Paperback prequel Hardback bringing its wordy deckbuilding to mobile

Hardback, Tim Fowers’ spiritual successor and prequel to word-making deckbuilder Paperback, will write its latest chapter on a virtual keyboard.

That’s because it’s coming to mobile, with an iOS and Android release currently in beta testing ahead of an unannounced release date, Stately Play reports.

Hardback builds on Paperback’s ‘make a word, use that word to buy letters, use those letters to make a better word’ gameplay with the added complexity of letter genres that grant added bonuses for thematic combos.

Another twist on the previous game is ink, which can be spent to draw extra cards, but must be used to spell a word if they’re drawn, adding a layer of push-your-luck strategy.

There’s also a different scoring method, with cards now directly contributing victory points rather than simply granting the currency needed to buy valuable book cards as in Paperback.

While the gameplay has been expanded, Hardback is still consider a prequel to Paperback, set during the 19th century and inspired by the likes of Jane Austen rather than the first game’s 20th-century muses.

Hardback’s Kickstarter campaign made an impressive almost $300,000 last spring, which also unlocked an expansion for Paperback.