A One-Handed, Portrait Craft-and-Survival App: How to Play Card Craft, Where You Tap 35 Cards to Survive

Published 2026/11/04 / by MASHIMARO produce

Disclosure: the apps in this article were developed and distributed by the operator of this site, Free Game Com (indie developer Masimaro).

"I want to progress a little at a time in spare moments." "I'm not good with games that have complicated controls." For anyone like that, here is the craft-and-survival app Card Craft: Craft & Survive With Cards.

Note: prices and details are based on the App Store listing (store description) as of October 27 to 29, 2026. They can change, so check the latest information on the store page before buying. App names are our English translations of the Japanese titles. App Store links go to the Japanese App Store; availability may vary by country.

What kind of game is it?

The tagline is "Flip, dig, craft, survive." It's a one-handed, portrait craft-and-survival game you play just by tapping a 5x7 = 35-card layout. You tap cards to gather materials, craft tools and weapons, and travel eight worlds while surviving hunger and the threats of night.

How to play

• Tap to gather: tapping grass, log, stone and ore cards wears them down, and when they break you get materials. With the right tool, the speed and amount you gather change.
• Craft: with a workbench, furnace and anvil, you turn materials into 87 kinds of items, from a wooden sword up through copper, iron, silver, platinum and mithril. You can make weapons, armor materials, food, medicine, vehicles and structures.
• Day and night: as time passes and the sun sets, enemies such as zombies, bats and golems appear on the board and wear down your health if left alone. Build a dirt house to protect yourself, or forge weapons and fight back. When morning comes, the enemies vanish.
• Hunger gauge: it keeps dropping, so grow rice, fish and cook to secure food.

Eight worlds (biomes)

The journey that starts on the grassland expands greatly once you build boats, ladders and airships.

1. Grassland: where everything begins. Wood, stone and pigs
2. Sea: coral, driftwood and fierce sharks
3. Mountains: red earth and towering rock
4. Cave: veins from copper to platinum, and golems
5. Village: rice paddies, fields and meeting villagers
6. Underground: mimics that disguise themselves as chests
7. Ruins: mithril and gears, ghosts and gorgons
8. Sky: above the clouds, and the final sky where the dragon waits

Each area has different resources and enemies.

You can't run out of resources, and things grow while idle

• Squares you've dug out return to grass or rock over time, so you can't get stuck by running out of resources (store description).
• If you place a magic circle, farm or well, resources keep growing while you're away.

Deep-play elements

• Encyclopedia: automatically records the blocks, mobs and items you meet. Voxel models rotate, and you can check durability, suitable tools and drops.
• Treasures: 14 kinds, found in chests, ore, fishing, ruins and from the dragon.
• Requests: three at a time, with item rewards. 26 kinds rotate in.
• Achievements: 25 kinds.

What to check before buying

• Price: 120 yen on the App Store. Check the Google Play price on the store page.
• Supported OS and size: iOS 15.0 or later, about 6 MB (App Store)
• Age rating: 9+ (App Store)
• Languages: Japanese and English (switch any time in the game)
• Features in the store description: one-handed portrait play, playable without an internet connection, save data stored on the device and auto-saved each morning, sound can be turned off with one tap

Note: check each store page before purchase for whether there are in-app purchases.

Who it's for, and who it isn't

Recommended for: people who want to progress a little at a time, who want to play one-handed in portrait, who like gathering materials to make things and who want to fill an encyclopedia or collection.

Not for: people who want fast real-time controls.

Try the browser version first

The browser version, Card Craft, is free to play with no installation. For idle-style games, see 8 free idle and clicker games.

Download: Google Play / App Store

FAQ

Q. What kind of game is Card Craft?

A. A craft-and-survival game where you tap a 5x7 = 35-card layout to gather materials and craft 87 items, traveling eight worlds while surviving hunger and enemies at night.

Q. Can I play one-handed?

A. According to the store description, it's a one-handed, portrait game with no difficult controls.

Q. Do I need an internet connection?

A. According to the store description, you can play without an internet connection. Save data is stored on the device and auto-saved each morning.

Q. Can I try it for free?

A. You can play the browser version of "Card Craft" free with no installation. Check the app's price on the store page.