Demon Espionage: A Made-In-Singapore Devil Duelling Card Game For Your Next Drinking Session

Board and card games have always been a favourite pastime of mine (aside from dabbling in augmented reality whenever I get a chance), it all started with playing Monopoly and Uno from my childhood days. Now, there’s a chance to relive some of that joy with a newcomer to the card game industry: Demon Espionage.

The goal of this three to six player game is to collect as many souls as possible, starting with a legitimate excuse to attack your friends in a fiery battle involving the most adorable monsters you’d never expect in a game with “demon” in its title.

Not knowing which soul card you’re going to get might just turn the tides, as a faction which wins many duels might still lose the game if all of their cards only have one soul, whereas their opponent team has more two-soul and three-soul cards.

In a sneaky first step, players are put into either the Shadow or Rebel faction without anyone knowing who their teammates or opponents are. They will be forced to start selecting other players to cross swords (or cards, in this case) in battle.

The loser of the duel loses a life point, but players have to risk defeating a teammate because only players with two or less points will have their faction revealed.

Of course there’s a danger in that: when you have zero points left, you’re out and your souls are forfeited to the person who defeated you, whether they’re from your faction or not.

Although the rules might seem to favour the selfish, they actually force players to interact and try to read each other, making it a great ice-breaking game. Plus, it’s easy to pick up so it’ll be perfect for parties and family gatherings.

The winners are all members of the faction that possesses the most souls — so, really, as tricky as it gets, it’s still a team game. Can you figure out who your allies are in time to triumph against the odds?

Everyone needs troop cards, each designed with an adorable monster and attack power, used to attack or defend themselves in battle. To spice things up, you can also use action cards to boost your own troop cards, or sabotage other players.

If that doesn’t sound devious enough, remember that you can interfere in someone else’s duel as well, which will come in handy once you’ve figured out who’s on your side… Or so you think.

One of the best things about this game is its adorable art style, by Australian artist Jodie, who was given creative freedom, she even surprised the game designers with monsters that’ll appeal to people of all ages.

We’ve received inside information that there’ll soon be more ways to play the game in addition to what’s already Online, most probably expanding on the “espionage” part of the game.

Although the Kickstarter-funding phase for this game is over, you can still get a set for yourself at S$27 from the creators, which will be a much better deal than retail store prices.

Like the Kickstarter backers who helped this game reach its minimum funding goal within five hours, you shouldn’t hesitate to get Demon Espionage before stocks run out.

Price: S$27 

Demon Espionage Card Game: Website | Facebook | Kickstarter