I asked to play this game because I am a huge fan of The Witcher series. Well, that is not entirely true. I have never actually played the video games myself. However, I really liked the idea of the card game inside those games. My sister is a big fan of The Witcher, so I thought it would be a fun way for us to play together and talk about it. This allowed me to review the game from two different points of view: hers as a fan, and mine as someone completely new to the world.
Gwent: The Legendary Card Game is a card game designed for two players, though there are options for more people to play. It is based on the card game found inside the popular Witcher video game series. A typical game takes about 20 minutes to finish, which makes it a quick and engaging activity.
How the Game Works
A standard game of Gwent involves two players competing against each other. First, each player must choose a faction and a leader card. The leader card has a special ability that can change the course of the game. After choosing a leader, players build a deck using cards from that specific faction, or they can use a pre-made deck provided with the game. A normal deck has about thirty cards, though it can have more. Every faction has its own unique style of play, but there is some overlap in the types of cards available.
Once the decks are ready, players draw ten cards to hold in their hand. They have the option to redraw up to two cards if they are not happy with their initial draw. These ten cards are all the player will have for the entire match, so they must use them wisely. Some special abilities in the game do allow for extra cards to be drawn or played later.
During a player’s turn, they have three choices: play a card from their hand, use their leader’s special ability (which can usually only be done once per game), or pass. If a player passes, they stop playing cards for that round, but the opponent can continue to play if they want. Cards are placed on one of three rows on the board, depending on the card type. Each card has a strength value listed on it. The goal is to have a higher total strength than your opponent when the round ends. Some cards also have special effects that can help you or hurt your opponent. The game continues until one player has lost two rounds, at which point the other player wins immediately.
Playing the Game
The basic idea is simple: try to have the highest value on your side of the board. However, the real heart of the game is managing your limited hand of ten cards to survive two or three rounds. This creates a lot of tension. You have to decide carefully what to play, when to play it, and when to pass. It also allows for some bluffing, which adds to the excitement.
As someone who has never played the video game, I have good news: you do not need to know the video game to enjoy this. However, if you are a fan, you might understand the rules a bit faster. The rules are not complicated, but the rulebook is a little short on details. The writers might have assumed everyone already knew how to play from the video game, or they wanted to keep it simple for casual players. The information is there, but it could have been clearer with some examples of how to play.
For those who have played Gwent in the video game, this will feel very familiar. Being a fan of The Witcher will likely make you enjoy this even more. My sister and her boyfriend liked it more than I did because they knew the background stories. From what I understand, this version is almost exactly the same as the video game version. The main difference is that you have to keep score yourself instead of having a computer do it, so there is a little more work involved. The game also comes with a separate booklet for other modes, like tournament rules for building decks (which help make the game fair) and a way to play with more than two people or even solo.
A common topic for games like this is balance. On the surface, some factions feel stronger than others. Factions that have many cards to draw through the deck and add more cards to the board can be very powerful. However, it is possible we just did not see the best ways to counter them. Usually, games are more balanced than they seem at first; it just takes time to learn the strategies. Maybe that is the case here, though I am not completely convinced yet.
What I really like about this game is the ten-card hand limit. It forces you to pace yourself. The decision of when to pass and save your cards for a future round, or when to push your advantage, really elevates the experience. True, there is some luck in the cards you draw. There were games where I felt the winner was decided from the start based on their hand. But other games felt very close and uncertain right up to the end. Generally, there is a good amount of tension and tough decision-making involved.
Final Thoughts
Gwent: The Legendary Card Game is a bit luck-based, and some factions felt more powerful than others. Despite that, I had a lot of fun playing it. I keep thinking about that push and pull of pacing your cards; I loved that part of the game! Each match is so short that a bit of imbalance usually does not bother me much. It just makes you want to reset the board and play again immediately.
If you are a fan of The Witcher, and especially if you enjoy playing Gwent inside the video games, then this is definitely a good fit for you. If you want a card game that is not too complicated but still has great tension, and you do not mind a little luck or some very unique artwork, then this is also for you! However, if you are looking for a huge variety of cards, deep complexity, and tons of different combos to discover, you might want to pass on this one.
