Die within the Dungeon is a brand new roguelike deckbuilder that pulls some concepts from Slay the Spire, one in all my favourite video games, however provides some dice-based twists which have me hooked.
In Dungeon, your purpose is to outlive by progressively tougher maps of enemies by constructing a deck — however as a substitute of accumulating playing cards, you’re accumulating cube. During each hand, you’ve got a specific amount of vitality you should utilize to play your cube. And since you possibly can see each transfer your enemies will make on the following flip, the sport is usually about strategizing the best way to assault the baddies whereas defending your self.
If you’ve performed Slay, this setup ought to really feel fairly acquainted.
But Dungeon’s intelligent twist is in how you play. At the start of every flip, the sport will roll cube out of your deck into your hand, and also you’ll must resolve the best way to play them on a board. Each die has a worth, so the upper the worth, the extra harm you’ll deal or block you’ll set as much as defend your self.
There are a number of forms of cube, together with assault cube, block cube, therapeutic cube, and cube that may enhance the worth of different cube on the board. Each one prices a specific amount of vitality to play, which places limits on what number of you should utilize in a single flip. And generally, enemies will add modifiers to spots on the board.
Image: HypeTrain Digital, INSTINCT3
That all means you’ll need to assume loads about how and the place you play your cube on the board. Do you go all in with assault cube to take an enormous chunk of an enemy’s well being, however go away your self weak to assaults? Do you spend some vitality on a lift block to provide your self extra protection at the price of having the ability to use a well being cube? Just about each flip in Dungeon requires some strategic considering.
The depth of the technique makes the Slay-esque trappings one thing of a consolation. I discover Dungeon to be very onerous; the enemies can actually pack a punch in case you’re caught off guard, and I haven’t been in a position to get previous the bosses of the sport’s first two worlds except I’ve a transparent concept of what my construct is.
But I already perceive how to consider constructing a deck from many hours of Slay. I’ve referred to as on a number of these abilities to make issues simpler over the 10-plus hours I’ve put into Dungeon to this point — and to perform my one and solely cleared run.
While Slay is sweet at retaining issues snappy with battles which might be simply lengthy sufficient — I might typically end a run in round 45 minutes — runs in Dungeon can drag. Individual battles can take minutes on their very own due to how a lot you may simply sit and assume. Loading screens that take 5 or extra seconds add up over the course of a run. The dungeon maps even have a couple of too many areas. My longer runs, the place I’ve gotten to the third and ultimate world, have taken almost two hours.
Dungeon is launching in early entry, although, so I’m hoping the rougher edges will get smoothed out over time. Even over the couple weeks I’ve been enjoying the sport, there have been some welcome updates, like one that offers you cash in case you select to skip an end-of-battle reward. The recreation’s builders have posted a promising roadmap, too. That all makes me optimistic for Dungeon’s long-term future.
And its basis is absolutely robust. I’ve had a blast with Dungeon, regardless of its faults and me solely having crushed the sport with one of many three accessible characters to this point. After I lose a run, I typically mull over how I might have accomplished issues otherwise, and I’m normally desperate to hop again in to roll the cube once more.
I’ve been actually wanting ahead to Slay the Spire 2, which is meant to come back out in early entry this yr. But I might need already scratched the deckbuilding itch with Die within the Dungeon.
Die within the Dungeon is now accessible in early entry on Steam. You can strive a model of it totally free on itch.io.
