Pawnbarian

Pawnbarian is a puzzle roguelike. Use chess moves to control your hero on a tiny dungeon board and learn how to outmaneuver enemies with various traits!

24 September 2021

Card & Board Game Indie Puzzle Strategy Tactical Fantasy

Pawnbarian is a card & board game developed by j4nw, released 24 September 2021 on Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS and Linux.

Verified 17 Sep 2026 Sources: IGDB , Steam

What Pawnbarian is

Pawnbarian is a card & board game game developed by j4nw and released in 2021. It is available on Nintendo Switch, Android, iOS, Linux, Mac and PC (Microsoft Windows). It runs on Unity 2019.

How it plays

It is played from a bird view / isometric perspective. Its themes are fantasy. It is a single-player game with no multiplayer component.

What it launched against

Pawnbarian launched on 24 September 2021, within three weeks of Deathloop, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Far Cry 6 and Death Stranding: Director's Cut. It arrived 4 years into the Nintendo Switch's life, so it was built for hardware developers already knew well.

Released around the same time: Deathloop, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Far Cry 6, Death Stranding: Director's Cut.