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Sunderfolk Review: A Tabletop-Style Tactical Gem Best Enjoyed on the Couch with Friends

Time：Mon, Sep 01, 2025 07:48:13 PM Reading：13857

Sunderfolk is at its peak when you’re gathered on the couch with friends on a weekend afternoon that would otherwise be unremarkable. It encapsulates two of my favorite elements of tabletop RPGs: strategic teamwork and unforgettable anecdotes. The game loses much of its charm when played solo, but that’s clearly not the intended way to experience this tabletop-inspired turn-based tactical RPG. Its true magic unfolds only when multiple players coordinate their unique perks and customized decks of card-based abilities to strategically tackle the task at hand.

In Sunderfolk, each player takes control of one of six anthropomorphic heroes: an arcanist crow, a pyromancer axolotl, a ranger goat, a bard bat, a berserker polar bear, or a rogue weasel. After proving their worth as capable tavern bouncers, the heroes unite to defend their hometown of Arden from mounting threats and strive to halt the corruption of the magical tree that shields the village from the impending darkness. It’s a classic fantasy setup—ordinary heroes answering the call to adventure when no one else will—and for the first few hours, Sunderfolk does little to distinguish its story from other contemporary fantasy tales.

However, as you grow closer to the non-player characters (NPCs), Sunderfolk’s narrative begins to shine through its diverse cast—all voiced by actor Anjali Bhimani, recreating the immersive feel of a tabletop campaign where the Game Master portrays every non-hero character. Bhimani delivers an exceptional performance, adjusting her pitch, tone, accent, and pacing to give each character a distinct personality, breathing life into the story and making it easy for players to grow fond of the heroes’ allies and loathe the villains. My friends and I became far more invested in saving Arden and uncovering the truth after meeting Amaia, a cute one-armed penguin orphan who works tirelessly to keep the village’s mines operational. When her cruel, deceitful uncle was introduced, we vowed to protect the little bird at all costs (and secretly hoped he’d turn out to be the true villain, giving us a chance to defeat him). Much of this emotional engagement, along with our feelings toward other characters, stems from Bhimani’s masterful voice acting.

Available on both consoles and PC, Sunderfolk is controlled via a free app downloaded to players’ phones or tablets—the game displays on a computer monitor or TV, while players use their mobile devices to browse available actions. The core gameplay revolves around heroes undertaking missions, most of which boil down to eliminating all enemies on the battlefield. Additional objectives are often included, such as defending a location, rescuing an ally from capture, or exploring an area, but every mission ultimately centers on combat. Each hero boasts a unique set of abilities, presented as cards on their personal mobile device.

During each turn of a mission, players can play one card, planning their movements and selecting attack targets via the touchscreen. On the easiest difficulty, you can get by with haphazard moves, but higher difficulties encourage players to discuss their options with teammates to craft the best card combinations and overcome the enemies’ usual numerical advantage. Once a player starts their turn, others are locked out, but you can easily exit the planning phase if the group decides someone else should go first—order is entirely up to the party. Actions are only finalized once movement or an attack begins, and from what I can tell, there’s no way to fully reverse a turn once it’s completed.

This focus on collaboration is Sunderfolk’s greatest strength; the experience shines brightest when you’re with at least one friend to bounce ideas off. For this review, I played the first two-thirds of the game in a group, choosing the arcanist. This class wields powerful lightning and gravity attacks, can push or pull multiple targets, and teleport itself, allies, or enemies. However, most of these cards rely on mana, a resource I had to carefully manage. The arcanist passively gains a small amount of mana at the start of each turn, often forcing me to skip mana-consuming cards or play ones that generate mana to build up reserves for future turns when my team might need a big play.

One of my favorite arcanist cards lets it teleport, generating mana based on how many creatures are adjacent to the destination. Often, my friends and I would start combat with me teleporting just a space or two—staying close to the party— to generate a large mana pool, setting up a devastating second turn. Each hero feels distinct, giving everyone a chance to stand out, and while they never stray from their core identities, they’re clearly designed to complement one another in battle.

Our party included the pyromancer, who deals massive area-of-effect damage; the bard, who heals, buffs allies, and enchants enemies to follow them; and the ranger, who delivers powerful piercing attacks from a distance. We built our team around grouping enemies and unleashing concentrated damage—a strategy we refined as we unlocked new cards. For example, I used an arcanist card to pull surrounding enemies into a tight cluster before teleporting away, which paired perfectly with the pyromancer’s ability to leap to a spot and detonate a fiery explosion that grows stronger with more affected enemies.

Leveling up is quick in Sunderfolk, and each level typically grants a new card—leading to excited chatter as everyone explains their new ability, followed by quiet deliberation as they decide which old card to remove to make space. Combined with one-time items found in missions or purchased in town, and upgradable weapons, this ensures a constant sense of progression and momentum. There’s almost always a new strategy to test or a build to tweak, and with three friends by your side, this feeling intensifies, adding more layers to consider.

Between missions, the group returns to Arden, the game’s hub area. Here, the experience branches out, letting players explore individually. Conversations with Arden’s citizens play out silently on your phone— a slight letdown, as Bhimani’s voice acting clearly elevates the storytelling. Dialogue choices let you shape the tone and direction of interactions, potentially affecting your hero’s reputation with other characters. You can also visit shops to buy items, stop by the tavern for meals that grant temporary perks, or customize your hero’s clothing (purely cosmetic) and weapons (which impact gameplay).

Arden is fairly sparse early on, but players can donate money and materials to build or upgrade buildings, unlocking more options. Each visit to Arden limits players to three conversations, preventing lengthy detours, before the group votes on the next mission. You’ll never be able to complete every mission or talk to every NPC, adding replay value to the story.

Missions vary in length but usually wrap up in under 30 minutes, making Sunderfolk easy to pick up and put down. It’s perfect for pulling out when friends want to try a tabletop-style RPG without the time and financial investment of traditional TTRPGs. This accessibility likely explains why the story is simple and straightforward— with no prior preparation, you can jump in and grasp the plot if you’re familiar with high-fantasy stories. I appreciate how this makes Sunderfolk more approachable than most tabletop-inspired games (jumping into the middle of Baldur’s Gate 3 or Citizen Sleeper 2 feels daunting), but I wish the story took bolder risks or included clever twists. It sits in an odd middle ground— not quite a party game, nor a deeply story-driven one.

Some of Sunderfolk’s most memorable story moments are created by players themselves. Occasionally, the game randomly tasks a player with naming a building, helping a villager recall a rare ingredient, or naming a type of enemy. The player types a response, which becomes canon to the world and appears in other players’ conversations or future missions. While purely cosmetic, this adds a sense of ownership over Arden and its inhabitants. My friends and I fought fiercely to protect the chirping, turret-like insect guard dogs we named, and cheered when they reappeared in later missions.

It was also heartwarming when the forgetful villager I romanced gave me an item I’d mentioned hours earlier— in hindsight, it was a clear setup, but in the moment, it made me feel seen: “They remembered me and what I like.” The sentimental gift even came with a surprisingly useful gameplay bonus, prompting cheers from my friends. Moments like these are amplified when playing with a partner and friends on the couch— clearly, this is how Sunderfolk is meant to be played.

Solo play is possible, but it dulls the excitement— much like playing a TTRPG alone. The diverse heroes and their unique ability decks are designed for cooperation, and brainstorming strategies or testing builds with friends is just as rewarding as executing a perfect plan. Sunderfolk excels at emulating the experience of playing a tactics-focused tabletop game with friends, where the most memorable moments are the ones you create together, not just the story told by the Game Master.

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