I really wish more games in this genre existed; that of single-player deckbuilders with an adventure and stories and growing a collection. The Pokemon TCG on Game Boy, Library of Ruina, and a bit of Inscryption just don't cut it, y'know?

That's why I was excited when I discovered Cardaire. It was exactly what I was looking for, though now that I'm done with it I wish there was more. The game's a short experience, maybe 5-7 hours with extra time being added for completing the card collection. Yet those 5-7 hours are filled with good music, witty humor that parodies aspects of card games/TCG players without ever feeling above them, and an interesting system to explore the game's world.

That last point is worth expanding on. Throughout your adventure you'll obtain specific cards, dubbed "Power Cards", which function in the card game as well as in the overworld: fishing rods, a dash function, and so on. It's a cool way to tie in both gameplay portions of Cardaire.

The card game itself is alright. It's a good foundation for expanding upon, kind of like early sets of Yu-Gi-Oh or Pokemon I suppose. Discarding cards to build Energy is a neat resource mechanic. You're not gonna discover some absurd 3-card combos or 1-turn wins (at least I didn't), but there are enough options to build a variety of decks. Mine personally was about enhancing my creatures and debuffing the opponents'.

That said, the AI is rarely much of a challenge. I've seen the opponent cast a removal spell (Torment) when my board was empty on several occasions just because they had the resources to spare, and it isn't like they were effectively discarding it to dig up later. You're not going to struggle to beat the main game.

Ah, one last thing. While a keyboard/controller works for the majority of inputs, you'll need a mouse for deckbuilding and dueling. Not a gripe, just a heads up.

Overall, while I do think Cardaire is a fun experience, I believe it is the aspects surrounding the card game that are truly charming, rather than the card game itself.