Dice & Foldis the newest release from indie developer Tinymice Entertainment, released in conjunction with dual producers Rogue Duck Interactive and Gamersky Games. The full game officially became available to the public on June 24, but a playable demo has been available on Steam for a bit longer. The game is a mashup of various genres, such as turn-based strategy, dungeon crawler, card battler, roguelike and more. Debuting to positive reception, the development team seems to be placing an emphasis on user feedback while shaping the future roadmap of the game.
Review: Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble
Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble may stumble at times, but it reaches its goal with charm, challenge and collaboration.
Am I Playing Solitaire, Fighting Through a Dungeon, or Both?
There isn’t any story throughout the levels of Dice & Fold; you’re simply fighting your way through dungeons. This lack of narrative compliments the rather straightforward gameplay and makes it easy to pick back up throughout the day. Dice & Fold isn’t trying to be something it’s not; it understands that it’s a casual mesh of genres and presents itself that way. The game isn’t oversaturated with tooltips or icons on the screen. Rather, the interface is plentiful without feeling crowded or overwhelming.
The gameplay is simple: pick your starting card and roll dice to take out (or “fold”) your enemies. You can pick a companion who, similar to you, has a special ability that can be activated using certain dice. The enemies, however, also need to be folded with specific dice; each turn, you must choose between swiftly killing your enemies, healing yourself and your companion or utilizing special abilities to give yourself the best advantage. Strategizing is key, with the occasional opportunity to buy magical items often mixing your plan up. In order to progress through each level’s dungeon, you must fold enemies throughout various stages. You must clear your path and fight your way to the end.
Challenging vs Overly Difficult
The first few stages of the first level are deceiving. For players who are not accustomed to roguelikes, turn-based combat or card battlers,Dice & Foldseems like the perfect introduction; you are guided through each step during the first few stages and remain on the same screen throughout the entire level. Enemies are easy to defeat and you may begin to let your ego get the best of you. That works in your favor until you hit around stage twenty (out of twenty-nine). You begin facing off against numerous opponents with strong attacks, having to strategize in order to crack their defenses. I played on easy mode, as someone with a usual aversion to turn-based combat, and failed the first level three times before completing it.
Dice & Fold’sdifficulty appears to be a bit too challenging, with various other players also having a difficult time proceeding in their playthrough. While strategy and tactics are compelling elements, easy mode can sometimes feel like another game’s hard. The game is marketed as a roguelike, with one key feature of the genre being starting over every time you die. That’s exactly what many players love, but the difficulty makes dying more frequent, and subsequently, increasingly frustrating. The rest of the game may fool you with its inviting aura and charming characters, but the gameplay itself quickly puts that cozy vibe to rest.
Best Tavern Playlist in Town
The audio design inDice & Foldis excellent. It’s hard to expect much more than some shuffling sounds from a card-based game, but the sounds are immersive. Even the most general sound effects, like coins dropping onto a table or dice rolling on a countertop, feels authentic and only bolsters the experience. The best part, however, is the background music. The premise can feel simplistic after a few rounds in a row, and it would be easy to discount the cozy vibe without fitting music. The song that plays during matches is warm, inviting, and most importantly, invigorating.
If the sound design wasn’t enough, the art direction inDice & Foldis also wonderful. At first glance, it looks like a (very talented) person’s doodles in their notebook. Once you look deeper, though, you can see the shading and texture on each element – helping individual items stand out during gameplay. The characters are adorable and diverse across various genders, races and fashion sense. While other games with cutesy art can feel overpolished or emotionless (seeAnimal Crossing: New Horizons), the player experiencingDice & Foldis completely drawn into the fantasy setting of the game. With warm lighting and soft textures reminiscent of a classic fantasy tavern, the player can easily lose themselves in the experience.
Closing Comments:
Dice & Foldis a casual, yet challenging, foray into the dungeon crawler genre. With a deceptively cute and simplistic art style, the game pushes players to strategize, use their decks to their advantage and make the enemies fold. What the game lacks in narrative is made up for through the ability to customize how you fight, who you bring as a companion and what you carry in your inventory. So hurry up, grab your backpack and let’s get to slaying some monsters!
Dice & Fold
Version Reviewed: PC
Dice & Fold is a fun, cozy take on the dungeon crawler genre. Fold your enemies with turn-based card attacks and make your way through various levels.
