Lost in Random: The Eternal Die review: Dice, strategy and repetition

Lost in Random: The Eternal Die is a fresh take on the previous Lost in Random game, but adds a roguelite spin and puts the player in the position of the last game’s antagonist. Fans of other action roguelites, such as Hades, will find the general action and progression familiar, but The Eternal Die adds in a few unique elements that play on its roots in a dark gothic fantasy world full of twisted interpretations of common games like chess, dice, and more.

In my preview about a month ago, I wrote about the differences between roguelites and roguelikes. I don’t claim to be an arbiter of video game genres, but I can at least offer one interpretation. A roguelike traditionally presents no forms of progression between runs, while in a roguelite, the player can improve their chances on each consecutive run by improving health, other stats, or by unlocking new and more powerful abilities. The beauty of a roguelike is that every run has an equal chance of success, from the first to the last. It comes down to luck, game knowledge, and practice. A roguelite can be great, but it requires more patience and balance. A roguelite may be more difficult at first with fewer upgrades unlocked, but it can still give a good feeling of progression if it’s well-balanced overall.

Lost in Random: The Eternal Die falls into the latter, a roguelite rather than a roguelike. The early hours of the game are the most challenging and frustrating. Players should expect to take several runs to learn how the game works and earn a few upgrades before reaching the first boss becomes more regular. But these early hours are worth pushing through because The Eternal Die has a well-crafted world, clever mechanics, and satisfying action. It’s a game that’s worth your time, whether you’re a fan of the genre or not.

It’s All One Big Game

Everything in The Eternal Die is a game. Not only are you playing a video game, but the protagonist, Aleksandra, knows she’s in a game as well. Mare the Knight has trapped her in a realm of twisted memories. She can fight her way out, but Mare will always send her back if she fails. He feeds on her anger, frustration, and hopelessness. Of course, a villain from this world would set up a game to torture his captives.

But this extends even further. Throughout each run, you’ll find various artifacts that give you passive bonuses. This is not unusual for a roguelite, but what makes The Eternal Die stand out is how you organize them in your inventory. You start with an empty grid, and each artifact has up to three colors, which correspond to various stats such as weapon damage, dice damage, or other abilities. These colors don’t mean much, but if you can place three artifacts of the same color in a row, then you gain a 50% bonus to that stat. This match-three inventory management minigame adds an extra layer of puzzle and strategy to what could just be choosing whichever artifact is the strongest.

Finally, with each run, you’ll encounter a random assortment of rooms. You can choose which rooms to explore and in which order. Most of them are full of enemies, but there are a few other options like the shop, a mini-boss, or a mini-game. There are a few different games. One where you roll the dice, and the higher the number, the greater the challenge, but a reward to compensate. Another plays like a classic board game. Move a piece along a track and gain rewards for each place you land on. The irony of playing a game, within a game, within a game is not lost on me. The Eternal Die does not shy away from its creative world building, where almost everything is in some way related to a game.

Hedge Your Bets

There are several key ways to deal damage in Lost in Random: The Eternal Die. First, you have your basic weapon. You start with the Sword, but eventually can unlock three others: the Bow, the Hammer, and the Lance. They each have their strengths and weaknesses, but I always enjoyed the hammer. It’s shaped like a twenty-sided dice, so maybe it just speaks to me as a Dungeons & Dragons fan.

Next is Fortune, your companion. When traversing outside of combat, Fortune will follow you around. But when combat breaks out, Fortune sticks with you like a backpack. Toss Fortune into the fray, and the higher the roll, the higher damage she deals in an area of effect. But during combat, you’ll have to get close enough to Fortune to pick her up again. Artifacts will often add extra effects to certain dice rolls. A common one I found added burn damage whenever you roll a one or a two, which helps to make the bad luck of rolling low damage sting a little less.

Finally, you can have one card equipped at a time. There are a handful of options, but you are dealt one randomly at the start of each run. Each world typically has one room that offers the option to swap out for another random card. These effects will vary, but they all have a normal effect and a perfect effect. Hold the button down until the right moment to activate the perfect effect. This could be anything from extra damage, extra projectiles, or bonus side effects.

I decided to focus on using Fortune and the basic weapon attacks, so I often choose artifacts that enhance those options whenever I can. The Eternal Die is built on randomness; after all, Aleksandra was the Queen of Random. But there are ways you can hedge your bets. You can’t predict a dice roll perfectly, but you can make sure that even if you only roll a one or a two, you are still getting something out of it.

Practice Makes Perfect

One of the few downsides of Lost in Random: The Eternal Die’s gameplay loop is repetition. I remember when I first beat the first boss, I wondered if it would serve as a checkpoint. Would my next run start at the second world? Unfortunately not. Every run starts in the first world, which wouldn’t be that much trouble, but after several hours, it does start to get predictable.

The maps are procedurally generated, so there is no telling exactly what you’ll encounter through each door. Artifacts and cards also go a long way to keeping combat fresh. But overall, each run starts to blend together. The first boss has some variety in their attack patterns, but when you have to go through it every single run, it can all start to add up. Plus, the further you reach on a run, the more frustrating it becomes to have to start from the beginning again. I understand that in many ways, this was probably the intention. The game’s antagonist is feeding on frustration and lack of hope. It’s like Aleksandra and I are feeling the same emotions, being played by the same villain. But this would be a more profound idea to explore if each run felt less like it was treading a lot of the same ground.

Outside of the action, The Eternal Die can feel disjointed. The story arrives in moments and conversations, not always in a traditional, linear way. The gameplay feels different every time, but still has the same foundations that need to be tread over and over again. It’s fair to argue that this is the way the game is meant to be, but there are definitely some players who will give up on continuing to see this game to the end because of this.

Final Thoughts

This is a very different game from the original Lost in Random. Fans looking for a proper sequel won’t find it with The Eternal Die. But if you’re looking for a more action-focused spin-off, or if you’re looking for an action roguelite to hold you over until the next Hades 2 update, you might have found something very special.

Lost in Random: The Eternal Die has a great aesthetic. This game builds upon and offers a great glimpse into the fantastical world established in the first game. The NPCs are all unique, memorable, and fun to interact with. The entire game being fully voiced goes a long way, too. The biggest highlight, though, may be the inventory management match-three puzzle you have to explore on every run with the artifacts. I hope future roguelites take this concept and run with it. While it’s not perfect, Lost in Random: The Eternal Die deserves your time. It could easily become your next big roguelite obsession.