Loot Rascals

After a friend's recommendation, I decided to give [i]Loot Rascals[/i] a try, and I am really glad I did. [b][i]Loot Rascals[/i] is in the genre of puzzle-roguelikes.[/b] And yes, you read that right - this is a [i]like[/i] in the sense that it is true turn-based gameplay. Brilliantly done, I may add. You actually move in real-time, but whenever you cross into another hex, a turn passes. There are very short day/night cycles that determine if you get first hit on an enemy. You will instantly kill the enemy if your power is greater than his 'strength' or HP. All the math is transparent, and there are only like three numbers to keep track of which makes it quite elegant. This is where the puzzle portion comes in, and fits it nicely in the puzzle-roguelike genre along other titles such as [i]HyperRogue[/i], [i]The Depths of Tolagol[/i], and even [i]Crypt of the Necrodancer[/i], among others. [b]Yes, it is brutally hard - but more importantly - it is hella addicting.[/b] I have a hard time putting it down. The other notable part is that there is a built in card game of sorts. The loot you collect from fallen foes is cards. The cards give you buffs depending on how you lay them out. It's all simple to learn, yet slowly reveals its depth as you figure it all out. The only other part that you may want to know is that there are no meta-game upgrades. There is a pseudo-multiplayer component, but so far I haven't found it potent enough to really matter one way or the other. [b]Pros:[/b] +Awesome artwork and music and just such a zany universe +Surprisingly addictive, and it is so easy to just fall into another run +Keyboard and mouse support is great, and so is controller support +Daily runs and leaderboards certainly keep things fresh +Both the turn-based combat system and collectable card game are *really* well done [b]Cons:[/b] -Yeah, it's brutal, but hey thats what we came for -I do wish you could play with keyboard only, but no biggie [b]A must-own for anyone who enjoys turn-based roguelikes.[/b]

It's a crime that more people are not playing this. Learning enemies, the ins-and-outs of the card system, and using all the tools made available to try and survive has been a blast so far. Very difficult, but playing well feels rewarding. It's more of a puzzle game than anything else. Take your time, use the day/night cycle to your advantage and get all the loots! You rascal you! Also you can use giant bird..boulder...thingies to blow up enemies! What isn't to like?

There's a lot to love about this, but ultimately there is zero progression. If you die, you die (maybe not off-putting to everyone) but [b]there is no save functionality[/b]. You cannot play one game over multiple sessions, and this breaks the game for me. Even the one tiny hint of progression [spoiler] (mailing yourself a card, if you are lucky enough to find a mailbox) [/spoiler], doesn't persist if you log off. This should be upfront info, because it's a killer.

Initial Impression: Art style and music are fantastic! Card system is pretty neat as well, fights are not random and you can plan ahead with the day/night cycle system they use, which works very well. Has some kind of online function as other people can find loot you dropped and sent it back which is cool as well. It pretty hard though only made it to level 2 in my first hour of gameplay. Easy recommendation for fans of rouge-likes and people who are not annoyed by difficult gameplay. Edit: After 3h of gameplay: So after 3 h I made it to world 3 once. Maybe I'm just bad but it feels really hard to survive. Which I like. The game is basicly about planning your turns (day/night cycle) right so that you take the least amount of damage from fights (as already said fights are pretty non-rng if you plan correctly and you can even calculate the cance of getting hit if you want) and managing the cards in your inventory right. The cards are pretty neat, some are just plan attack and defence modifier (add +1 or +2 etc.) others have special requirements like all pans get +1 or +1 if in an even row/column) which makes you think how to use them. Some of these cards are flippable meaning you can either use them for attack or defense. Other cards are sticky, so once equiped you can't just remove them. Plus there are special cards which give you abilities like teleportation heals or zaps and more (which have to be added to already equipped cards and then add the abbility for you to use). Those abbilities either recharge over turns or by spending tokens (which you get from recycling cards you don't use). Other special cards allow the fusing of for example all attack cards you have equipped. Tokes are also used to heal yourself at the base. Because teleporting back to base and then back to where you were takes 50 turns you can't abbuse the heals. They also increase in price every run. On each level you are basicly on a turn limit shown in the upper right corner and if you exceed it bad things happen (think spelunky). You can stay longer but after a set amount of turn even worse things happen (again with a timer) so you might want to leave to the next level rather soon-ish. For that you have to find the exit. After playing 3 h the first level seems rather beatable, however the 2nd one is still very, very challanging for me :P. Other cool features of the game: -At the base you get a quest every level to kill a baddy and return the loot he dropped. You are rewarded with extra space to hold (not equip) cards or a reveal map card for example. -The semi-mp feature of the game is neat, returning cards to other players or getting card returns to you can help you set up a new run, as you can equip the cards returend when you start a new run. You also can find holograms of the players YOU returned the cards to, and they will fight for you! -The cards and their effects are pretty neat, especially the special cards which can have effects like reincarnation or spend tokens to get extra turns withouth the baddies moving. You don't even need to equip those cards to use them in some cases, they work from your backpack. -The baddies are pretty interesting as well. Some of them just charge you but others have unique mechanics to them: There are "horse brothers" which change their power value on each step so you must be careful not only to attack them at the preffered time of the day where you attack first, but also when their power value is low, there is a night witch and when you are close to her it won't change to day anymore, there are baddies which drop special cards like a spectral guy dropping the decoy or a rotting thing dropping the teleport modifier....just to name some. -As already mentioned the art-style and music/sound are a 10/10 for me ;). So I don't know much about the later content of the game, as the one time I reached lvl 3 i died early but still what i have seen is pretty neat and worth a recommendation as stated in my first impression after 1 h of gameplay. One more thing: Some might not like that you can't save a run and continue it later.

This is a really enjoyable game. The style and sound is top notch. The interface is great with a controller, a bit iffy with mouse. The mechanics teach themselves fairly quickly. You decide your own stats with card placement. You choose what cards to put your power sleeves on. You get a lot of choice and when the game kills you for it you die with a smile. Interesting asymmetrical online mechanics where you're rewarded for kindness to other players, unless you want to straight up steal the cards you find from them and have them hunt you down later. Cons: No save feature, high randomization, high learning curve. Could use audio sliders.

While the inability to save a session mid-game is pretty annoying, this game's keep or return recovered hot loot is totally original!

This is a little older now, so the comparison to newer games may not be entirely fair, but I found the gameplay loop to be unexciting, and not being able to save midrun is a deal breaker.

An excellent pick-up-and-play addictive one-more-go turn-based strategy exploring card collecting inventory management procedurally generated rogue-lke with super-nice Greenblat-esque stylings.

A game that could kill your character instantly in so many dumb ways but you still want to building your character inch by inch and keep fighting through the end. It's not fun anymore once finished the game, cause there isn't any reward or upgrade for another run. (like there is in other roguelike games e.g. binding of isaac)

So, I broke my foot this week and decided to pick this up while recuperating and so glad I did. The Spelunky Showlike (now Eggplant: The Secret Lives of Games) podcast were always raving about this game. Figuring out the nuances of what makes this game tick has been the highlight of my week. I've struggled just to get to World 3 a handful of times only to die quickly. Yeah, it's a hard game. Yeah, there's some luck involved. But, having the mystery in front of me of what weird things the developers put in the future worlds keeps me plugging away. On a side note, there isn't a way to save during a run which people complain about in the reviews/comments. I understand where they're coming from, but at the same time, I like the idea that when I sit down with the game, you're committed to it. Your run might last 10 minutes or 45+ minutes, but you're in for the haul. Highly recommended. Thanks!

I have a softspot for everything turn-based, so this game I do enjoy a lot, add to that the clever card placement mechanic and the wonderful art, and it's a solid "yes" for me

Fun rogue-like. It's turn based but animated very well so that it doesn't look it at first glance. Great character and enemy designs. It's very hard. Took me 23 hours to get a win. Your stats are determined by placing cards in a grid, and the cards affect each other so you have to arrange them right. You can also gain powers that recharge when you explore and powers that run on tokens you get from permanately discarding cards. Combat is mostly deterministic and based on a day/night cycle that shifts every 5 turns or so. Enemies will be on defense or offense based on the time of day, and many enemies have unique properties you have to keep in mind too. Really fun, really hard, and really interesting.

After Nothernlion’s recommendation about this game, saying it’s a hidden gem buried under all the Mass Effect Andromeda drama, and he definitely wasn’t wrong. At the time I’m writing this review I’ve played for about 2 hours, only making it to the third world once. Your success in this game relies the game’s perfect use of perfect a balance of skill and RNG. Gameplay wise the game uses an interesting combat system with the use of 2 stats, offence and defense, and a day/night cycle that makes all monsters easier or harder to fight. It explains these mechanics very well in the tutorial. Not to mention the game’s amazing art style and soundtrack. Another little quirk I thought was nice is the game’s “not-so-serious” atmosphere it built itself. Overall I’d recommend this game at full price.

Great art direction and lots of personality. Feels casual to play, but has intereesting complex mechanics under its suggar coated skin. And of course, it's brutally hard. Recommanded for both roguelikes fans and newcomers to the genre.

It's visually light - hearted. It's quick to pick up and each game is plays out fast. The cartoony art style and upbeat presentation add to the appeal. The monster designs are fun; you enjoy killing the monsters but you can also get a laugh out of the close up when they get to loot your corpse. Replayablity? It definately has that 'one more game' impulse, especially since they are usually quick. The game play is simple, but requires thinking. Its rare that I lose because of random factors, its usually because I've made positioning mistakes. It's easier to get wiped out in the first five minutes (and then try again) than later when you are 20 minutes into a run. I've seem mentions of the lack of a save feature... I agree I'd prefer the option, but I havent found I miss it. Most runs are short and the ability to capture the Seed number of the run you are on lets you try the same setup again later, which is a feature I'm enjoying. If you don't get the special ability cards, the run can be a pain. The cost for healing skyrockets quickly, so if you dont find a healing ability, the monsters will likely be looting you. The ability to find another player's gear and return it to them is awesome. It is an interesting karma system since they might help you later or send a hologram after you for revenge (similar to spoiling your run in Splunkey by robbing a shopkeep). Feature I'd like added: More heads for the pilot, or a custom character creater,

An overlooked and underrated gem of a game. Runs can be heavily affected by RNG but that's part of what makes this game interesting. The art style is incredible and reminds me of a modern day Toejam & Earl which is what drew me to play it in the first place. It's unfortunate that this title got so little love when it launched. I think the failure of this game reflects more negatively on the gaming community as a whole than the game itself. *shrug*

I have been waiting for this game to get to Steam for few weeks and as soon as it came out I got it (Was refreshing when it was supposed to be released). I have put in 6 hours into this game so far and I have to admit that it is quite enjoyable but keep in mind that sometimes the randomly generated maps can screw you over. The reason I am saying it can screw you over is because often you might find yourself unable to get out of your safe area without landing on a dude that has higher damage, at one time I also had ice block blocking my way (it melts after a couple of turns but those are wasted turns). I really enjoy the "moral" question of whether to keep and use something some other player lost or actually send it back to them and make their next run easier. **Who ever got my 8 defense item, enjoy** A tip to anyone who is planning on getting this game - Never use "A" and "D" alone, always use them with "W" or "S".

Keeping it short and to the point: The strongest draw here is obviously the silly, vibrant cartoon aesthetic. But if you're into turn-based puzzlesome rogue-lites the gameplay mechanics will be no less of a treat.

Loot Rascals is a fun modernized true rogue-like with a very well implemented and cleverly central core mechanic.

I am not writing too many reviews, but this one had me go "Activate!". Loot Rascals is a hidden gem. It is the type of game that features a steep learning curve as well as a unique art style. The card mechanics, where they receive benefits or negatives depending on the placements within your deck keeps you puzzling throughout every run. The setting is loony and fun! The game holds for some hours of rogue-lite action! The Rules are easy but quite difficult to master. A neat little game for a relaxed evening. Go get it!

I love this game! The combat system is polished, the humor is spot on, and the levels are challenging, but fair. Honestly, this is one of my favorite dungeon crawlers of all time, and I am really rooting for it to gain additional notice by the gaming community.

A great rogue-like experience all around. This game delivers through not only a collection a unique aesthetics, but also through some interesting mechanics! I was fortunate enough to play this game at PAX South and have been waiting for it since! The gameplay will give you the thirst for exploration while simultaneously force you to question your own decisions. Audio - Superb. Soundtrack is probably one of my next purchases and the audio throughout the game is solid. (Very minor feedback absences when using the token abilities but not a game breaker by any means) Visual - While the screenshots paint a cartoonesque world, the animations bring it to life. Controller feel - Controls are super smooth with no jittering or missed inputs. Learning Curve - Minimal, this game is slightly frustrating in the manner by which you learn most things, through death; however, such is the way of rogue-likes. Definitely worth the purchase if you are looking for a leadboard-based, rogue-like, single-player experience.

A very awesome rogue type game. The ambience is retro and fun. The random cards and slow scale of the game is fun. The mechanics of the mobs and ability cards is fun. Problem solving is a bit simple and the game requires you to minmax lower levels to deal with the scaling of the game. But for someone in bed with their steam machine wanting 15 minutes of game before a book or sleep, its very light and very fun.

Extremely hard but satisfying rogue-like. A game of maneuvering and deck building, this game really sets itself apart!

For the amount of content i would not recommend to buy this above 2€. Its really one of the most basic games I've encountered in recent years. Also it astonishingly achieves to use 2,5gb of disk space, for a game i would imagine to be able to run on my 486.

Interesting roguelike with some very cool loot mechanics, where the placement of loot cards can enhance or reduce the effectiveness of other cards. It's weird, funny and worth the money.

For lovers of system-driven games! Loot Rascals is fresh and satisfying, even in death. It's pretty funny and fascinating, the card grid system is easy to apprehend and you start feeling like an effin engineer very quickly! The art style and sound design speak for themselves, simply beautiful. PLAY THIS GAME!

Difficulty scaled by level is crazy. Way too repetitive once you figure out the playstyle.

I bought this game because of the cutesy graphics, the turn based concept, and the ability to custimize yourself with cards. I would have loved this game if there was a save function. This game was a bit difficult for me, and I admit i'm not the best gamer. Finishing it in one sitting isn't realistic for me. The video advertised that the enemy took a card from you when you died (That doesn't sound too bad right??) but you actually lose ALL your cards and all progress when you die. I thought this was going to be a cutesy turn based costume quest- It's not.

Very good and beautiful roguelike ! Very simple yet very complex ! I hope to see more game like this...

Hilariously hardcore sort-of-turn-based sort-of-Diablo with a brilliant equipment system.

Adorable, fresh, atmospheric, and fun. More people need to play this.

This game is incredibly charming, and I adore the art style. Zap those baddies and upgrade your suit!

Great game with a great sense of humor

Some of the most fun I've had at failing miserably.

very epic hidden gem that should've gotten content updates

Very replayable & funny fast gameplay.

This is a pretty fun game, but it's also pretty hard.

Super. Game. Yo.

Do you like Rick and Morty? If you do you will like this one too

Great game... very addictive.