A game that assembles 3 genres into one game but just one of them is developped to the maximum potential and the other two could do better. I bought it, because it's a Roguelike title (I love roguelikes) and it was pretty cheap.

As I said, Backpack Battles represents 3 genres. You got the roguelike aspect, where you can find and put a bunch of different items in your backpack. Some of them have synergies and others even can fuse together to a even better item or weapon to combat your next opponent. Every time you win or lose a battle, you're sent to the shop, where you can buy or sell your items to get stronger and to continue your journey.

Second genre that you can find here, is the inventory managment, which is by far my favourite and maybe the best developped part in the game. Once you're entering the shop, you can buy items and you have to put them in your backpack. But it's not some ordinary "put it in your backpack and go on", it's a tiny bit more complex than this. You actually have to manage your inventory, cause you got limited space in your backpack and every item has another shape and size to deal with while packing. But don't worry! The shop not only sells weapons and items, but alos more "packback-space" to make your backpack bigger and your management easier. You got a few different backpack additions and they can also make synergies with your items you're putting there.

The last genre, which makes probably the biggest part, is the autobattler. As I understood, you're fighting against other people and their characters. So, you're entering the shop, you buy all your stuff you need. Then you can put them in your backpack (don't forget the synergies and item fusions) and after that, you leave the shop and you're fighting against another player.

So...yeah, that was Backpack Battles. It's a game that I start when I'm heavily bored and I need something to distract myself. I often start a series while watching, cause you don't have to pay much attention to the game. Maybe reading the item effects, but nothing more. I liked the item management aspect, but the combat is boring (autobattler duh). I must admit, that I was a bit lost in the beginning due to the mass of items and different effects you get, but it's nothing you can't deal with. Take your time to read everything and you'll win your first run fast enough.

I don't need further updates to solidify my feelings on this game, it's a straight-up masterpiece of both inventory management games and auto-battlers. The aesthetic of the game is pleasing without ever being overbearing; visual polish speaks for itself and the sound design is immensely satisfying. The amount of content the devs are committed to adding, weekly, is commendable simply because of how clearly this game came from passion and nothing else.

Every item is creative and exciting to build around -- the amount of cute pop culture references both within gameplay and within the snappy writing leaves the dev-logs feeling incredibly relatable. I understand the types of gamers these devs are, purely based off of the creativity in item selection and gameplay choices.

Incredibly communicative balance logs and frequent patches that are in-sound with community ideas. An all-star title that I simply have issues finding critique with.

Its quite a simple concept. You fill your backpack with items, looking for synergies that create powerful combos, and use those items to battle other players. But the strength of this game is entirely in its execution. Theres a huge number of strategies you can employ, with each character having significant differences in the types of strategies you can employ. Exploring new strategies based on the random selection of items you find in the shop between battles makes it fun to discover new ways to build up your backpack. You can choose to play in either a ranked or unranked mode, depending on how serious you want to take the game. Some items can also combine into new items if placed next to each other for one battle, so discovering the recipes available for each character provides a longer term goal to shoot for if ranked matchmaking isnt for you.

My one criticism is that you're highly dependent on how RNGesus is feeling at the moment. Because of its limited selection, and large number of items, it can sometimes feel impossible to get the items you want.

All in all, Backpack Battles is a great casual experience for people who love searching for synergies and crafting fun combos, or are looking for a clever and highly replayable autobattler experience.

This game is a fun little roguelite that I found great for when I had just a little bit of time between tasks. From what I can tell on Reddit, there is a meta and some deeper strategy than what I got into. The choices are relatively interesting and balancing your purchases creates for some thoughtful gameplay. If you like organizing things, the backpacks are all about organization for efficiency. I gave it a 2.5 stars because the game did not blow me away, but it also was by no means bad. I think of it as a little treat or a palate cleanser, rather than a game I would sit down and devote hours to.
As a bonus, with the game still in early access, the devs are clearly responsive to the community.