Explore a sunless medieval world in puzzle roguelike Kaamos.

Kaamos from Pepperbox Studios and indie.io is an atmospheric, lo-fi puzzle roguelike that takes place in a ruined world. I’ve played several games in this vein, where turn-based battles are fought on match-3 boards, and this is one of the most clever iterations I’ve seen on this gameplay mechanic.

The sun has disappeared, and the world is going mad. You venture out of your home to discover why darkness has descended. Every meeting with other survivors will result in a duel to the death. The story is sparse.

You pick a class for your character and set off on the journey. Only one is available initially, but more will unlock as you play. Kaamos is a true roguelike; nothing else will carry over between playthroughs besides the classes.

Each battle is a turn-based duel. On your turn, you slide a looping column or row on a board of tiles to create matches of three or more icons, not necessarily in a line; as long as the icons are touching, oddly shaped groups will work. Icons represent your action on your turn: swords are attacks, shields are defense, etc. You’re not limited to a single action because you can make multiple matched groups simultaneously. You must carefully decide what matches you will go for based on the state of the battle and the information the game gives you about your opponent’s next action.

Your character’s stats determine the number of each type of tile that will appear on the board. Equipment you find, such as weapons, armor, and rings, change your tile distribution and force you to consider new tactics. For example, you can build your character to rely more on dodges than shielded defense. The game includes over 180 items, so there are many options. This is what sets the game’s matching tile battle system apart. Your board will evolve as you grow during your journey. The only downside is that you can’t carry equipment aside from what you’re wearing, so if you make a bad choice on what to keep and then move on, you can ruin your chances of survival on your run.

The game’s graphics are simple 8-bit pixel art over a black backdrop. Every sprite is made up of two colors and black, with no shading or any further detail. Combat animations are reminiscent of Fire Emblem, with each character attacking on its turn as they face each other. Kaamos does a great job of creating an atmosphere with its sparse pixel graphics. The vibe of bleak desolation comes through, perhaps thanks to the black backgrounds and faceless characters.

Kaamos is a great bite-sized game that offers a lot of complexity in its deceptively simple match-3 gameplay. It hasn’t yet been released, but you can try the demo version on Steam now.

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Overall Score: 7/10

Played on: Steam Deck