We've seen a lot of 16 and 32-bit RPG throwbacks over the years, but few games have tried to evoke the 8-bit pixel art style with an RPG framework. Dream Tactics aims to do that with a few twists thrown into the mix. Spectra's first release is a memorable one and manages to blend a few different kinds of gameplay ideas together into a fun adventure so far -- with sharp writing across the board that keeps the non-battle portions of things entertaining. Deckbuilders have skyrocketed in popularity since Slay the Spire, but we haven't seen anything take that kind of gameplay and merge it into a turn-based RPG quite like this before.

Dream Tactics has the player control their character around the overworld where they can engage in banter with their partner or go around exploring. Exploration is done in real-time alongside a stick bonk to do things like smash open barrels and chests to get items and find goodies. These can give you a boost in battle and get new cards to add to the deck. The ability to have some real-time activities helps keep things interesting when compared to a lot of turn-based games and the pacing is brisk overall.

The deckbuilding mechanics are intuitive with an on-screen indicator showing effects and each party member excelling at different things. One is better at ranged attacks while the other is better at close-up battles. Having range on your side can come in handy if you're low on HP and need to do whatever you can to avoid a back and forth exchange. Going gung-ho with close-range attacks, however, can take a foe out faster and give your team an edge. Dream Tactics does a lot to keep the combat fresh and if you get dealt what you feel is a bad hand, you can redraw a single card for that turn.

This is huge because unlike Slay the Spire, which can easily make players feel trapped with its set decks, you have a lot of freedom here. As long as you have items to burn, you can redraw until you get a good card and there's a risk/reward factor in play. If you exhaust your resources before a tough battle, there's a risk of not being able to redraw a card when you truly need it. I found that it's better to sacrifice a turn and just deal with a bad hand in situations like this to ensure that while you may take short-term damage, you can give up that character's turn to better-plan for the future.

The amount of strategy here is impressive for a game with an 8-bit visual style and it's a super-colorful experience as well. The bold colors make the menus easy to navigate and this is the first RPG I've seen that offers up a zoomed-in view for monitor or portable view or a more zoomed-out view for TV playback. It's an interesting setup and something that allows Dream Tactics to work as both a great game on a monitor or a TV viewed from further away. The work in that regard has paid off nicely since it looks good both on a monitor and on the Steam Deck, where it truly shines.

This kind of game is perfect for long sessions, but because you can save after every battle, you can just play it for a fifteen minute stretch and get a battle or two done there alongside funny banter. It allows for both regular button controls and touchscreen on the Steam Deck, with directional attacks being based on wherever you press on the screen in relation to your character -- and it works shockingly well for something that's probably just an afterthought in a demo build. It's a handy way to deal damage to the environment and a time-saver as well.

Dream Tactics has an incredible foundation to build upon and every part of the package has a high degree of polish already -- including the sound design. Each item that gets hit on the overworld has its own sound and the light, cheery music is fun. The little chatter dialogue boxes are amusing and keep the light-hearted vibe going across the board. The early demo showcases a game that is a must-play for fans of deckbuilders, while being approachable enough to be a gateway game for the genre as well.

The quality-of-life improvement just from having the ability to redraw your deck is a game-changer and something that needs to be standardized. It's clear that the team at Spectra has put a lot of care into the game even at a pre-release stage, and it should be an easy game to fully recommend when it's released. There isn't a set date in stone for that, but you can wishlist the game now on Steam and it does play perfectly on the Steam Deck already.