Dice ‘n Goblins Review

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I strongly agree with these two beliefs of mine: The art design in Paper Mario offers a lot of untapped possibilities, particularly within the independent game market; and the genre of dungeon crawlers is significantly underappreciated.

Earlier this year, the game Dice ‘n Goblins piqued my interest. It offers traditional dungeon exploration gameplay and features a charming hand-drawn paper aesthetic.

The brief game trial I engaged in combined classic dungeon exploration elements with contemporary role-playing battle mechanics, offering a distinctive gaming adventure that bore a resemblance to the gameplay style of Etrian Odyssey.

Although the blend of genres and intriguing dice mechanics captivated me during the demo, it’s important to remember that role-playing games (RPGs) can be slow to catch on and require sustained player interest. As a result, while the demo was engaging, the full game may not always maintain the same level of appeal.

In the unique battle system heavily reliant on Random Number Generators (RNG), Dice ‘n Goblins aims to offer more than mere luck or monotony, striving to maintain my engagement instead.

In my analysis of Dice ‘n Goblins, I will delve thoroughly into the game’s combat and exploration aspects, demonstrating its approach to leveling up, whether it becomes monotonous or an enjoyable journey through various dungeons instead.

Do Or Die

In this game, the primary action is split into two parts: combat sequences and exploring dungeons. Contrary to what you might assume, these dungeons aren’t just simple, labyrinthine layouts; rather, they are often complex, multi-layered constructions, which I find incredibly engaging.

It’s definitely worthwhile to venture into every corner of the map, as you may discover treasure chests containing useful battle items or additional funds for purchasing effective equipment in general.

Whenever I come across a towering, vibrant-purple sphere that seems to be my foe, suddenly, combat ensues! It’s time to toss the dice, deciding whether to attack, defend, or heal. Admittedly, this mechanic can introduce an element of unpredictability at times, but I find myself drawn to the thrill and excitement it brings.

Firstly, you have the ability to personalize the dice you roll by selecting items found within the dungeon. Furthermore, you possess stamina that depletes when using special moves or rerolling, which I find challenging in the combat system.

You might assume that a reroll would randomly generate a new number within its designated range, but this isn’t typically how it functions. In the context of a battle, these dice are treated as physical objects, and they can collide with walls or ceilings. This frequent interaction often results in rerolls not being truly random at all.

Often, I found myself in disappointing scenarios where I’d exhaust my energy trying to re-roll, only to have the dice fail to move and stop at the same number. While special attacks can help alleviate this problem somewhat, they don’t quite solve it entirely.

Ultimately, the battle system in question has a similar vibe, particularly reminiscent of Dicey Dungeons, yet it introduces number sequences that infrequently trigger unique effects, given its somewhat unpredictable reroll feature.

It’s great if the fighting could impact the exploration somehow, since the dungeon delving becomes monotonous across the whole game, whereas combat is always evolving. However, even without that connection, winning tough battles is incredibly rewarding.

Roll For Charisma

The progression follows quite predictably. As you advance, you encounter tougher opponents with stronger attacks, and their health is more robust. Additionally, boss battles demand a touch more strategic thinking because of the novel status effects or tricks they use.

The concept of healing dice is the sole concern I have with this game mechanic. In many battles, you can almost guarantee victory if you possess two attack dice, a shield die, and multiple healing dice to fill the remaining slots.

This approach is quite leisurely, lacks excitement, yet it triumphs consistently across all battles within the game, without any adverse effects. The game’s difficulty rarely demands the creation of a character build tailored to a single strategy; instead, you can simply mend all damages with ease.

Instead of introducing consumable healing dice, there are two permanent healing dice available by the second dungeon, making tanking damage extremely effective.

By enhancing the capacity to transform defense dice into additional healing, particularly as it amplifies the effectiveness of those rolls, you can visualize how a challenging battle might unfold more favorably instead.

In essence, if you find it dull, feel free not to engage, but keep in mind that gamers usually opt for the easiest route. When the easy choice is so obvious, it can make the entire game appear monotonous.

Scrawling Scrolls

In the game Dice ‘n Goblins, it was the intriguing narrative that held my attention the most. The dialogue was often humorous and lighthearted, while the cutscenes hinted at a larger universe with ominous undertones. This grander world, though not fully visible, was subtly suggested in the story.

Each conversation partner you encounter offers unique pleasures, ranging from a cunning thief who strikes a bargain without prompting, to an amusing mouse attempting to navigate diagonally, only to be reprimanded for such thoughts.

Despite appearances, there’s more than just funny antics here. The backstory of the environment you’ve entered and the reasons why your group relocated to a forlorn network of dungeons on the outskirts of a deserted artillery base is surprisingly intriguing.

I found it incredibly enjoyable, and the timely appearance of cutscenes at key plot points kept things engaging and satisfying. This contributed significantly to a well-balanced pace throughout the adventure, making it an overall enjoyable experience.

Paper Thin

At first glance, the visual aesthetic is pleasing, as hand-drawn textures effectively complement the cel-shading, while the exquisite character designs add a lively touch to every figure.

My primary concern lies in the repetitive nature of the animations and the limited variety they offer. It’s rather unsettling to encounter enemies who attack at an angle of 45 degrees towards me, and the impact doesn’t compare favorably to the dynamic combat style found in games like Paper Mario.

It would be great if there were multiple sketches for every enemy character, considering how intriguing and skillfully crafted their designs are. However, the way they move smoothly across the screen using linear interpolation feels quite awkward instead.

The overall animation seems quite underdeveloped, appearing more like rigid, mechanical movements rather than fluid ones. Additionally, the characters lack the necessary vitality, making them seem static and devoid of life, which can at times disrupt my immersion in the game.

Pass The Aux

In Dice ‘n Goblins, the music is usually enjoyable, except when it seems to grate on my nerves. It’s a personal annoyance, likely unique to me, but I dislike that the music doesn’t loop smoothly.

During the dungeon exploration, the tune that’s playing occasionally pauses briefly before resuming abruptly, creating an unpleasant experience due to the absence of smooth transitions or gradual fades between various songs.

The sound design seems quite commonplace and often displeasing to me, not because of the individual sounds, but rather due to the subpar execution that typically detracts from the potential quality of the tracks.

To put it simply, the tunes themselves are peaceful and pleasant during dungeon exploration, and thrilling when it comes to battles. However, despite this, the variety of songs is somewhat restricted, and they might become monotonous over time.

Polishing Floors

During my gaming experience, I found myself consistently noticing an issue that I initially attributed to the demo version. However, even in the final release, the problem persisted and failed to receive any significant improvement.

As a gamer, I’ve found the animations to be quite rough and unpolished, almost as if they were designed with the most basic tools available. Unfortunately, I stumbled upon a soft-lock right after battling the first boss while trying to check my abilities, and it seems like the default Godot particle effect on the victory screen is as familiar to me as the back of my hand now.

It seems as though the foundation of the game was built, its initial visuals were crafted, and the audio elements were developed in a bit of a rush. They concluded that bundling everything up hastily using makeshift materials like shoelaces and duct tape would suffice for the final product.

The game lacks any sort of style or creativity, sticking closely to its basic concept without much attempt to make it more engaging. Unfortunately, it seems like there was little effort spent on refining the experience, resulting in a rather rough and unsophisticated feel.

World Map

Throughout my playtime with Dice ‘n Goblins, it initially made a strong first impression, but as I progressed, I found that it continued to deliver similar experiences rather than significantly developing its fundamental ideas.

The battles seem repetitive since I didn’t encounter situations that required me to adapt my tactics, the dungeons appeared similar with minor variations, and the bosses are just average in terms of difficulty and excitement.

Given some additional time for refinement, this could potentially turn into a real standout piece, however, at its current stage, I find myself not overly impressed while playing it. It’s amusing and adorable, but I don’t foresee myself yearning to return to it in the near future.

This game boasts an exciting idea, and its battle system could offer a fun experience when implemented differently. The concepts and ideas within the game are all impressive. However, what disappoints me is the poor execution that undermines most of the game’s potential strengths.

Closing Thoughts:

Dice ‘n Goblins is a delightful, charming role-playing game that ventures into dungeons, but it’s hampered by a significant lack of refinement, gameplay that doesn’t offer enough variety, and some debatable mechanics. The visual style is endearing and looks decent, but it falls short on animation and has a limited number of character designs. Despite its engaging storyline and excellent artwork, the experience often feels monotonous or frustrating in other areas. It’s a game that showcases promising concepts, but suffers from lackluster or inferior execution, leaving me longing for a much more enjoyable experience.

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2025-04-09 00:10