Premature Evaluation is the weekly column in which Steve Hogarty explores the wilds of early access. This week, he’s shuffling cards in the inky void of space in For The Warp.
Developer: Massive Galaxy Studios
Publisher: Massive Galaxy Studios
Release: Out now
On: Windows
From: Steam
For: £11.99, $15, €13.50
Early access deck builder For The Warp doesn’t so much wear its FTL influences on its sleeve, as it does creep into FTL’s bedroom when it’s out to try on FTL’s lipstick and stare dead-eyed into a vanity mirror while muttering “I’m a very pretty spacefaring roguelike, yes I am”. If FTL ever goes missing while out for a late night jog, odds are that For The Warp has it trapped at the bottom of a big hole and is forcing it to moisturise. There is imitation, and then there is wearing the skin of the game you love and slow-dancing alone in your basement illuminated only by a low-hanging, buzzing incandescent bulb.