The Indie Informer

I walked into my demo with Knights in Tight Spaces, saw the art style, and knew I was all in. That jolt of enthusiasm, and the developer’s tendency to encourage my more chaotic choices, swept me on to defeat the preview’s final boss without losing a single party member. The accomplishment I felt is something you all can share, since the game’s demo is up on Steam for Deck Builders Fest right now. I recommend you go check it out.

If the name sounds slightly familiar, that’s because Knights is the follow-up to developer Ground Shatter’s spy strategy game, Fights in Tight Spaces. The flow of both games is similar: Fight your way out of a small area populated with enemies using your wits and the moves in your deck of cards.

But while fans of the Tight Spaces games will recognize the rhythm, Knights incorporates the developer’s lessons from the previous title as well as an obvious love for tabletop roleplaying. The upcoming title leans hard into its D&D-friendly aesthetic. This includes giving me class options when I first start the game, a focus on forming my adventuring party, and side quests to tempt me away from the golden path.

To make things easy, I start the demo with the fighter archetype. Like in the title’s inspirations, this character is straightforward and versatile, with abilities like Quick Strike, Block, and Sweep. The hero’s attributes also give him a bonus to melee attacks both armed and unarmed. In other words, it’s a great character to pick when figuring out the game — especially if the developer is sitting right next to you watching you play.

Another detail I just can’t resist is Knight’s gorgeous manuscript-like art. Those inked lines sing. Whether outside in a stable, jammed into a kitchen, or piled into a bedroom, I always had to take a minute to admire my surroundings. Luckily, the game is turn-based, so I didn’t have to worry about being attacked while taking in the scenery.

The map shares in the delightful aesthetic, but presents more anxiety. The path across the world is branching. Once I take a step in once direction, I can’t go back to see what I might have missed. Do I want to stop off at a merchant? Am I up for another fight? I have to choose carefully. Side quests, at least right now, work a little differently. I can scour the map for encounters off the beaten path without locking myself out of another route. These exertions come with rewards to help in the main quest, like picking up a new attack card.

Knights in Tight Spaces rose in my graces with every turn of the combat and twist of the story. Again, the demo is currently up and I can’t recommend it enough. It is definitely one of my favorite experiences from this year’s GDC and I look forward to seeing more of it.