Game: Deadman's Cross

Collectible Card Games can be tough to balance, mechanically. If things are too easy, players will get bored. If it takes too long to accomplish goals or build up a formidable deck, they'll get frustrated. Deadman's Cross seems to be trying to hit that sweet spot somewhere in the middle, but ultimately it misses the mark. And in many ways, it's basically just Guardian Cross with zombies.You assume the role of a run-of-the-mill survivor during the zombie apocalypse - one who follows the government's instructions of staying indoors a little too closely. After three months of isolation (three months!), you finally decide to step outside. Of course the world is a wreck. Zombies, referred to as "Deadmen," are roaming around everywhere and society pretty much doesn't exist anymore. At least not in the same way that it used to. The only way to survive in this world is to pick up a gun and start blasting… and then recruit the defeated Deadmen as your own personal army. I swear I'm not making this up."Your time playing Deadman's Cross will mostly be spent by completing jobs in order to progress and earn special items. Jobs are mostly split between wandering through hallways, hunting Deadmen to add to your collection, and having card duels with anything that moves. There's also an arena where you can indirectly battle against other players' Deadmen in an attempt to earn even more fantastic prizes.Deadman's Cross is, as I've mentioned, incredibly similar to Square Enix's previously released Guardian Cross, but many of those similarities are actually its biggest strengths. Managing your horde is pretty simple and painless. You can feed unneeded Deadmen to more powerful ones in order to level them up, and it doesn't take long before you'll have a sizable force at your disposal.