Los Angeles-based Indie developer Echodog Studios has an intriguing game on the way called Signs of the Sojourner that’s well worth a look. Here’s the first trailer:

There’s also a Discord channel up for those interested in taking a free alpha demo of the game for a spin. The concept is certainly quite compelling, as you’ll discover below. Card combat is out – card convo? In like Flint, folks:

About Signs of the Sojourner

Signs of the Sojourner is a narrative deck-building game about relationships and communication. The ways in which you develop your deck, and thus your character, will determine how well you can communicate and connect with characters from different backgrounds and regions.

As your relationships grow, you’ll become involved in the lives and struggles of characters at home and abroad, all communicated via a unique card game experience.

Features

• Navigate conversations via a card game

• Your deck is your character

• Meet dozens of characters in a variety of locations

• Build your deck to develop relationships

• Collect tasty foods to bring home to your shop

While it’s currently set for a PC release only at this point, I’m crossing my fingers this gets a console release at some point, as it’s a unique take on a sub-genre that’s popular and at the very least, adds some fresh ideas to a well-aged formula. We’ll see what’s what soon enough, as the game is set to launch later in 2019, but yes, do go sign up on that Discord page if you want to try out an in-progress version.

-GW