Let me tell you about the first time I truly understood what makes PH Laro games special. I was sitting with three friends in my living room, our eyes darting between the television screen and our smartphones, completely immersed in Sunderfolk. What struck me immediately was how this hybrid approach to gaming—playing on your TV while managing your actions through a mobile app—creates this unique dynamic that traditional games simply can't replicate. The experience feels simultaneously communal and personal, public and private, and after playing dozens of sessions across multiple PH Laro titles, I've identified seven essential tips that will transform how you approach these innovative games.
First, let's talk about device setup because getting this wrong can ruin your entire experience. I learned this the hard way during my third Sunderfolk mission when my phone battery died mid-combat. Unlike traditional games where you might just pause, here it completely halts everyone's progress. Always ensure your phone or tablet is fully charged before starting, and I'd recommend keeping a charger nearby for longer sessions. The beauty of this dual-screen approach is that it distributes information beautifully—the big screen shows the cinematic action while your personal device displays your unique abilities and options. But this separation only works if both devices are functioning optimally. I've found that phones with at least 6.5-inch screens work best for comfortably viewing your ability cards without straining your eyes during those intense two-hour gaming sessions.
Now, about those ability cards—this is where strategy truly begins. Each hero in Sunderfolk has between 12 to 18 unique abilities represented as digital cards, and understanding when to play each one separates novice players from masters. Early on, I made the classic mistake of hoarding my most powerful cards for "the right moment," only to finish missions with unused potential. The game's design actively punishes this conservative approach. Through trial and error across approximately 50 missions, I've developed a simple rule: if a card can create immediate advantage, play it. The turn structure is surprisingly forgiving—you can backtrack during planning phases—but once you commit to movement or attacks, there's no going back. This creates this wonderful tension between careful planning and decisive action that I absolutely love.
Communication might be the most overlooked aspect of PH Laro games, especially when playing on difficulties above the easiest setting. On casual mode, you can basically do whatever you want and still succeed, but medium difficulty requires coordination, and hard mode demands near-perfect synchronization between party members. I remember one particular mission where we failed seven times before realizing we needed to discuss our card combinations before each round rather than during our turns. The game encourages this conversational approach by allowing players to exit their turn planning if the group decides someone else should act first. This fluid turn order system is genius—your party can act in whatever sequence makes strategic sense, but you only lock in choices once movement or attacks begin. My groups typically spend 60-70% of our mission time in discussion, which might sound excessive until you experience how satisfying it is to execute a perfectly coordinated series of abilities.
The mission structure in these games consistently surprises me with its variety within a familiar framework. Yes, every assignment ultimately comes back to combat—you'll be killing foes in approximately 90% of encounters—but the secondary objectives create fascinating strategic layers. Defending specific points on the map requires completely different card combinations than chase sequences where you're trying to prevent an ally's capture. Exploration missions often reward creative use of movement abilities that you might overlook in straight combat scenarios. I've noticed that the most successful groups assign specialized roles based on each hero's card collection rather than trying to make every character good at everything. Personally, I always gravitate toward support characters whose cards provide healing or buffs to allies, though I acknowledge that damage-dealers tend to receive more dramatic moments.
What continues to impress me about this gaming format is how it bridges different types of players. The smartphone integration makes the experience accessible to people who might feel intimidated by traditional controller layouts, while the strategic depth satisfies hardcore gamers. I've introduced Sunderfolk to friends who hadn't touched a video game since their childhood, and within thirty minutes, they were competently discussing card synergies and turn order strategies. The learning curve feels perfectly pitched—challenging enough to remain engaging across dozens of hours but never so obtuse that it pushes people away. If I had to estimate, I'd say most groups need about three missions to fully grasp the systems, then another five to develop genuine proficiency.
My final tip concerns something most players don't consider until it's too late—managing frustration during failed missions. Unlike many games where failure often stems from individual mistakes, PH Laro games typically require group problem-solving when things go wrong. I've been in sessions where we failed the same mission eight times, and the groups that succeeded were those who used each failure to refine their approach rather than assign blame. The game's design facilitates this by showing exactly what went wrong in most scenarios—perhaps we didn't prioritize the right enemies, or we used our most powerful cards too early in the encounter. What looks like simple combat on the surface reveals itself as this beautifully complex puzzle where every card played affects multiple variables. After playing through Sunderfolk's entire campaign twice with different groups, I'm convinced these games represent one of the most innovative developments in cooperative gaming in the last decade.
The true magic of PH Laro games emerges when you stop thinking of them as video games in the traditional sense and start viewing them as collaborative strategic experiences with digital components. The division between the shared screen and personal devices creates this unique social dynamic where you're simultaneously having a collective experience and individual ones. I've never played anything that so perfectly captures the feeling of sitting around a table playing a board game while delivering the production values of a triple-A video game. Whether you're a seasoned gamer or someone who just enjoys strategic challenges with friends, these seven tips will help you unlock the full potential of this fascinating gaming format. The first time your group perfectly executes a complex multi-turn strategy that you planned entirely through discussion, you'll understand why I believe this might be the future of social gaming.
