Valve’s commitment to getting back into creating games starts in earnest November 28 when Artifact comes to Steam, Valve revealed in a press release. The trading card game, which will be Valve’s first game in five years, is set in the world of Dota 2.
At launch, Artifact will be available on PC, Mac, and Linux for $20. A mobile version will come to Android and iOS in 2019. PAX West attendees will have a chance to take Artifact for a spin. This will be Artifact‘s first public appearance since it was revealed last August.
PAX West attendees will get to duke it out in a single-elimination gauntlet. Whoever comes out on top will get to face off against a “champion,” though we’re not really sure what that exactly means. PAX West takes place in Seattle from August 31 to September 3. Unfortunately, if you were itching to play Artifact and don’t have tickets already, only September 3 tickets are available at this point. If you do get a chance to play it at PAX West, though, you’ll receive Artifact swag, including signed artwork, and two copies of the game when it launches.
Valve says Artifact will have the “deepest gameplay and highest fidelity experience ever in a fantasy card game.” That’s a bold statement considering Hearthstone has dominated the revived genre for years, and Magic: The Gathering consistently holds a loyal user base. Not to mention Gwent, which has bee available in open beta for more than a year.
Of course, Valve is known for producing high-quality and popular games, so it’s certainly possible Artifact could be a major hit. The major concern in squaring off against the likes of Hearthstone and Gwent is that both of those are free-to-play. Will Artifact be able to gain enough traction in a relatively niche genre at its $20 price? It will be interesting to see.
The initial launch will feature 280 cards. Users can buy and sell cards on the Steam Community Marketplace. Earlier this year, Valve co-founder Gabe Newell revealed Artifact was one of multiple games the studio is working on. So while Artifact may not be up your alley, rest assured, more Valve games are on the way.
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