Loot River

A roguelike that a combo of solid combat and sliding block puzzles, but prepare to be broke a lot.

Loot River has a lot of good features. Controls, artwork, music are all very nice. The combat, while not bad, does nothing to move the genre forward. The unique Tetris-like platform moving is enjoyable, but nowhere near the complexity or difficulty of Tetris. I can see the potential for a great experience, but it just isn't quite there. Occasional difficulty spikes that knock me for a loop and put me out of the mood to make another run leaves Loot River as a good, not great, game.

After a slow start Loot River really grew on me. It took longer than I would have liked to start progressing but once I did things felt good enough combat-wise, incredible enough movement-wise, and intriguing enough roguelike-wise that I put in a lot of time (mostly on PC) before launch. It is available day one on Game Pass and is exclusive to Xbox and PC at launch. If you have the patience, you will be rewarded with one of the more unique takes on the genre, and I think that it is well worth checking out.

Loot River's real-time puzzling attributes are a refreshing stamp on the roguelike genre, without a doubt. Yet it falters in ways that can completely break your experience and takes a few steps back feature-wise, making the early hours of re-running an absolute nightmare.

If you’re all about going with the flow (where the flow hurts you sometimes), then allow me to introduce Loot River—a tense roguelike that floats somewhere between a Souls game and Tetris. Developer straka.studio have made an innovative take on an already well-established indie genre, a new venture for a team mostly known for its bright AR puzzles and turn-based mobile titles. But does Loot River leave you up the creek without a paddle or does this fresh spin on the rapids have what it ta...

Gosling—who even when he’s stomping on skulls in Drive—has always played someone rather likeable in movies. With his first written-and-directed film, he appears to be trying too hard to show that he has a dark, nihilistic side, that he’s much harsher than a “hey girl” meme. There are some interesting details, but Lost River never coalesces into something larger than a strange art installation. But, as a director, he isn’t a lost cause.

Tetris and Souls games go in the blender in this inventive roguelite.

Overall, I like the idea behind Loot River’s mix of puzzle-solving and exploration, but its execution failed to hook me. Its rogue elements are punishing without providing the catharsis of a well-earned victory. However, players who are looking for the more stringent confines of a traditional roguelike may still want to dive in. The game is out May 3 for $24.99 on PC and Xbox Series X | S.