The monsters in Hungry Horrors are not there to be defeated. They are there to be fed. Clumsy Bear Studio’s folklore-inspired card game has launched in its full 1.0 version on Steam. Drawing on British and Irish folklore, Hungry Horrors casts each card as a meal served to one of the creatures standing in the player’s way. Every encounter becomes a race to keep a Horror fed before it gets close enough to make a meal of the player instead.
The story follows a spoilt princess who is pushed into action when a ravenous curse spreads through her kingdom and a dragon wakes at its centre. Saving the realm means improving her cooking and feeding the Horrors of local legend, all while a sarcastic cat keeps up a running commentary. Feeding a Horror involves managing its hunger, its flavour cravings and taste chains, with dishes upgraded using seasonings. Cookware, spices and artefacts picked up during a run change how each attempt plays out, and events and legendary characters can be encountered along the way.
The developers claim to have leaned heavily on regional sources. Every Horror, NPC and artefact is based on folklore from the British Isles, ranging from well-known figures to more obscure local tales, and every dish is based on a genuine traditional recipe, many of which are still served in pubs today.
The 1.0 release includes:
- Steam Deck Verified status, with full controller, mouse-only and keyboard-only support
- Eight biomes from across the British Isles, from green meadows to moody highlands
- 34 folklore Horrors, among them the Dullahan, Jenny Greenteeth and Queen Mab
- 62 dishes based on traditional British and Irish recipes
- 13 legendary characters, including Herne the Hunter and the Wulver
- Seasonings, cookware, potions and artefacts that change how runs play
- The Book of Taliesin meta progression system
- Two modes: Campaign, a roguelite story mode with Vanilla and Spicy difficulty options, and Banquet, a shorter and harder roguelike mode with its own difficulty levels
- 33 unique death animations for when a Horror reaches the player
- An original score by composer Henry Taylor
