Death Howl Launches on Steam — A Unique Soulslike and Card Game Hybrid Earns High Praise
Hennadiy Chemеris
A new soulslike game with card-based mechanics, Death Howl, has been released on PC (Steam and GOG). Published by 11 bit studios and developed by The Outer Zone, the game is already making waves for its innovative blend of genres.
In Death Howl, players journey through a dark spirit world alongside the huntress Ro, who is determined to bring her son back from the dead. The game offers over 25 hours of adventure across a world divided into four parts and 13 unique regions, where you’ll face a variety of enemies, including mini-bosses and formidable bosses.
Players build and evolve their decks from more than 160 cards, utilizing tactics like poison, sacrifice, retribution, backstabs, and blocking, as well as enhancing their strategy with unique shamanic totems. Combat takes place on a tactical grid, where environmental awareness and strategic planning are key. As you progress, you’ll unlock side quests and interact with spirits that influence your deck and help you adapt your playstyle to new challenges.
Review Scores:
- DualShockers — 95/100;
- XboxEra — 95/100;
- Try Hard Guides — 90/100;
- GAMINGbible — 90/100;
- COGconnected — 85/100;
- GameBlast — 85/100;
- Gameliner — 70/100;
- TheSixthAxis — 60/100.
Death Howl is a complex, yet easy-to-get-into deck builder that utilizes a slick, stylish mix of Soulslike gameplay systems and card-based combat. The world and story are breathtaking, with outstanding pixel art and ominous, subtle sound design. Combat feels excellent, but if RNG and dying a lot in games isn't your idea of a good time, it may not win you over in that regard.
Death Howl is amazing. It takes the deck builder and the Soulslike and makes something I didn’t know I was missing. As a Day One Game Pass title on PC, it’s there and ready if that interests you. The game comes to consoles on February 19th, 2026. It is a 30+ hour playthrough with incredible highs, even at its most frustratingly difficult moments.
Does Death Howl successfully merge soulslike and deckbuilder mechanics? Absolutely. It’s a weird combo that somehow works. The game is challenging, original, and surprisingly fun once the loop clicks. RNG can frustrate, but if you're after something truly different, Death Howl delivers.
Death Howl has a strong central theme to it, the cards are well made, and there's a decent variety to build out decks. But it is also a game that can require a lot of repetitive grinding to make small amounts of progress, and the quests could have been better designed.
Death Howl currently holds an average score of 84 on Metacritic. The console release (PS5, Switch, and Xbox Series X/S) is scheduled for February 19. A demo version is available now.
By the way, 11 bit studios recently held a presentation where they revealed the Frostpunk remake.
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