The roguelike is one of the most flexible genres of the past decade. While many are just content to keep ripping off Hades, those at the school of Balatro are bolting roguelike mechanics to anything that moves and seeing if it works there. Chess? Don't forget to upgrade your pieces. Breakfast? Yo alright if I get these scrambled eggs I'll have the carbs to clear this next buffet run. 

But what about love? Enter Cupiclaw. In Cupiclaw, you play as a guy who's lost his engagement ring that he plans to use to propose. In a thinly veiled excuse to hide his problems, he decides, "You know what will bring it back? Gambling". 

Simple Enough Premise

And so begins the roguelike adventures of Cupiclaw. Becauser the claw machine with jewelry in it is only on the top floor, your character now has to fight through waves of claw machines, making enough money to afford the next machine's pulls while also unlocking the key to get to the next floor. Pull out the Kakegurui GIFs, it's time to gamble. 

Thankfully, the game isn't a 1:1 of the claw machine experience. Instead, what you're doing is like a mad rush: collect as many prizes at once in the time limit to maximize your score. Prizes have categories, coin values and sizes, and in between rounds you can stack the contents of your machine to suit your strategy. 

There's a fair amount of strategy to this gameplay- objects collapse and move around each other, so sometimes you might want to reposition to get a better haul down the line instead of mindlessly grabbing high-value rewards. You even have to consider potential overboards- sometimes your prize may fall before it can be scored. 

Where the game really impresses me though is how it spices up its rewards. In addition to junk that deducts your score, there's also the occasional transforming item- objects that can turn into other items, potentially multiplying their score in the process. It's a fun way to add urgency to the game, but more importantly: gambling. 

By the second stage, claw machines fill up so much with junk that you can't really tactically avoid it- you can only build your machine in a way thast you run a chance at out-scoring it. It's a satisfying and reckless thrill, that feels as-intended because of how limited the controls for Cupiclaw are. Look at this nerd planning optimal grab patters, I'm just mashing in the vague direction of a diamond and trusting that the handful of seeds, playing cards and toy cars I grab will break even on the trash I may have accidentally grabbed in the progress. 

Cupiclaw Verdict

As a fun little game to throw on while you work, Cupiclaw is an absolute delight. It may not hit the levels of sensory overload the rest of this genre banks on, but its simple controls make it so you never feel like you have to think too hard about what you're doing. 

Admittedly, if you're the type that plays roguelikes to optimize a path to the ending, it may be frustrating because of how many bad outcomes seem unavoidable. Like I said, a lot of trash in some of these machines. 

But if you just like the thrill of the gamble, this might be the quick 15-minute hit you need that just so happens to turn into an hour. 

Final Score: 7/10

Game reviewed on PC. Review code provided by publisher.