Imbroglio

Imbroglio (2016) is a puzzle game where you take a character into a dungeon and progress by collecting stars. The twist is that combat is focused not only your abilities but the tile you are standing on when you attack. Although each character has different abilities, equipment is attached to the dungeon board rather than who you are playing.

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Play involves moving around the grid-based dungeon, deciding which enemy to attack or defend against. As you kill them, the gear on the squares levels up. You also collect runes that enable you to access your special ability.

Both you and enemies have two stats, physical energy and magical energy. When either of these are depleted you are dead. This adds an extra level of tactics as the tile you are standing on will determine which of these elements you use and attack.

The result is a game that requires strong planning from the start. There are four types of enemies to battle, eight different heroes to play and thirty-two weapons to level up. You need to focus on tactically advantages gear tiles to use and level up. Add to this the different board layouts each character starts with, and the ability to customise those starting boards, and you have a deep and intriguing game.

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Our examiner, Andy Robertson, first checked Imbroglio 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 22 months ago.