Crush the Industry

Crush the Industry is a roguelike deck-building game blending Slay the Spire-style mechanics with Earthbound-inspired aesthetics and humor. Players climb a quirky corporate ladder in a game studio, battling satirical office archetypes and managing unique systems like sanity and rolling health. The game's pixel art and soundtrack evoke nostalgia while complementing its irreverent tone.

Gameplay features varied characters, each with distinct playstyles and a maximum 10-card deck, creating strategic depth through synergies and resource management. The humor and satire target gaming culture and industry tropes, adding charm though sometimes perceived as mean-spirited. While the combat system and thematic integration receive praise, criticisms highlight a steep learning curve, UI clutter, and a low difficulty level that may reduce challenge and replay value. Content variety and event design are also noted as limited, with some repetitiveness in map progression.

Overall, the game is regarded as a creative, enjoyable indie title with unique mechanics and strong personality, best appreciated by fans of deckbuilders and those familiar with gaming industry culture.

Highlights

Players especially praise the game's unique gameplay mechanics, such as the sanity meter and rolling health system, which add strategic layers not often seen in deckbuilders.

The art style is frequently described as charming and evocative of classic 16-bit RPGs like Earthbound, with lively animations and colorful pixel art.

The soundtrack complements the gameplay well, with memorable electronic and industrial tracks enhancing the atmosphere.

Additionally, the humor and satirical take on the gaming industry resonate with many players, providing a fresh narrative flavor.

The distinct characters and their varied decks encourage experimentation and offer multiple viable playstyles.

Criticisms

Common criticisms include the game's low difficulty, where early and even late stages can feel too easy, reducing tension and challenge.

The UI can become cluttered, making it hard to track buffs, debuffs, and keywords, especially given the high number of mechanics.

Some players find the event design and map progression repetitive and lacking meaningful choices, which diminishes replayability.

The humor, while appreciated by many, is sometimes seen as mean-spirited or too niche, potentially alienating some players.

Balance issues and randomness in card draws occasionally lead to frustrating runs, and the limited number of enemies and bosses can make encounters feel repetitive.