Breachway Early Access Review: A Stellar New Frontier in Roguelite Deckbuilding

There’s a new Roguelite Deckbuilder on the block - and while that could be said most given weeks - this is one I’m very excited about. Breachway is the lovechild of Slay the Spire and Faster Than Light - you’ll chart a course through space, making friends, enemies, and leaving a trail of spaceship wreckage in your wake. 

It's easy on the eyes, has bags of character - but what really drew me in is the way this steps outside the box with its mechanics. It takes the genre as a reference point, and paints something abstract. Deckbuilding, energy management, combat - even map movement - everything is outside what you’d usually expect. 

For card crunchers, spell slingers, and anyone who just likes big flashy explosions, this is one you should have your eye on. So with no messing around, let's dive into the nitty gritty of Breachway.

Deckbuilding with Depth

This is your ship. There are many others like it - but this one is yours. You’ll upgrade it with new weapons, utilities, defences, and this forms the basis of your deck. Unlike others in the genre, you don’t have a master collection which you add cards to. Each hardpoint has its own set of cards - and they all get shuffled together for a fight. 

When it comes to improving your deck, you pick a card for a hardpoint. This means you’ll always have options, and you can either go all in on a certain gameplan, or pick and choose between hardpoints and build something balanced. 

But you’re not the only one with fancy gizmos. Every enemy you come across will have their own weapons and gadgets. Just like your equipment, they each have strengths, weaknesses and strategies.

I really like the way this approaches combat. There’s a real sense of strategy to it. You can, by all means, simply unload ordnance upon your foe and rush them down. But you can also aim for individual pieces of tech. Knock out their weapons so they can’t fire back, or take out their shield generators to set them on the backfoot. 

It’s methodical, and slower than other deck builders. You’re trying to think a few moves ahead, neutralising hardpoints at perfect moments and managing your resources. You don’t have a one-size-fits-all energy count. There are three types, and cards will need a mix of this or that. At any point though, you can rebalance your energy generation. You can take a balanced approach, and then pump up your attack energy to go in for the kill. 

There’s a trick or two to learn with deck management also. Every card has a cooldown. You’ll fill your hand each turn as long as there are cards available. Sometimes you’ll opt to discard something without playing it - putting it on cooldown, but ensuring you constantly have a steady flow of cards available each turn. 

From Modest Beginnings to Galactic Power

So combat feels tactical, and as you chart your way across the sector you’re aiming to increase your capabilities - and give yourself more options. You can purchase & replace weapons at space stations, and discovering a combination that synergises can make or break a run. 

You’ve got a lot of freedom when it comes moving across the map. You can go off the beaten track here and there to hit extra nodes, and along the way you’ll encounter factions. You start with a base standing with them, and your actions, course and decisions will earn you their favour, or wrath.

Also along for the ride are your crew members - and they can influence the outcome of events, while also providing some powerful combat abilities. Assuming you’re keeping their morale high. You’re a captain, not a slavedriver. Keep your crew happy. 

So little by little you’re getting stronger. You’re unlocking new hard points, attaching upgrades to different equipment, and investing in your ship. You can increase your energy generation, attach passive bonuses, and strengthen or pivot your gameplan. And though you start humble, there are several different playstyles for you to grow into. 

Mastering a Growing Arsenal

Starting out, your options are limited. You can use pinpoint attacks to knock out hardpoints, or you can use a flak cannon - shredding armour and bullying your opponent. As you progress, new options will open up - allowing for some interesting avenues of play. Weapons that overheat opponents and apply damage over time. Missiles that fire off and hit after a delay. Ion cannons that neutralise shields and temporarily disable an enemy's equipment.

My personal favourite was the Lancer ship - which employs a railgun to knock out hardpoints - but it has no shields. Instead you’re hacking the opposing ship, disabling weapons just before they fire, rerouting their missiles back towards them and generally setting the tempo for the battle. It felt like I was playing a blue deck in Magic: The Gathering, countering moves and making opportune strikes to whittle down an enemy. A playstyle I rarely see in a deck builder - but one that’s great fun if you’re a toxic MTG player like myself. 

Despite starting out with limited tools, there are some really fun avenues to go down. Now, I didn’t feel like there was any game breaking wombo-combos, and most battles felt tight. Just when you feel like you’re in a good place, the tides can turn and you can get obliterated. Which I like. As I said - former Magic player - it goes without saying that I’m also a bit of a masochist. 

Smart Systems, Big Payoffs

There’s a lot about Breachway that I’m on board with. There aren’t a million systems. They’re simple to get a basic understanding of - but there’s a ton of depth squirrelled away. You can’t just chuck out cards and hope for the best - you really have to be thinking a few moves ahead, focusing on your opponents intentions just as much as your own. 

The energy management, deck building and card-cycling is also very novel, and it's a system that works really well. Every little action has an effect, and you can find yourself cursing a-few-turns-ago you for cycling a shield card too late.

The node charting in the map is interesting. You can take longer routes here and there and play a risk vs reward gambit - taking extra fights. Balancing reputation between different factions is also a unique idea, however I mostly found myself fighting any and everyone I could. Gotta get those combat rewards, you know.

It’s a tight package, and while it may not have endless options like other deck builders - there are some really fun play styles you can adopt. As I said, I loved the hacking mechanic, but you might be more drawn to the flak weapons, the laser cutters, the ion cannons - all of them function differently, and have their place. 

Unfinished but Full of Potential

Now there are a few issues to address. This is in Early Access so there’s some bugs and problems that you will probably come across. There’s also a chunk of content missing, and areas which need more attention. The devs have stated that there will be other layers of depth added  - such as levelling up your crew members. Extra avenues of progression are always nice.

Some of the game systems and keywords could be explained better, and I did have issues with tooltips here and there - those of you who’ve read my other reviews or watched my  videos know how strongly I feel about tooltips. But those are all areas I expect to be fixed as the game develops further.

There is something to be said about meta-progression. I knew I was seeing new items pop up during runs, and there are a few little starting bonuses to unlock here and there - but I felt a little bit in the dark. If there are things being unlocked, it’d be good to know what and when, so you’ve got something to beeline for and experiment with in the next run. 

Final Thoughts

But all in all - Breachway does feel like a breath of fresh air in a genre that has been rehashing the same ideas for a few years now. It’s got a ton of character, the visuals and effects are fantastic - and the audio design is really great too. I am a huge fan of the music - it takes a synthwave approach that matches the vibe perfectly.

There are some great systems with layers of depth hidden between them, and it's something I think will appeal to those who like a more methodical, slightly slower card game experience. There’s a good number of diverse build options already there - and I’d expect that to expand every further during the Early Access period. 

And with that, there is the main drawback - it isn’t finished. Honestly, a deck-builder doesn’t suffer a huge sting from being in early access - and most of the ones I’ve played have been through this same state - but it’s worth remembering. There will be changes, there will be additions, the game isn’t finished. Bugs and balance problems are to be expected - although I didn’t come across too many of them, which was nice. Overall, this is a really solid title - and a step in a new direction for the genre.