Culdcept: The First Saturn Tribute is a modern port of the original trading card game meets board game that started it all. Rather than being a remake, it stays true to the original while also providing the option to rewind time or create save states to fall back on if things go wrong. Outside of this, little has been done to improve upon this classic, which can feel a bit dated by today's standards.
Putting this aside, however, Culdcept remains a unique series to this day. While newcomers have "better" options to choose from as a starting point, having more Culdcept to play is never a bad thing.
The Rules and General Gameplay:
Being the first entry in the series, Culdcept The First is a bit more simplified than its successors, but that doesn't mean it lacks depth. In fact, this is a series that players can easily invest hundreds of hours into, with over 300 cards to collect and support for up to four-player local multiplayer. As a board game, it is completely designed around the idea of playing against others, but it also offers a single-player story mode and a free-play mode against the CPU. It is in this free-play mode where players will spend most of their time, as the story mode itself is quite short. However, with matches sometimes lasting well over an hour, it can be quite the time sink—especially if things do not go your way.
The basic rules of Culdcept are very simple, but there is plenty to keep track of and master. Each match begins on one of the many unique boards featured in the game, which are made up of multiple paths with different "elemental" panels to land on. At the beginning of each turn, players draw a card from their deck and then have the option to either roll the dice or use an item card if one is available. Using cards in general will cost "Magic" points (known as G), with the ultimate goal of collecting a set amount of G to win the game. Usable G is counted separately from your overall G-point value, however, and players can increase their overall net worth by landing on panels and placing monster cards down to control them—a concept that is very familiar to those who play popular board games such as Monopoly. Players who subsequently land on your monster will have to either pay a fee or face the monster in battle, which then moves the game into the combat phase.
In combat, both monster cards have a health and attack value, and they get to attack only once (assuming the defending monster survives). Players can use item cards to buff a monster's stats, but this depends entirely on what is currently held in your hand and whether you have the G to afford it. Some cards also have special effects attached to them, such as the ability to stun the opponent, so there is a bit more strategy to choosing a monster than simply "picking what is stronger." Thankfully, the game displays icons prior to the fight to let you know how it expects the battle to play out. However, just because it tells you a fight is a losing situation doesn't mean it always is. It all comes down to how your deck is built, but that isn't something you'll be in control of until after you've played at least a few rounds.
Outside of battle, back on the board, the ultimate goal is to control as many spaces as possible and pass through specific checkpoints before returning to the home "castle" space. Branching paths let players choose the direction they wish to travel, but simply looping around the same locations on the board without passing these key points will get you nowhere. Eventually, you will run out of G, and the only way to get more is to either hope an opponent pays you a fee or to pass by home and cash in your bonus points.
In addition to simply placing monsters, bonuses are applied for placing an elemental monster on its corresponding elemental space, and placing multiple monsters within the same "area" creates chain combos. Players can also increase the value of each space by paying a fee, but that requires landing on specific points on the map, such as the home castle itself. There are also options to change the elemental type of the panels or even swap out the monsters. Smart players can use this feature to their advantage to create massive, high-value chains, which will spell doom for other players if they land on one of those spaces. On the flip side, losing such a bonus can mark the end for you as well, making it a high-risk, high-reward strategy.
Finally, once one of the players' total G hits the win requirement, it becomes a race to the finish where anything goes. It is during these moments where the gameplay becomes tense, and you never truly know if you are in the clear until the victory screen appears. All it takes is for another player to land on the wrong space, take out your highest-scoring monster, and grab all of the G for themselves—something that personally happened to me when I was only a few spaces away from the goal. Though I guess it makes up for the times I've done it to others...
Building a Deck:
The final aspect of Culdcept is deck building—known as "Books" within this world.
Every player is able to create multiple custom decks, all of which must have exactly 50 cards. These cards are divided into monster cards used to capture land and fight others, item cards that support them during fights, and spell cards that provide additional effects or perks outside of battle. The idea is to carefully plan what type of deck you want to create and choose cards that complement each other. Rather than being a jack-of-all-trades, players can focus on one or two specific elements and bring item or spell cards along that further support them or cover their weaknesses. This part of the game is completely up to the player to discover, and trial and error is ultimately key. Of course, you need an understanding of how the game is played as well, but considering you unlock extra cards simply by playing matches, most players should have the gist of it down before they even begin customizing.
The Assist Features:
If you're someone who can't stand to see an hour of your hard work get thrown away just because of an unlucky dice roll, First Saturn does include two assist options that can be used to help clear the game.
The first is a simple save state mechanic, which lets you make bookmarks that can be reloaded at any time. Save before a dice roll, and if you don't like the result? Reload the save and try again. Is it the enemy's turn now, and you're afraid they'll land on one of your spaces and take it? Save before they roll, then keep reloading until their luck favors you instead. Sure, it is technically cheating, but the option is there.
The second option allows players to simply restart from previous turns without having to redo an entire match. If you know something went wrong during a specific moment in the match, you can just turn the clock back to that time and keep playing like normal. Sure, you'll lose progress, but maybe avoiding that single fatal mistake is all you need to achieve victory. Again, this isn't how the game was meant to be played, but it can be useful for new players who are still getting used to the mechanics.
Should you play it?
Culdcept: The First Saturn Tribute is a port of the original Culdcept, and with that comes a lot of the same quirks. The opening cutscenes feature Japanese text paired with a low-volume English voiceover that is hard to hear, the menus are a bit archaic, the UI takes some time to get used to, and the game lacks modern features such as widescreen support or online multiplayer. In addition, being the first title in the series makes it a much more basic version of Culdcept, and it unfortunately released not long after the newest entry, Culdcept BEGINS (which we previously reviewed). In most cases, players should probably stick to BEGINS—or even start there if this is their first go-around with Culdcept—but The First Saturn Tribute is still very fun. The mixture of board game and trading card game elements is addicting, making it an easy title to lose yourself in. However, the core issue is that this modern port doesn't really offer anything extra outside of the classic 2D art style and highly detailed cards. Unless you are nostalgic for the original or simply want another version of Culdcept to play, there isn't much reason to choose it over the alternatives.
Overall, Culdcept: The First Saturn Tribute is an okay port of the classic that started it all. While Culdcept itself is a blast to play, the lack of modern features like online play is disappointing, and nothing has been done to address the issues that plagued the original release. Those looking for more Culdcept to play might want to consider picking it up, but everyone else would be better off playing a different entry in the series instead.
VERDICT: Maybe
Reviewed on PlayStation 5
Review Copy was Provided
Available On: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC
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