"What is even happening": Dev reels as over 1,000 Steam reviews sitting at 96% positive flood his "card game unlike any other"

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Something bloody, damp, and decidedly retro has been darkening the doorsteps of card game sickos for a few weeks now. Forbidden Solitaire, a "card-slashing horror game" anchored to "the contents of a cryptic 1995 CD-ROM" launched on Steam (and GOG and Itch) on April 30, and has had such a profound effect on humanity's collective consciousness that it's already crossed 1,100 overwhelmingly positive Steam reviews, much to the surprise of Jake Birkett, owner of co-developer Grey Alien Games.

Forbidden Solitaire is currently sitting at 1,104 Steam user reviews averaging 96% positive, putting it in the upper echelons of the entire year according to Steam250. It first crossed the overwhelmingly positive milestone just three days after launch.

"It took TEN YEARS for us to get this for Regency Solitaire!" Birkett says on Bluesky, referring to Grey Alien Games' original card game twist, released in 2015 and likewise sitting pretty at 96% positive.

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On May 2, Forbidden Solitaire crossed 10,000 copies sold. SteamDB ownership estimates put it north of double that nowadays.

"What is even happening right now?" Birkett adds in a separate post. "1000+ reviews, overwhelmingly positive. Thanks everyone!"

The easiest way to describe this game is this: if you liked Inscryption, you will like Forbidden Solitaire. It plays a fair bit differently thanks to its solitaire influence, but it hits the same portion of the human brain, which is reserved exclusively for gritty, madcap card games. Next to it, as any student of medicine will tell you, is the strategy RPG lobe, which has recently been observed firing during Pokemon Nuzlocke runs.

Failing that, if you've ever played solitaire but thought to yourself, "This would be so much better if I could purchase magic gems and embed them in my flesh to cheat at cards between FMV segments," you've found the right game. We were pretty smitten with it all the way back in Steam Next Fest.

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Since launch, the devs have kept updates coming, most recently adding a New Game+ system in response to rampant demand. "You can now replay any level, and adjust various parameters to create your own challenges," the devs explain.

Solo dev stunned as his "first ever video game" sells 100,000 copies in 5 days on Steam while 97% "overwhelmingly positive" reviews pour in.

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Austin WoodSenior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.

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