.Forty-Five Review Summary

Last updated: 2026-09-03
  • Fun and engaging gameplay
  • Well-designed deck-building system
  • Unique roguelike deckbuilder concept
  • Unpolished and incomplete game
  • Difficulty is too high
  • Numerous bugs and glitches
.Forty-Five header

Emotions

Archetypes

What players like:

Common complaints:

Gameplay feedback:

Performance notes:

Recommendations:

Other player notes:

Review evidence

Why players say this

Steam review verdict

Fun deck-building roguelike with a unique concept, but it's unpolished, buggy, and brutally difficult, leaving an incomplete experience.

What players like

Game is fun and engaging: Players consistently report the game is fun, engaging, and enjoyable for many hours. The gameplay loop is praised as innovative and easy to get into.

Deck-building is well designed: The deck-building aspect is highlighted as well thought out, engaging, and interesting. Players appreciate the clear combinations and variations that keep the genre fresh.

Unique roguelike deckbuilder concept: The game is described as a unique and clever combination of roguelike, deckbuilder, and shooter elements. Players find the concept innovative and more strategic than other deckbuilders.

Revolver mechanic is versatile: The revolver chamber mechanic is praised for being unique, versatile, and generating many gameplay possibilities. It is considered a standout feature of the game.

Easy to learn, hard to master: The game is praised for being easy to pick up but difficult to master. Players appreciate the fast-to-learn basics and the depth of the challenge.

Common complaints

Game is unpolished and incomplete: Multiple reviewers state the game feels unfinished, with rough edges and a need for more polish. This is a common theme across many clusters, indicating a widespread perception of incompleteness.

Difficulty is too high: The game is often considered very difficult, with sharp difficulty curves, RNG-based losses, and tough enemies. This can frustrate players and reduce enjoyment.

Numerous bugs and glitches: Players report various bugs, including game-breaking ones, card mechanic issues, and inconsistencies. These bugs detract from the overall experience and contribute to the game feeling unpolished.

Lack of content and replayability: The game is short, has limited maps, and lacks dynamic features, leading to repetitive runs and reduced replay value. Players desire more levels, card types, and events.

Enemies lack variety and are boring: Enemy types are limited and often feel like damage sponges, leading to repetitive and unengaging combat. This reduces the game's long-term appeal.

Gameplay and performance

Roguelike deckbuilder with Western theme: The game is consistently described as a roguelike deckbuilder set in a Wild West theme, combining card-based strategy with roguelite elements. This genre blend is the core identity of the game.

Revolver chamber mechanic is central: A unique revolver chamber mechanic is highlighted as a central element, where cards are treated as bullets loaded into a five-shooter. This innovative twist on deckbuilding is frequently mentioned and praised.

Bullet types and synergies: The game features a bullet type system with various effects and combos, and players search for synergies between weapons and bullets. This adds strategic depth to the card play.

Map exploration and backtracking: The game features a procedurally generated map with branches, allowing backtracking and exploration. This roguelike structure provides variety and replayability.

Turn-based combat with timing: Combat is turn-based, but includes a 10-second firing timer and quicktime events, requiring reaction and positioning. This blend of strategy and action is a distinctive feature.

Frequent crashes hinder gameplay: Players report that the game crashes too often, making it difficult to play. This issue appears across multiple clusters, indicating a widespread stability problem.

Crashes triggered by mouse clicks: Specific crash triggers include clicking both mouse buttons simultaneously or right-clicking. This suggests a bug in input handling that needs fixing.

Low system requirements praised: Players appreciate that the game runs on low-end hardware, including 'potato PCs'. This is a positive aspect for accessibility and performance.

No bugs reported: Some players report experiencing no bugs, indicating that the game is stable for certain users or configurations. This contrasts with the crash reports.

Recommendations

Recommended for deck-building fans: Multiple reviewers recommend the game to fans of deck-building and roguelike deckbuilders, highlighting its strategic card gameplay and unique twist. This is a common positive sentiment across several clusters.

Free game worth trying: Several reviewers emphasize that the game is free and therefore worth trying, with some noting it provides an hour of fun. The free aspect lowers the barrier to entry and is a key selling point.

Worth the time investment: Reviewers state the game is worth spending a few hours on, with some suggesting at least one hour to appreciate it. This suggests the game has enough content to justify the time.

General positive recommendation: A number of reviewers give a straightforward positive recommendation without specific details, indicating overall satisfaction with the game. This is a broad but consistent endorsement.

Not worth paying for: A reviewer notes the game is not worth paying for, implying that while it may be acceptable as a free title, it lacks value as a paid product. This is a caution for potential buyers.

Buying context

Game completion: 8.0h.

Session length: 1.0h.

The game is fun from the start but becomes repetitive and loses replayability after a few runs/hours, with early tutorial bugs and later difficulty walls.

Friction: Bad tutorial; Bugs; Inability to escape start/info screen; Spongy end-of-level enemies.

Player profiles

Deckbuilding Roguelite Enthusiast: Strategic and optimizing, focusing on build synergy and understanding turn order. Motivation: To enjoy strategic deckbuilding and roguelike runs with meaningful choices. Stance: buy.

Value Seeker: Not genre-specific; plays to enjoy the game without financial risk. Motivation: To get maximum entertainment for zero cost. Stance: buy.

Casual Relaxed Player: Casual and laid-back, not optimizing or overanalyzing mechanics. Motivation: To relax and have fun without deep strategic commitment. Stance: buy.

Other review notes

Frequent Slay the Spire comparisons: Many reviewers compare the game to Slay the Spire, noting it has its own take on the genre and is often recommended to fans of that game. Some find it better, while others see it as just another clone.

Game is incomplete: Reviewers frequently mention the game is incomplete, still in development, or should be in early access. It is playable but lacks full content, with some noting it is partially finished.

Free to play: The game is free, free to play, and open source at the time of review. This is a notable positive point for many players.

Student-developed project: The game was made by students for their diploma, developed by a few students or a university student group. This context is often mentioned in reviews.

Unique mechanics praised: Reviewers note the game has unique mechanics, such as the gun barrel card order and shooting more bullets, which differentiate it from other deckbuilders. This adds strategic depth.