Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series, PS5
Genre: Action, Roguelite, Isometric, Gothic, Dice-Rolling

To quote a previous report we did, the Lost In Random games are what happens if you had Tim Burton and Henry Selick team up to make an action-adventure title, but with dices, cards, and ye ol’ traditional gaming of yore before the bleeps and bloops of home computers & consoles. It was pretty whimsical and fun in its own right.

Lost In Random: The Eternal Die takes that world and turns it into a Hades clone; an isometric action game where all levels & placements are randomized in each different biomes you go through, and you gain powerups that make you fight better. If you die, you start all over again but with the benefit of spending your permanent resources, Pips and Cinders, to buff up your character’s stats and weaponry. Heck, you can buy new weapons to change up your playstyle in subsequent runs; I personally stuck with the hammer because of its damage, knockback, stun potential, and its ice-forming charged attack.

Hold ‘Em & Fold ‘Em

Don’t get me wrong: me calling it a Hades clone isn’t a diss at this game. In fact, it serves as a benefit as people can jump into this title and see what new spectacles and mechanics are in store that set it apart. For one, the aesthetics and landscapes are charming, spooky, and unique all at once. Alluding to the earlier Tim-and-Henry quip, Lost In Random: The Eternal Die is set in a dark world filled with broken toys, steampunk foes, and all sorts of pitfalls and traps in a medieval-esque era combined with the main character’s penchant for games of chances -dice rolls, playing cards, what have yous. Its plot revolves around the queen from the first game, Queen Aleksandra, as she ends up trying to escape the nightmare realm she is trapped in thanks to her adversary Mare. Of course, there are a few plot twists here and there that you can see coming, but its presentation and voicework does make it a cut above the other roguelite titles of 2025, or even last year’s.

This being a game that uses dice, cards, and parlour games as its theme, Lost In Random: The Eternal Die adds in cards, match-three upgrades, and dice rolls for your combat and power-up repertoire. You can equip up to one card power that’s usually a powerful spell that uses up your “card energy”: homing flying cards, fire cones, ice shields; the list is extensive. You also have your trusty animated dice Fortune who can be thrown for damage; the bigger the die number, the more damage it deals. Also, giving Fortune the obligatory temporary roguelite buffs do make it cast different spells if it rolls a certain number or two. So far, I cherish the power-up that makes Fortune give me double damage if it gets a 6.

Lastly, Aleksandra’s run power-ups and buffs come in the form of a match-three tile board. You get relics that you place on said board, and they have their own colours: red, blue, green and so forth. If you match three in a row or column of the same colour, you get a passive stat boost depending on which colour; green is Luck (critical chances, etc.), while red is Damage. I’m more of a brute force guy in my roguelites, so all my playthroughs rely on me dealing as much damage as possible, so red’s my go-to match-three colour. I’d even take yellow (Card Power) and green (Luck) at times just to open up my options. Point is, this system is unique while also teaching you to be flexible as all received Relics are randomized; you may not get the red relics you want, so you need to be smart and adapt. If you’re extremely lucky, you can even get Magic Dyes that can change your Relic’s colour so you can match-three properly. It’s pretty customizable, and gives roguelite action fans a ton to play around with for many, many runs.

And you’d want to play it over and over again, as the game’s default difficulty is pretty challenging. Aleksandra has few (if no) invincibility frames when she gets hurt, so there’s a good chance you can get your life drained quickly if you don’t dodge or get out of the way quick enough. I had a boss or two obliterate me with their rolling and laser attacks because of how persistent they were in chasing me down. But at the very least, Aleksandra’s dashes have quick recovery so you can mash it. Her charged attacks are quick, and she is very nimble. So really, it’s a skill issue if you get yourself gutted by accident by the multitude of dungeon traps and incoming enemy fire. And if you’re done with the game’s initial story, post-game options like Challenge Runs will make you want to test yourself further with what random setups you can get in store.

Snake Eyes? Hardly…

Without its dark fairy tale motif and interesting match-three upgrading mechanic, Lost In Random: The Eternal Die will get lost in a sea of other isometric action titles with roguelite elements. Though to be fair, this eclectic title does have spot-on controls and feels good to play through multiple times, even if some of its challenges may not faze the genre’s most brutal of players. Oh, and also the technical glitches, with one of them freezing my current run literally. Fortunately, a quick restart puts me back to the last stage in my previous run.

Lost In Random: The Eternal Die is a fun jaunt at most, with some polish and tweaks that are welcome in the genre. You’ll make good progress with the game’s story while also revelling in its intense action and temporary roguelite power-up system that’s in tune with its analog gaming backdrop. It’s not a royal flush, but it’s a steady hand that’s enough to sate your roguelite action-heavy tendencies.

Final Score: 70/100

Review copy provided by publisher.