PAX East 2023: Death Roads Tournament

Racing, Rogue-like, and Deck Builder are not genres you see combined often. That didn’t deter The Knights of Unity from doing just that in their newest title, Death Roads Tournament. The game has you taking control of a car on the way to a safe haven in a post-apocalyptic wasteland that is the Divided States of America. To get there you’ll have to win battles, survive random encounters, and defeat other challengers.

The depth of gameplay on display even in the demo that was playable at Pax was astounding. From choosing your driver, to choosing your ride, customizing your car’s parts, customizing your gadgets. There are so many ways to make each experience unique. Each of these different customizations changes what cards you have at your disposal to use in battles. Some cards allow you to move, shift gears, shoot guns, and some even let you bash into other cars. The amount of cards you play is tied into your car’s maintenance, which acts as your mana pool. But, to make things more interesting, lowering your maintenance too much can cause you to skid out, making your car do some random movements or attacks as you regain control. Each part also has other modifiers on them. For example, an upgraded engine that gives you ten more health.

You progress through the game on a map similar to other rogue likes, choosing one branching path that eventually leads to your final destination. Along the way you’ll come across random encounters, battles, and shops, each adding another layer to dynamic and ever changing gameplay. The shops are where you can buy part upgrades with the currency you’ve collected, or buy gadgets, passives that provide extreme benefits to your battles.

Death Roads Tournament’s Steam page is currently live and is purchasable in early access.