Anode Heart: Layer Null

I really wanted to like this game. I love the idea of a 3d world focused on card battles. A long form deck builder. There are SO few of those and we need more. Because the only one out right now - this game, ♥♥♥♥♥♥' sucks. This game is only positively rated because this is the only way to experience a modern long form deck builder. The graphics are nice. The controls are awful on gamepad. Especially the steam deck - the on-screen cursor is basically useless But the real problem is the balance. Not just in the game - which is also bad. Bosses just flat out cheat. Like, the game calls it cheating. Bosses get special effects that benefit them. That's kind of whatever, normal game ♥♥♥♥. But the card balance is ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ atrocious. There are mandatory cards that you HAVE to use. All the bosses use them because they're flat out overpowered - like Card Drive. It throws a card from your discard back into your deck and you draw 2 cards. Pot of Greed on crack cocaine. If you don't waste 4 slots on that card, you're at a disadvantage. Homogenization is always boring. And you HAVE to use those cards, because this is a game of snowball. The winner just keeps winning. If your field gets wiped…

i uninstalled it twice before the third time the rules of the game clicked with me. then it sneakily ate a lot of my time. a lot of it was attempting to bruteforce one battle or another with a bad deck and seeing odds, adjusting a few cards at a time. fun to field test decks. some parts of the game walled me pretty hard. there's a few qol things that could be improved in terms of sorting and searching in deckbuilding, but for the most part it's up top for clarity. and the entire game can be played with a mouse, huge plus for casual. obviously lots of build options given the nature of this type of game. fit what i was looking for as a closed-set tcg game. definitely worth it if you like card games and collection. not yet finished with all the content yet but just hitting the endgame it's been a good ride.

Bought this game in a bundle with their other game, Anode hearts and I liked this spin off game way more, personally. This game is really fun, there are some builds that are better than others for sure but if you like deckbuilding you know the goal isn't always to make the most overpowered deck. I had a lot of fun dealing with the bosses, the AI does play a little bad sometimes but the 'cheats' the boss fights use make these fight a unique challenge. You can brute force your way through them they aren't impossible but I found it more fun to try and build a deck to take advantage of their cheats too. I think the game could use some QOL adjustments, and the static screen questline doesn't end up going anywhere and that was a little disappointing but I haven't played a deck builder that got me this hooked in a while. Highly recommend if you're a fan of card games or deckbuilding.

Surprisingly full of love. Very much recommended, pick it up alongside a friend and have them fight you online 1v1 to see whose's deck cheeses hardest. And for a bit of criticism, which doesn't detract from my opinion that this game is absolutely worth it: This game is not too hard, and that's only kind of a complaint, the game stands well tall and proud even with how forgiving it may be by nature (Infinite retry on enemies by default makes it so you can cheese wins with most decks) I wish it had challenged me more as I only really had to build one deck and iterate over it to beat the game. I think the part where you are told to outright use a certain card to win is something the dev(s?) should have explored more in-depth, that's where the game shone the brightest for me. Give me arbitrary roadblocks, make me engage with mechanics, make it optional for all I care, put me in a situation where I have... all cards stacked against me? and let my knowledge of the game be my only advantage over the cheating AI. I thought the game was going on this direction when the enemies started "cheating" by adding modifiers that benefit their decks, but that ended up falling short of (my) expect…

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Anode Heart: Layer Null is a standalone tactical card-battling RPG developed and published by Stove Powered Games. Although it shares the same universe as Anode Heart, this spin-off is built to welcome both returning players and newcomers by focusing on an entirely different gameplay style. Instead of monster collection serving as the primary attraction, the game transforms the original title's card battle concept into a complete adventure centered on strategic duels, deck customization, and a digital world filled with mysteries. The result is a focused experience that confidently establishes its own identity while expanding the lore of the franchise. The story follows Blank, an aspiring duelist who enters the Duel Server, a virtual realm where reputation and survival are determined by skill with cards. As Blank progresses through increasingly competitive ranks, the journey evolves into more than a quest for recognition. Hidden organizations, suspicious rivals, and deeper secrets surrounding the Shadowed group gradually emerge, giving players reasons to continue beyond simply winning matches. While the narrative is not especially complex, it provides enough intrigue and memorable …