Card Shark

 Switch
Card Shark Image
Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 11 Ratings

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  • Summary: Card Shark is an adventure game full of cunning, intrigue, and delectable deceit. "Our adversaries tonight? An unscrupulous group of scoundrels and rogues, rumoured to possess an unlimited fund between them. If we stick to the strategies you’ve learnt, this will be a walkover."
    - Comte de    Card Shark is an adventure game full of cunning, intrigue, and delectable deceit. "Our adversaries tonight? An unscrupulous group of scoundrels and rogues, rumoured to possess an unlimited fund between them. If we stick to the strategies you’ve learnt, this will be a walkover."
    - Comte de Saint-Germain

    LEARN AND MASTER NEW TRICKS
    Cheat your way to the top of 18th-century French society. Master deceptions using card marking, false shuffles, deck switching, false deals, and more! Use your ill-gotten gains to buy your way into the closed world of high-stakes tables.

    UNCOVER A CONSPIRACY
    ... as you climb from local card parlors to the King's table.
    A word of advice: Don't get caught. Your fellow gamblers do not take kindly to cheats…

    TRAVEL THROUGH 18TH CENTURY FRANCE
    Discover small towns, remote mansions, and luxurious lounges imagined by Nerial team (Reigns), game creator Arnaud De Bock (Pikuniku). Immerse yourself in the ornate visual artwork of Nicolai Troshinsky. Have your every move accompanied by an original score from Andrea Boccadoro as interpreted by an orchestra.    … Expand

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Card Shark | Shuffling to 2022

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 33
  3. Negative: 1 out of 33
  1. Movies Games and Tech
    Jun 22, 2022
    100
    Besides how I feel, no one has to be a perfect card player to play this game or know how to play it. It’s mostly how to cheat and that is all taught to the player right before the real card games begin. Of course speed, accuracy, and memorizing are also key points to winning each game. So then when you do win you can move forward to even higher stake tables. Lastly, the game will provide plenty of challenges, build some great skills, and is a bunch of fun when you’re able to cheat your way to the top!
  2. Nintendo Life
    Jun 1, 2022
    90
    Card Shark is the kind of game that at first blush seems like it just won’t work. Lots of dialogue bookended by brief, simplistic minigame sequences seems like it would make for an experience that would lose its luster quickly, yet we couldn’t put it down. Witty writing, high-stakes gameplay, and a gorgeous art style all come together here to make for a game that’s well-executed and unique in its appeal. If you’re looking to try something awesome that notably bucks most modern gaming trends, Card Shark is absolutely something we’d recommend, well worth your time and money.
  3. TouchArcade
    Jun 8, 2022
    90
    It’s hard to say if any given individual will find Card Shark to their tastes, as it really is its own thing in just about every way. While its mechanics are simple on their face, they can also be very challenging and deep. Perhaps best of all, they make you feel like you’re pulling things off like an expert con artist. When these sequences are woven together with an entertaining narrative and a distinct look, it’s hard for to call this anything but a winning hand. If you’re open to something off the beaten path, feel free to ante up.
  4. Gfinity
    Jun 2, 2022
    80
    With its unique hook, surprisingly in-depth gameplay, and fascinating mystery, Card Shark is an absolute delight.
  5. Switch Player
    Jun 30, 2022
    80
    Card Shark is an intriguing title that tells an engaging story while hitting you with a constant barrage of mechanics. This can start to feel overwhelming, but persevere and you’ll be sucked into a truly wondrous world.
  6. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Nov 9, 2022
    75
    Card Shark is an interesting concept with an imaginative story, great visuals and great music, but it was a little on the short side, and the cons with a lot of moving parts got repetitive. If Aviary Attorney whetted your appetite for games set in historic France, follow it up with this one! [Issue #62 – November/December 2022, p. 26]
    All this publication's reviews
  7. Slant Magazine
    Jun 2, 2022
    40
    When you’re not performing exactly as instructed, the game’s narrow and inconsistent margin of error is just frustrating.

See all 34 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 6
  3. Negative: 2 out of 6
  1. gamingprincess
    Jun 17, 2022
    9
    Card Shark is an innovative card game with a twist. The storytelling is beautiful and exciting. You don't really understand how the gamblingCard Shark is an innovative card game with a twist. The storytelling is beautiful and exciting. You don't really understand how the gambling fits into the story until you're about halfway in, so give it some time. I promise it will pay off! I am a musicologist, and I love how this game creates the atmosphere of 18th century France through engagement with historical figures, music, and art. The gameplay on switch can be a bit clunky at times, but the overall concept is super fun and makes sense after grinding it out a bit.… Expand
  2. Ewas228
    Jul 13, 2022
    9
    Card Shark it's one of the best games in 2022, beautiful art style, orchestral soundtrack, interesting plot and unusual gameplay as for me.Card Shark it's one of the best games in 2022, beautiful art style, orchestral soundtrack, interesting plot and unusual gameplay as for me.
    Nerial and Devolver Digital thank you for best game in 2022.
    9/10    … Expand
  4. Mangough
    Aug 2, 2022
    9
    Card Shark is a fantastic game with a beautiful artstyle, great gameplay and an interesting story.

    I think the most disappointing thing about    Card Shark is a fantastic game with a beautiful artstyle, great gameplay and an interesting story.

    I think the most disappointing thing about this is the dialogue as all of the dialogue options make no impact on the story. It's not a big deal but I thought it'd be worth a mention.

    Even if you don't like card games, you should definitely give this great indie game a shot!    … Expand
  5. stephanrewind
    Jul 8, 2022
    3
    Considering that Card Shark comes from the same people who made the excellent Reigns, I had high hopes for this game. Unfortunately, as it isConsidering that Card Shark comes from the same people who made the excellent Reigns, I had high hopes for this game. Unfortunately, as it is often the case, the disappointment matched the expectations. It’s true that the theme and the art direction both have undeniable appeal. However under the hood hides nothing more than a succession of very frustrating QuickTime events: mini games in which you must remember a series of button presses or controller inputs with very unforgiving precision. If you think that you’re going to actually play card hands, that’s not it. The cards are only a theme, a background, for mechanics that have barely anything to do with an actual card game.

    You’re taught to press certain buttons in a certain order, remember how many cards of a certain color came out, or rotate the pad in a circular motion when a card is drawn, among other very basic and annoying gimmicks. And if you fail at any point during the sequence, you start over. That’s the game in a nutshell. There’s nothing else. What’s worse, the game makes a very poor job at explaining the tricks, which become increasingly annoying. You often fail not because of a lack of skill, but because of a clunky design. So the experience becomes very quickly a chore, and the developers knew this, since they allow you to simply skip the gameplay after a while, and move on with the story.

    Which brings me to another issue: there’s no connection between the gameplay and the story. Your successes or failures don’t impact the plot in any way, which makes the game feel even more pointless. You never get to develop better skills either, as you only encounter a trick once anyway, so there’s no point in even trying to get better at them, if that was possible.

    The bottom line is that I can’t recommend Card Shark. I’m even more upset by the fact that the developers and the publisher presented this game as a truly unique, innovative gameplay, which is flat out a lie. It’s ironic that for a bunch of people selling you that you’re going to play a card shark, they’re the ones pulling the con. Frankly, it’s more a visual novel hiding its chapters behind frustrating and poorly designed minigames.

    You’ve been warned: Card Shark won’t teach you to becoming a hustler. You’ll be the one tricked out of 20 bucks.    … Expand

See all 6 User Reviews

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Awards & Rankings

64
#64 Best Switch Game of 2022
83
#83 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2022

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