded by clicking on the Deck button in the bottom-left side of the screen. To level these cards up, you will need to spend some of the resources you collected. The bonus is that once it is levelled up, the card's effects are improved, giving you more resources when played.

Before you jump into combat, you select which buildings you want to use based on the location you are fighting in. You can also upgrade any of your cards if needed. Terrain cards that will randomly be mixed into your deck are shown. You can also spend resources to unlock more slots to use for the rest of your run to get additional troops for the fight. You won't be the only one attacking; your enemy also has recruited units, too. If you don’t feel like you have the troops required to win a battle, you have the option to take a different path on the map and try to avoid the combat spaces. But if you do, the boss will gain additional units, making that final battle more difficult for you.

When opposite forces battle, they subtract units as they are defeated. Each type has weaknesses and strengths, so paying attention to this is important, as the advantaged group gets a +50% strength bonus, which can make a big difference in the battle. When the fight is over, you will lose defence points for every enemy left on the map. If only your units remain, you will be rewarded with bonus gold, which you will likely spend on recovering the health that was lost in the fight.

With the battle done, you see a screen showing your battle stats: the number of units you had, the number your opponent had, along with the outcome. You'll also see which military cards you played against the enemy and a combat log of the battle. While placing the pieces, you would have collected resources through exploration and the types of blocks you placed. These items that you gather can be exchanged for gold when you stop at the Trading Fair, or for other types of resources like grain for wood, or vice versa, depending on what you need.

I came into this game with the wrong mindset. I figured since I was pretty good at Tetris, I would do great at this game. Being able to place the blocks and fill the screen is only one piece of the puzzle. The cards you choose and how they interact with the others you’ve already placed make a huge difference in how successful you will be. I got my butt kicked in battle multiple times. Fortunately, if you manage to survive the fight, you have a chance to heal and get right back into the battle. If defeated, you will begin your run again — but your deck will be better, and you will be stronger for the next round. It will take multiple runs to figure out which strategies work against the enemy to destroy their troops. Just be prepared to lose in the beginning.