Ultimate Showdown Will Scratch Your TCG Itch

Ultimate Showdown (Free) by Smashware is a turn-based battle card game where players use attack and defense statistics to obliterate their enemies. Build a tough deck, collect rare cards from booster packs, and show your enemies who is boss in this trading card game (TCG) battle.

Players start by choosing their first deck. Pick from Medieval Robots, Zombie Outbreak, and Monkey Pirates. Similar to color decks in “Magic: the Gathering,” different decks have different strengths and weaknesses. For example, the robot deck allows you to augment your weaker fighters, while the monkey deck generates more resources so you can play more powerful cards.

Once you’ve picked a deck, you will begin the tournament. The first thing you’ll want to do is examine your hand to make sure it is a good starting set. You’ll want at least one resource card or you won’t be able to play any fighters. If you like the hand, tap the “Play” tab. If not, re-deal a new hand.

When it is your turn, play a resource card first. You can only play one resource card per turn, but the more you have on the table, the more resources you earn on your next turn. Then, play any fighters in your hand that you can afford. If you already have a fighter in play, you’ll want to attack next. Ambush fighters are allowed to attack immediately after they are played.

Once a fighter card is used to attack, it is out of play until your next turn. If your opponent attacks you, you’ll want to be sure to have fighters in play in order to defend yourself. If you have no active fighters, then you opponent’s attack will affect your hit points.

Each player has a total of 20 hit points. The person who looses all of their hit points, looses the game. The winner earns coins. Coins are used in the store to buy new decks and booster packs.

In the store, players can either purchase a booster pack, which comes with 12 random cards, including a rare one, or buy a new 30-card deck. You only earn about 10 coins per game, and each deck costs 200 coins. You can always add more through an in-app purchase.

As you progress through the tournament, you’ll play opponents that are harder to beat and have better cards than you. At some point, you’ll need to buy a booster pack in order to beat your opponent.

You can also play against real players in multiplayer mode. You can either find a friend through Game Center, or link up with a randomly selected player. I was unable to successfully find a random opponent to play against, but that is not unusual with brand new games.

This TCG style turn-based fighting app is loads of fun. Even if you’ve never played a game like this, you’ll be able to pick it up very easily. For hardcore TCG gamers, you might find this to be a bit to simplistic, but if you spend the money, the game could have a lot of potential. Download it and give it a try. You might just find it to be a decent supplement to your weekly card game battles.