| Inscryption | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Daniel Mullins Games |
| Publisher(s) | Devolver Digital |
| Director(s) | Daniel Mullins |
| Composer(s) | Jonah Senzel |
| Engine | Unity[1] |
| Platform(s) | |
| Release |
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| Genre(s) | Roguelike deck-building |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Inscryption is a 2021 roguelike deck-building game developed by Daniel Mullins Games and published by Devolver Digital. Directed by Daniel Mullins, it was originally released for Windows on October 19, 2021, and on Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S over the following two years.[2][3][4][5] The game puts the player in a cabin where a mysterious gamemaster makes them play a tabletop game.
Inscryption blends various genres, including deck-building, roguelike, turn-based strategy, escape room, puzzle and adventure, while drawing inspiration from, among others, tabletop role-playing games, board games, horror, vlogs, and found footage. Its presentation is a combination of computer animation, pixel art, drawn art, and live action, as well as first person, third-person and 2.5D perspectives. It provides no context nor backstory at its start; its cryptic, metafictional narrative must be put together from subsequent story elements and various optional clues. A real-world alternate reality game (ARG), embedded both in video from the game and outside of it, offers additional story elements via many easter eggs that must be decrypted.
The game originated as Sacrifices Must Be Made, a much shorter and simpler game made by Mullins in 2018 for a Ludum Dare game jam, which used a deck-building system in which the player had to kill their own creatures to summon others. After publishing the prototype to itch.io in December 2018, the positive response led Mullins to significantly expand on the original game, resulting in the making of Inscryption. The game received positive reviews upon release, winning several Game of the Year awards and selling 1 million copies by January 2022: its originality, card battle system, visuals and narrative were particularly praised, although changes in the later parts of the game received some criticism. A free expansion titled Kaycee's Mod, allowing players to focus on the tabletop game without Inscryption's various other elements, was released in March 2022.
- ^ Porter, Jon (June 23, 2023). "Inscryption, the delightfully unsettling card-battling roguelike, comes to Mac and Linux". The Verge. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ Wales, Matt (September 27, 2021). "Pony Island dev's deck-building horror Inscryption gets October release date". Eurogamer. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
- ^ Mullins, Daniel (July 7, 2022). "Psychological horrors stack in devilish deck-builder Inscryption". PlayStation Blog. Retrieved September 16, 2022.
- ^ Van Allen, Eric (July 18, 2022). "Inscryption hits PlayStation near the end of August". Destructoid. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
- ^ Lane, Gavin; Norman, Jim (November 9, 2022). "Critically Acclaimed 'Inscryption' Draws December Release Date On Switch". Nintendo Life. Retrieved November 9, 2022.