Monster Train - Review

The Hellish deckbuilding roguelike all-aboard the Hell Train card game is back once again on a whole new system. Making the leap to modern console, PlayStation 5 players will now get to try their hand at this time-eating card game.

Monster Train First Class brings the entirety of the Monster Train and it’s DLC The Last Divinity to PlayStation 5. Though it has taken a bit longer to arrive, the final stop is here. For those who’ve been hesitant to pick up the game this brings another way of playing the well-received and fan-loved title.

Monster Train is a game that I have looked at and had on my Steam wishlist for years. Being a fan of the roguelike genre, I found myself somewhat disillusioned by the idea of another deck building card game style roguelike, in a period of time where there were so many other games of that style taking charge. Whilst this hasn’t changed, one thing that has remained pretty impressively true is that if your game isn’t as good as Slay the Spire and Monster Train, you’ll likely need to back to the drawing board.

Monster Train is incredibly simple in its setup. You have a train that is ploughing through Hell, with the Pyre on said train in an attempt to reignite the flames of Hell and melt the ice. Hell having literally frozen over in this case. With the assistance of six different clans (picking one major and one minor clan at the start of each run) you build up your deck and empower your cards, your magic and sometimes even the Pyre itself. Through careful and tactical play you’ll fight your way through a series of battles and in the end succeed in setting Hell on fire again.

The simplicity of Monster Train, whilst allowing for endless levels of diversity in runs is what makes it stand out in a genre that is somewhat bloated. A good run will generally only take half hour or so, and the rapidity in which you can jump into a new run after a loss or win makes streaking together attempts incredibly simple. Monster Train cuts away the usual fluff that can make Roguelike games feel a bit too excessive and punishing for losing, whilst streamlining the deckbuilding in a way that makes most combinations and choices feel impactful and useful. There are definitely combinations that are significantly stronger than others, but you are far less often punished for playing a style that feels more comfortable.

The game runs and looks incredible on the PlayStation 5. The UI is a little strange, in that it feels like the bottom of the screen is a little bit too zoomed in. Sometimes when hovering on a card it feels like the important values of their health and strength are almost being cut-off by the bottom edge of the screen. Realistically, playing on PlayStation 5 is going to be a far larger screen on average than most people playing on Switch or PC will have done previously. It is strange as a result that the UI hasn’t been somewhat updated just a little to fit a TV screen just a little better. Adding an outer border edge to the UI would’ve been an easy fix, and made the game feel a little less mobile game port than it does. Which is probably why the game was ported to iOS before the PS5, as the UI lends itself better to that.

However, the game plays very well with controller. The controls are logical, the indicators are easily visible, and the layout feels intuitive. There was almost no learning curve to speak of in getting familiar with the controls which is incredibly welcoming for this style of game. As a result all the learning curve difficult comes with getting familiar with the way different cards interact with each other, the different mechanics from the cards and in turn the way to approach each type of mini-boss and major boss in your runs.

The game coming packaged with the DLC is a good choice, but the best decision was giving the option of being able to turn the DLC off from the main menu of the game. The DLC adds a significant increase in difficulty from after your first successful completion of the game, and for a first-time player or those who are not as familiar with this style of games, being able to turn the DLC off until you get a firm grasp on the game is a great choice. Or at least until you’ve unlocked the base five clans. It is a bit of a trade-off however, as the other additions from the DLC, like new events, new mutators and new rare cards could be handy in learning and progressing the game. I left the DLC turned on myself but could see the shift in difficulty as a result.

For those who already own Monster Train, unfortunately besides maybe giving you the option of being able to sit on the couch to play as opposed to sitting at your computer, there’s no reason for you to pick the game up again. Trophy hunting might lure some players as there is a bit of an obsession with the platinum trophy that is somewhat lacking with steam achievement hunting. Other than that, there isn’t anything extra or new here to really justify another purchase of the title. That’s not uncommon of course, but with how long Monster Train has been out, I don’t know how many people this version of the game will truly be reaching. Making a cleaner UI and possibly upgraded visuals may have been enough alongside the trophy hunting to justify the additional purchase.

For those who hadn’t picked up the DLC that may be another way to justify the purchase. Monster Train First Class for PlayStation 5 is a significantly cheaper way of getting the game. Only costing $1 more than the base game does on Steam (AUD/Australian prices). A little bit expensive as a DLC pickup alone, the more cost-effective way of getting the full package might be enough for new players in the very least. I do think UI and further visual upgrades would have gone a long way, however.

Monster Train has finally reached its final stop, and now there is no excuse for anyone not to have a play with it. A strong roguelike game, one that continues to have people coming back to it over and over and leaves its mark on the entirety of the deck building genre. Easy to pick up, and surprisingly slick to control on console, if you’ve been cautious or unsure about picking the game up, this is your sign to buy your ticket to ride.

The Score

8.0

Review code provided by Good Shepherd Entertainment

The Pros

Controls very well on controller

Easy to jump right into the game

Inclusion of the DLC makes it the only version to consider

The Cons

No UI upgrade makes it look strange on TV

Nothing to justify current players to buy it again

No in-game explanation of the DLC changes