When comparing Duelyst vs Zero-K, the Slant community recommends Zero-K for most people. In the question“What are the best free PC games?” Zero-K is ranked 39th while Duelyst is ranked 45th. The most important reason people chose Zero-K is:
You can create your own multiplayer battles, even password protected ones for playing with friends only.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Strategic elements
Duelyst combines a collectible card game with strategic elements of games like FIre Emblem or Front Mission.
Pro Fun card crafting system
Allows anyone to make any card rather than having to just rely on random luck of packs. This is done through disenchanting unused cards for a fraction of their value in order to craft needed cards with what is earned from disenchanting.
Pro Balanced well
Free 2 Play with fair rewards for non-paying customers. While those that pay will have an early advantage, players can earn the same advantage with time spent in the game for free, it just takes longer.
Pro Multiplayer online battles
You can create your own multiplayer battles, even password protected ones for playing with friends only.
Pro Expansive tech tree
Land, sea, and air. Choose your favorite play-style and use the appropriate tech tree. There are tanks, bots, walkers, planes, helicopters, boats, and submarines available to you.
Pro Flat tech tree
All units are available from the start of the game. There are no unit upgrades and you don't need to build certain buildings to reach the next level of unit.
Pro Awesome graphical effects
Despite it is an open source engine, the graphics are fantastic.
Pro Cross-platform game
There are versions for Linux and Windows. The easiest way to play in Linux is using Lutris platform.
Cons
Con Difficult card collecting
Takes a while to get a good deck, but it is mitigated with a good ranking system. So it may take a time investment in order to earn the appropriate cards to be competitive.
Con Bad visual design
Obviously this is an open soruce project so nobody expects AAA level gfx but this one looks exceptionaly bad. Some of the weapon effects are hideous to look at. Simple things like UI buttons and color scheme seem to be visually out of sync with the way unit models and the map terrrain look.
It seems like a mishmash of visual styles which is probably a result of many different contributors of varreying skill levels.
There definately are visually consistent and pelasant ot look at open source games so The visual design of the game needs to have some sort of strcut guidline or rely primarily on the taste of a single individual from the ZK team.
Con Flat balance
The economy is very close to a Total Annihilation economy (despite all the changes they introduced) but the unit balance resembles games with harder unit counters like Warcraft and Starcraft. In Blizard games, there are different ways to limit what unit type or kind you can build at any stage of the game, like tech structures which the opponnet can scout.
In Zero - K this is not the case since there are no tech buildigns focusing the player on a certain unit type which can be scouted. You can make all units at all times. The gameplay design feels amateur and not thought through From the broadest perspective. It also manages to miss the advantages of the Spring engine and mixes the need to micromanage units that counter each other with big Area of Effect Weapons.