UNDERBOARD

Hubert Spala
Mar 4
5 min read

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybNyAk3-o-8

Auto Battlers are strange. For the longest time, I couldn't understand the appeal. What do you mean, the gameplay itself? I am sorry, but I am into gaming for the goddamn experience of controlling my fellas! I want to see them do what I tell'em without complaints, gosh. But then, as often is the case, once I tried them out I got that beautiful moment of dawning understanding. Dear Gods, I get it. Of course, like with any genre, the games will differ from each other to a staggering degree thanks to a variety of mechanics, but the core lies in combating the mischievous whims of Lady Fortune. You need to understand what the wacky pawns on the board will do, predict their coded behavior, and use the systems to skew luck towards your will.

I think UNDERBOARD is a perfect example of that line walk being perfectly executed. Yes, there is the merciless touch of the RNG screwing you over. Yeah, you will feel a gnash of frustration when the game doesn't let you cook. But ultimately, the game offers just enough tools to combat the luck of the draw and let you prep some delightful combos. It is an auto battler excellence, a game that looks simple and luck-driven on the surface but has quite a complex engine churning under the hood.

Okay, let's roll it back a little. It starts with a bit of a JUMANJI'esque opening. You are trapped in the cruel game called the, you guessed it, UNDERBOARD. Souls of many others are bound there, forever, turning into monsters as their feeble attempts to escape fail. But what is a nasty game to the indomitable human spirit! And so, you'll embark on a repeating journey of trial and error, doing your best to find a way to overcome tough challenges and frankly unfair bosses. If you're expecting a light game that merely tickle your soles with a bit of challenge, well... You might not be ready for this one. Because this one is more than happy to strangle your hopes and crush you like a gnat. Back to the drawing board. Back to reading, learning, and slowly figuring out the myriad of systems skulking below the surface.

It might look chaotic, at first, but once you get what each unit does, and utilize pauses to check where your active spells can be applied best, it gets pretty controllable!

This is where UNDERBOARD really shines, showing off its best traits. The game has simple controls and an even simpler core loop. Pick your pawns, equip them with stuff, and cast some spells. That's it. You have, as is the genre baseline, relatively little control once the battle commences. All your hard work must happen in the decision-making between encounters. What to pick. Who to equip. Which pawn should be prioritized for the powerful level-ups. How to tackle exploration to maximize gains. What spells cover your weaknesses.

And there is a lot to learn. It is a bit of a blessing and a curse that the dev decided to regale the players with every single tidbit of info. When you take a look at each character sheet, you can easily be intimidated by the numbers and terms. Ranges, multipliers, energy charges, reserves, combos, you name it. Understanding how these numbers and terms interact is step one in overcoming the game challenges. Let me toss you a couple of examples.

For a start, you might have a notion that a support unit with its pathetic healing that occurs every 10 seconds is a waste of a slot. Such slow trigger, such paltry healing. Yuck. But then, your noggin activates. What if I get traits that start them off with some energy? Kit them out with items that improve Skill Power, add Skill Combo. Give them some charges. Maybe that trait to increase energy pulse on a fast attacker, too. Suddenly, your useless healer spams a hefty spell every few moments, keeping your frontliners alive way past their due date.

Or how about a melee tank that you beef up with enough block chance and passive HP regen that they are virtually unkillable? Now if their active skill is a taunt, you can keep multiple monsters occupied for the majority of the battle without risking your squishier backliners. Or a mighty Witch Doctor - fragile, but with items and traits that give him astonishing range and a skill that poisons every enemy in that range on trigger? And this is of course just the tip of the iceberg.

Sometimes getting a subpar fighter for your team that levels up your traits is worth more than getting a better pawn on the board. The passives are powerful.

I didn't finish the game just yet, but I blasted my way through two zones on many runs. Plenty of failures, yes, but the wins feel so good. When everything clicks, interlocks, and cascades into a wave of devastation. When even elite enemies melt in a moment under your champions going off. It is very much achievable, but do not expect it to happen without some cerebral investment on your end. There is really no way to Luck Force yourself through this game if you do not know what you're doing.

But what about that RNG I mentioned? The cursed misfortune of drawing stuff that doesn't gel with your idea of a build? Well... Yes, to address this slippery elephant in the room, there is no way to mitigate all the randomness. There will always be a modicum of luck to avoid hard struggles. But there are plenty of options to work around that issue. First, the meta progression. Each time you perform a particular feat, you unlock a Mastery, which you can then equip at the start of the run to modify it. These give you powerful passive bonuses or more control over traits that will appear in a run, helping you curate a plan before you even press start. Then there are Reroll Currencies. Doing harder combat encounters can reward you with special tokens you can use to change traits of your pawns or reroll rewards for a chance of much better ones. These tokens tend to be pretty damn generous, really opening up proper build options. Don't ever be shy about burning through them.

Itemization is key! Merging powerful items to free slots and further empower your star player can turn the tide of combat with powerful combos and interactions.

Especially since the Traits system is the key to unlocking great power for your team. Even a single level that secures a set of fresh buffs can completely change your combat prowess. For example, leveling up a trait that grants your team 2 Barriers each time they trigger their skill literally saved a struggling run for me, giving my guys a lot of staying power. Juggling and fishing for traits is a crucial skill, too. It is often better to take a subpar champ on the team simply because they can unlock extra traits for your composition.

So yeah, mechanically speaking, UNDERBOARD is extremely well cooked. As your understanding grows and you start crafting your fantastically powerful pawns, the easier the game will get. And all that is wrapped in a great art style - cartoony, but grim. Muted, yet somehow still vivid enough to keep things fun. And the music! It never gets old; it's a banger after banger. Bouncy, oozy, with great transitions between moments of peace and combat thrill. Great stuff.

UNDERBOARD is great. Even if you are not a fan of auto battlers, I think this one might be a stellar introduction to the genre. Yeah, it is likely a bit more on the challenging side, and I can see some players bouncing off when they get smashed to bits on the first boss after multiple runs... But if you persevere, if you give it your attention and learn the fiddly bits under the hood, the game will reward your effort with the glory of victory. And as with other demanding games, that feels so very good. Truly, it is the Dark Sou-- gets shot and dragged away.