Hands on with the Lost in Random: The Eternal Die PC Version
Roll the die for battle with Lost in Random: The Eternal Die, which launches June 17th (or June 13th with the Fortune Edition). Take a look at our first impressions from the game!
By Craig Bishop (Gamesplanet)
Lost in Random: The Eternal Die Preview copy was provided by Thunderful Games for testing purposes, opinions are Gamesplanet's own and not representative of Thunderful Games. Performance stated is in a pre-release build and may not reflect the final game.
Deal cards and prepare for another roll of the die when Lost in Random: The Eternal Die from Thunderful Games launches next week on June 17th. This brand new rogue-lite set within the Lost in Random universe, is a sequel to the action-adventure title from 2021 developed by Zoink (later merged into Thunderful) and published by EA.
Unlike the previous game, the game is more "Hades" like, with you playing as Queen Aleksandra and her die-companion Fortune. While the game does share lore and story from the first game, you don't need to have played that to understand things and if you're a newcomer you can easily get the lay of the land quite quickly. Though if you did play the original game you'll understand the characters more.
A Game of Chance, a Test of Skill
As a rogue-lite the game is already in a tough market, with the aforementioned Hades being the leader of the pack, but The Eternal Die isn't trying to re-invent the wheel, but rather keeping with what works. Players will be thrown into randomly generated levels within a castle, and each floor brings new challenges, puzzle rooms and foes to defeat. At the start of the game you're introduced to the card system, which let's you a pick starting power from a random selection of cards, for example: The Juggler of Poisons Card allows the player to throw a cluster of exploding flasks that poison enemies in range.
As you progress through the maps you'll obtain "Cards" which be slotted together in rows of 3 colours, by doing that you'll be able to power up your skills even further. You also have your trusty die Fortune, who can be thrown at enemies at range to help you out in battle - and may even be able to change the outcome of battles by offering assistance.
If you fall during a run you'll be sent back to the Sanctuary (why is every safe haven hub called Sanctuary?) where you can upgrade weapons, change outfits and power up your skills. Speaking of weapons the game offers 4 at launch, with each one being upgradeable in various ways. For example the starting sword will let you change your element type so you can use fire, wind or poison.
Just One More Run
By progressing through the four randomly generated floors of the castle you may encounter mini bosses, or even puzzles that test your skills. At start of each floor you'll come face to face with a boss to defeat, and it'll take all your reflexes to stay alive. If you have played other games like Hades you'll know that they can be a bit hard first time, but once you have played a few times and got more currency to upgrade it'll make things easier. Plus, you have the option for ranged or melee combat depending on the selected weapon type.
With some rogue-lite games you can simply button mash, but Eternal Die keeps you on your toes and it's important to move around as staying in one place could be the difference between life and death. Traps litter rooms, and if enemies don't kill you then the traps will.
While I have only played a little of the game I was impressed with the characters (all fully voiced) and the variety of enemies in the game so far. You definitely get that "one more run" sense of playing, which is a good thing in a rogue-lite. I don't know what awaits me in the floors above, but I am eager to find out.
What's Next and Closing Thoughts
There's still much of the game I haven't seen in my short few hours with the game and I look forward to seeing what lurks on the floors above in the castle. It would be nice if they added a few more weapons post-launch, or perhaps a different character with some different abilities. Even if there's nothing ahead for the game, what we have already is definitely fun for those looking to dive into a game for multiple runs. The game also managed to make me smile with its humour, something that Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 did recently, and I love the characters in this world.
If you've played the original Lost in Random, or you're a fan of rogue-lite games like Hades then The Eternal Die may be for you!
Lost in Random: The Eternal Die launches June 17th and you can pre-order on Gamesplanet to save 15% off the game until July 1st. You can also pick up the Fortune Edition for 30% off and be able to play 4 days earlier from June 13th.
How about Steam Deck?
Lost in Random: The Eternal Die is already Deck Verified, and definitely lives up to that claim offering an (almost) smooth 90 FPS on the OLED Deck, but still offers a 60 FPS experience for those on the regular Deck. There's a couple dips between combat encounters and moving to new areas, but for the most part it's a rock solid performer. Not only that, but you can expect to get great battery performance of an average 4-5 hours on default settings. This is especially great news for those who like games such as Hades in handheld.
Lost in Random: The Eternal Die Gallery
To round out let's have a look at some screenshots from the game. All screens are taken in 4k resolution at max settings on a Desktop PC.
