Card Shark (2022) [PC]

“Trust everybody, but always cut the cards”
– Finley Peter Dunne

A revolution brewing, a conspiracy unfolding, and a pair of cheating card players all collide in 18th century France. Cheat, peek, and duel your way through perilous situations and possibly meet Death along the way.  Card Shark is not your average card game. In actuality, you don’t have to learn any of the games that are being played. Using quick time events, joystick or mouse directions, and timing you can fool anyone you meet. Taking money from the people is the name of the game but setting up how to do it is the real trick. Card Shark is filled to the brim with charisma, charm, and just enough wine. Cheers!

A Tout Le Monde

You are Eugene, a mute orphan who is a server at a small-time countryside inn. He happens upon Comte de Saint Germain who enlists you to help him with cheating in his next card game. Ms. Porterhouse, who took you in as a child, is furious that you let the Comte leave without paying so she takes it out of your wages. Luckily, you have a portion of the shcemes profits coming your way. This is when you’ll put your first tactic to use: while pouring a glass of wine for the Comte’s opponent you’ll peek at his cards and then wipe the table in a certain way to tell him which suite they have the most of. The scam goes awry and a gun is pulled on the Comte, but Ms. Porterhouse is the one who takes the bullet. The Comte takes Eugene under his wing (or maybe wig is more appropriate) and teaches him the art of cheating.  They soon learn about a great mystery involving King Henry XV while raking in plenty of coins. Be careful though, with each technique you use your opponents suspicion meter rises and if you’re caught the penalty is death!

Penn & Teller

Throughout Card Shark you’ll learn the secrets to 28 different methods of cheating starting with basic sleight of hand movements to steal cards and shuffling techniques that require some preparation. The goal of the game is to earn enough wealth to sit at a table with King Henry XV but you’ll need to enlist the help of The Magician, the leader of a roaming caravan who also has some helpful tricks. Eugene will learn the art of faking a coin toss and throwing cards into a hat from him. As you learn all of the 28 tricks they will get more difficult to pull off. Some will have multiple steps while combining tricks you already know, painting the backs of cards in certain ways, and giving good cards to The Comte through shuffling. The challenge in the game gradually increases over time. You’ll need to memorize how the basic tricks work while learning new techniques. This sounds daunting but the game occasionally gives you hints. Card Shark is best played over the course of a few days so that things don’t escape your mind. If you need a refresher you can sit at a wealthy table and choose what technique to use with minimal consequences. There is also a ‘strategies’ section in the menu that shows an illustration and steps with a short description. This all leads to an important question: What if you fail?

Cheating Death

There are many ways to die in 18th century France, and all of them take you to a table with Death itself. If you are caught cheating you won’t immediately get a ‘game over,’ but you’ll have a chance to escape death by playing a card game. The time limit is much more strict which means you’ll have to use your techniques faster. Failing to properly cheat will cause you to lose all your money. If you win, however, you’ll be sent back to the moment before the start of the section you died in. You’ll be able to practice any new techniques you learned and try again. You can also quit to the main menu if you know you’ve done something wrong. This will put you back to the last auto-save which will be either before or after the current hand; so if you are on the second part of the card game, it will start you at the dialogue before the next part. You can’t use this loophole if you are caught and dialogue starts playing. It is a useful strategy later on when rounds take much more time and the cheating techniques become more involved.

Duel of Fates

At times, you may have to pick up a sword and duel for your life. Dueling is very similar to a game of Simon-Says. You will be on the defensive for most of the fight, copying what your opponent is doing by pressing buttons in the correct order. Every so often a button will have a red background, this is your opening. Simply press a different button to gain the upper hand and win the duel. The animation for these moments is very well done and the music playing in the background adds to the intensity. Dueling doesn’t happen often in Card Shark but it is a nice change-up in the game.

A handcrafted World

Card Shark is brought to life through stunning backgrounds and beautiful animation. The watercolor aesthetic and line art blend well together. Some scenes are grandiose with plenty of detail and characters milling about. Others have a more claustrophobic tone with Eugene and another character inside a carriage surrounded by darkness. The music also has a hand in crafting the experience. The sounds of harpsichords, violins, and other 18th-century instruments grace your ears while you play. The music sets the tone perfectly from solo acoustic guitar preludes to grand fully orchestrated melodies.