Lost in Random
Image Credit: Zonk! and Electronic Arts
Throughout my gameplay of Lost in Random I had the constant feeling of familiarity. This sense never correlated to one thing, but a medley of other gaming and film experiences. The common, and fair, comparison is to a Tim Burton film, like Nightmare Before Christmas or Corpse Bride. Not only does Lost in Random have dark and whimsical Burton themes, but the almost claymation art style is reminiscent of these films as well. The sense of being adrift in a dangerous and outlandish world compounded with an evil tyrannical queen themed around cards/dice felt like I was playing a chapter out of Alice in Wonderland. My last large comparison before diving into the uniqueness of Lost in Random would be centered around its combat mechanics. The stop and go combat felt like the time freeze mechanic found in Supergiant's Transisitor. Though there were a few moments that felt like characters were directly pulled out of Nightmare Before Christmas, Lost in Random certainly finds its identity in both story and gameplay.
One of my favorite parts about Lost in Random is the rich and deep narrative around the world of Random. The game is broken up into six districts; each themed after a different side of a die. For example, there is a district called Two-Town where you frequently find characters with split personalities and an actual second physical side of the town. To throw another pop culture reference comparison into the mix, these districts are reminiscent of the different districts found in Hunger Games. Each district has somewhat of a grander duty to the Mad Queens kingdom and you find yourself helping the locals as you progress towards Sixtopia, the district where your sister is held captive.
A casualty of conveying this rich world to the player is the dialogue. The dialogue for both side quests and main objectives felt far too long winded. The writing of the dialogue was creative and funny at times, but I do believe the level of world building found in Lost in Random could have been achieved with more concise dialogue. Conversations are dragged out and I was tempted to button mash through dialogue segments. Fortunately, I chose not to and I was rewarded with a true appreciation of the world of Random. The layers of whimsey and dark fantasy found in Lost in Random is unmatched and fans of those genres will be elated to experience this story.
When it comes to the actual gameplay, I found myself really enjoying it for the first half of the game, but there reaches a point in your progression where deck building falters. Throughout Lost in Random, combat sequences are a mix of traditional 3rd person combat and paused strategic states, called the Dicemension, where you play magical cards to best your opponent. These magical cards range from giving Even a new weapon, a magical turret, or even health replenishment. The problem lies with the lack of high level cards in the late game.
The cards you play have a token stat that correlates to your die roll. If you role a four during the Dicemension segments, you then need to play cards that can be played using four tokens. Lost in Random's depth of card variety somewhat stops around the half way point of the game. There are no high level token cards you get towards the end to truly let the player feel the power gained over your journey. This critique is grounded in a pure appreciation of this combat style. I genuinely enjoyed combat segments and I hope its depth could be more rounded out in a sequel.
In conclusion, Lost in Random is a polished blend of niche art styles and tropes found throughout beloved franchises. The developers built a world that is truly enriched with a storybook feeling even though they inundate you with drawn out dialogue segments to achieve such enrichment. The combat is unique but familiar and I was left wanting more variety and depth by the end of the game. If you are a fan of classic Tim Burton animation or love dark fairytales, you absolutely need to experience Lost in Random's story. If those two reference points don't interest you, then this game isn't such a straight forward recommendation. Busch League Gaming gives Lost in Random a 7 out of 10.
