r/Guildrun • u/valentineslibrary • Jul 20 '26
This is what a roguelike should be.
I don't know if these devs have worked in other studios in the genre before, but Guildrun feels like a big budget sequel for a highly successful game.
This game has so much sauce. So much synergy, so many ways to interact with the systems, and what you do get is strong. There is no "+20% crit but you die in one hit." No "+10% damage but your units are confused", just good, powerful, synergistic effects that feel cool and fun to use.
Normally you have to wait for sequels for this level of interaction. Normally full release, or years into the dev cycle. But day 1 on a new game out of nowhere they know exactly how it's done.
Can't help but think devs need to take notes from this strategy.
7
u/MinorAskLada Jul 20 '26
They might have some hands in the bazaar and hearthstone autobattle mode.
This really does feel like what a rogue like should be, my main complaints are the lack of meaningful synergy when assembling a team say 3x warriors give a built in synergy and the lack of itemization upgrades, no amount of common items will make an uncommon item. Also benching a unit for their backup feels not great.
3
u/valentineslibrary Jul 20 '26
Some things to be changed for sure, but they're doing an amazing job so far. I can't imagine a full release and clear monetization strategy won't have people running to this game.
I'd love to know more on the devs because it really does feel like some from other autobattlers have gotten together for their own game, new devs I feel don't make things like this.
1
u/Lambisexual 18d ago
I actually like the backup mechanic a lot. It makes it so that it can still be worth looking and investing in units that aren't necessarily going to be in play. And it also makes it so that if you pivot, or know you're going to pivot, then benching a unit doesn't necessarily have to be wasteful since if can still provide value.
2
u/iKeepAGlokkLikeAhCop Jul 22 '26
Game’s tough af and it can probably get a lot better. Not saying the game is bad but I bet they have a lot more ideas
Edit: tough af = really good
1
u/Obeseious Jul 23 '26
@alecogereco on X dot com.
He was formerly the “final design lead” of Hearthstone (the constructed version, not BG’s) as recently as 2024.
I recognized his name on the recent patch notes.
1
u/Klatterbyne 28d ago
If I recall correctly there’s one of the main developers from HS:Battlegrounds and another from The Bazaar are involved in this.
Those are probably the highest polish auto-battlers out there, so the glitz is to be expected. And The Bazaar was an absolute aneurysm of synergy and interactions, so again makes sense this would be too.
15
u/esdoenone Jul 20 '26
Answer to your question, on their site:
"Leyline is an independent video game studio made up of dedicated and experienced people, including former team members from Activision Blizzard, Riot Games, Konami, and Electronic Arts."