Frank Beddor announces Looking Glass Wars video game for Steam

By AI, Created 1:40 PM UTC, May 20, 2026, /AGP/ – Frank Beddor is bringing The Looking Glass Wars back as a strategic video game, The Looking Glass Wars: House of Cards, set to launch on Steam this summer with a demo planned for Steam Next Fest in mid-June 2026. The release marks the 20th anniversary of the trilogy’s U.S. publication and expands the franchise with a companion artbook Kickstarter.

Why it matters: - The Looking Glass Wars franchise is getting a new digital entry at a milestone moment, extending a 20-year brand into games. - The project could broaden the audience for Frank Beddor’s Wonderland universe beyond books and graphic novels. - A playable demo at Steam Next Fest may give the game early visibility with PC players and strategy fans.

What happened: - Frank Beddor announced The Looking Glass Wars: House of Cards, a new video game coming to Steam this summer. - The announcement aligns with the 20th anniversary of the U.S. publication of Beddor’s New York Times best-selling trilogy. - A playable demo is scheduled for Steam Next Fest in mid-June 2026. - Beddor also plans to launch a Kickstarter campaign for The Looking Glass Wars: Visions of Wonderland, a museum-quality artbook tied to the game release. - More information is available in the announcement trailer and game assets.

The details: - The Looking Glass Wars: House of Cards is a single-player, strategic deck builder. - The game uses a quest-based progression system instead of a run-based roguelike structure. - Players will face 140-plus handcrafted escalating challenges. - The campaign is described as 15 hours or more and has a definitive conclusion. - The game blends pattern recognition, sequencing, and card-draw management. - Players use Imagination Points to build a literal House of Cards that unlocks new abilities. - The House of Cards also affects when powerful cards appear in the deck. - Suit allegiance is part of the progression system, with Heart, Club, Spade, and Diamond families shaping mastery. - The game reimagines familiar Wonderland characters as elite operatives in a war-torn setting. - The project aims for a darker tone than traditional Alice in Wonderland interpretations.

Between the lines: - The game appears designed to stand out in a crowded deck-builder market by emphasizing persistence, campaign structure, and puzzle-like play. - Tying the release to the franchise anniversary suggests Automatic Publishing is using the milestone to reactivate interest across the broader Looking Glass Wars catalog. - The Kickstarter artbook adds a collectible, fan-focused product that can deepen engagement beyond the game itself.

What’s next: - The Looking Glass Wars: House of Cards is set to arrive on Steam this summer. - The playable demo will debut during Steam Next Fest in mid-June 2026. - The Kickstarter for The Looking Glass Wars: Visions of Wonderland will launch alongside the game release. - Frank Beddor and Automatic Publishing are likely to use the anniversary year to push the franchise across multiple formats.

The bottom line: - Frank Beddor is turning a 20-year literary franchise into a new game-and-collectibles push, with Steam and Kickstarter as the main launch platforms.