In a way, it was somewhat surprising at first just how quickly I was able to get though a single successful run of Loot River. At least what I initially took as a “successful” one at that. Put aside the ample retries and attempts – the basic mistakes and foolish decisions that cost yet another decent run to end up back at the start again. If you know what you’re doing and don’t fall into that same pitfall of getting too cocky with the gear you’ve acquired and the stats you’re managing, you can find yourself getting through the bulk of the main objective of Loot River in little under an hour. Forty minutes shone on the in-game timer as I reached what I believed was the end-point. A seemingly dramatic send-off that requires one final action before…the cycle starts a new and you’re back to square one. Oh you’re not done, nowhere near. Both in content and sinister reveals alike, Loot River is a game built from quick bursts and slow-burning patience alike. A release whose initial longevity may seem short (and technically, can be considered far from the lengthiest of investments), but whose secrets – whose true route to triumph – are guaranteed to keep you locked in that endless loop.
Is it then that much of a coincidence that Loot River’s emergence as a series of lightning-fast sessions is in part thanks to the support of SUPERHOT Presents? A publishing/funding initiative started by the very team behind what remains one of the most perplexingly-ingenious takes on first-person shooting and puzzle-solving alike. A game that, much like Straka’s own efforts here, on premise alone sounds like an utter eye-rolling nightmare of a sales pitch. A shooter that only moves when you do? Or in this case: a roguelite described as “Dark Souls meets Tetris”? Likewise a game that didn’t overstay its welcome, but whose own supposed short run-time was anything but a detriment. While far from uncommon this may be, to find a studio throwing ideas in a blender and seeing if the end product turns out alright, Loot River is the latest title that immediately conjures that most startled of responses: “how has no one thought of this, until now?” There are games that attempt to find harmony between two or more conflicted camps and then there’s something like Loot River that, like that growing list of greats prior, has struck dungeon-crawling gold. And its nature as a roguelite – to the point it almost reaches meta level in its construction – is but the start of why the ample hours spent cursing, groaning and regretting one’s many failed runs have been nothing short of brilliant.
And yet that satisfaction – not just despite failure but because of it – has been a growing trend among these genre highlights. To the point that maybe one can canonize it as the kind of pedigree roguelite releases, not so much fundamentally require, but so often excel on. Dispelling any connotations that a procedural game that may or may not be at the mercy of random luck is in some way a detriment. That being equally prolific on both gameplay and presentation can make the entire experience worthwhile. you’re able to start splitting hairs on how complexly-detailed or expressive the art of one game may be compared with another, but whether it’s Dead Cells, Children of Morta, Hades and now a game like Loot River, there’s no pre-established formula or feeling of artificiality to credit with the way these games orchestrate that organic feeling of encouragement. To fight through the pain of death and failure – to counteract that seeping regret or disappointment – and learn not just from one’s mistakes, but of the secrets and hints the game is eagerly wanting you to stumble upon. It may have taken me forty minutes to supposedly hit the end, but it was only around hour ten that I finally figured out what Loot River was actually wanting me to do. And it’s because straka.studio manage to so perfectly strike a balance between fair and punishing that makes those repeat cycles ultimately worthwhile.
To discuss in any reasonable, let alone grand, length as to the real objective underpinning Loot River would be to undermine what feels like that most personal of accomplishments you get after that amount of time spent in the game. One of getting to grips with the mechanics (as much the challenge) of its block-shifting movement and real-time combat, but also one of investigation – of deducing how each of the dungeons interlink. Loot River may behave like most roguelites on the surface – subsequent playthroughs unlocking new weapons/gear/charms/level modifiers that may make later attempts easier – but in order to properly triumph, sometimes you have to face those tricky scenarios unsullied by such modifiers.
It’s only because the game puts trust on player deduction and of having invested sufficiently in getting the layout of the dungeons why this reveal of sorts pays off so well. And why the more crucial attempts thereon are evermore satisfying to finally see beaten. That tenth hour of play-time where I’d finally figured it all out and done what I’d needed to do to reach the true end point of Loot River – that’s an achievement not merely given to you, but one carved out of toil and hard work. So the fact Loot River, even without this hidden incentive, already proves itself a more than competent and intriguingly novel spin on the traditional roguelite template should give you a clear-enough indication on just how great a release this game is. And this is before we even tackle anything to do with gameplay or controls. Another feather in Loot River’s weirdly-hybrid cap: the way they’ve gone about constructing their world artistically and technically on top.
One that upon boot-up of that first [dreaded] run, you may’t help but look down at, perhaps literally, with a sense of hanging amusement. The slightly higher than normal, overhead perspective; the not-quite-fluid animation of character sprites; even the way the game frames all this through some kind of analog, aged filter. Like attempting to watch some old VHS recording on an OLED monitor. There’s just something about this retro-meets-pristine quality to Loot River that one can’t help but gravitate towards. An aesthetic that, as you quickly discover, is deservedly played up in marvelous ways. None likely moreso than the way water is animated. The thud of many a Tetrimino platform – as you slot, shift and move many a shape about the flooded dungeons you explore – causing ripples of pixelated water to flutter across the surface. It’s rare you find yourself describe the rendering of water as holding all the viscosity of sand slipping through your fingers. And if that comparison sounds strange to you, it’s only because Straka have created something so insignificant and yet so profound that the natural outcome is of course to see this effect play out again and again.
Add to that the way environments reflect and how lighting glows on its surface and what you have is a game that acknowledges that pixelated graphics may well not be enough in current time to wow its audience. Thus it’s this utilization of modern technology with what is still characterized as a “retro” aesthetic that has made Loot River a curious sight merely on appearance. And after playing through its campaign, one that signals just the tip of the iceberg as to why Straka’s debut outing makes a solid argument to keep replaying over and over. The basic objective underpinning, being to clear a set number of dungeons in one solitary run. Die at any point in the run and you have to start all over, stripped of all the gear and stats you had on your person up to that point.
Again, without going too much into the specifics of the true structure, Loot River takes to the concept of repeat runs in a way that encourages players to instead actively engage with its more troublesome moments. But not just in its leveling-up system which has you killing foes so as to increase one of five base stats. Stats that, depending on how they specifically stack, govern how powerful weapons get on top of more health and later on, how much magic you can utilize. One of the more notable tools – presented in such a way to encourage greater risk for greater rewards – is the ability to sacrifice healing potions prior to tackling a new dungeon. Get though said dungeon and return to the central hub and you’ll get back double the amount you put in. So for example, if you want to bet big and hand over all four of your starting potions at the first dungeon, the reward is a sizeable eight potions in return should you survive. It’s but one small mechanic that adds so much to how players approach Loot River in so far as how much they want to explore and how desperately they want to just get through to dungeon’s end. Not that exploring dungeons doesn’t too reap its own benefits, but even the very act of movement is one that will easily garner appeal and herein lies one of Loot River’s main draws: its platform-shifting traversal.
By far its biggest selling point going in, it goes without saying that the Tetrimino nature of navigation in Loot River seldom gets old for two reasons. Firstly, the fact that it can oddly shift from perilous dungeon-crawler one second to a puzzle-platformer the next – moments where combat is almost put to the side in favor of a tricky little deduction on how to shift pieces around so as to progress. And second, its very nature of moving differently-shaped platforms is too emergent in the ample scenarios this kind of movement brings. Scenarios where the very manipulation of platforms can be used offensively – making opportune back-and-forth swipes at enemies that can’t reach you – defensively and generally in a far more tactile manner than they at first present. Even after countless hours, Loot River’s platform-shifting doesn’t get old. Perhaps the procedural nature helps alleviate any concern on the mechanics growing stale, or maybe it’s that these same scenarios can also go so horribly wrong if you’re not factoring in position as well as what enemies are lying in wait. In the end, it’s another aspect that slots in surprisingly well; where the feeling may be that having to shift so many platforms around at any one time can get annoying, it’s these very strategic and perilous properties that prevent the concept of basic movement from feeling like a tiresome gimmick.
The fact the puzzle-platforming side of Loot River effortlessly weaves its way even into the series of boss battles on top shows just how well Straka utilize this premise. Better still, even when you find yourself jostling between three separate components of the controls – movement, the movement of platforms and attacking on top – Loot River never feels cumbersome or overly-complicated to get to grips with. Sure the fact you can only move platforms in one of four directions does require you to think more rigidly with one’s moves, but encounters generally feel sufficiently tailored for what players can manipulate and influence at any one time. And yes, boss battles too (and how you tackle them) also play back into that previously-mentioned overarching objective. Another part of the game that can also throw up unexpected surprises or moments you just may accidentally stumble into or upon, especially with how exactly you’ve decided to “modify” a given run.
With so many moving parts and moments that can descend into button-mashing chaos on top, it’s inevitable that at the briefest of spots, Loot River does unfortunately fumble. An instance of a bug or two popping up during certain moments – worse, the type of bug, like getting stuck on a platform and being unable to move at all, that can abruptly end a run. A minor if frustrating example where the back-end doesn’t always keep up with just how nimble you can move and how freely the environment can shift in layout. So too a few spots where one’s attacks outright clip through a foe for no reason, not least at a major boss battle, all the while you’re still taking damage from said enemy’s own strikes. As much as that same fumbling can oddly work in your own favor by contrast – enemies weirdly halting or refusing to attack despite being a mere diagonal step away – Loot River doesn’t always get the technical handling right. So too the incline of difficulty can at times feel inconsistent. And while there are perks and modifiers to help alleviate any sense of difficulty you might face, there are certain parts that can feel too chaotic and overbearing given how restrictive the platforming intentionally is. Not least when a myriad of foes are dealing out melee, projectile and AoE attacks alike and can leave you stunned lock into a quick death. One of the few moments where the roguelite nature can work against itself.
Closing Comments:
Even occasional bugs and minor inconsistencies on challenge do little to sully a terrific first try for straka.studio and the team’s own foray into the over-saturated realm of roguelite releases. To say Loot River is a game mechanically and visually enticing would be to downplay just what makes a game of this stature such a treat to repeatedly explore. Unusual a pitch it might’ve sounded, the eccentric implication that “Dark Souls meets Tetris” isn’t entirely unwarranted. In a game whose novel implementation of movement alone is one with a plentiful amount of offensive, defensive and tactical potential, let alone a mere tool for traversal that can be as equally costly as it is a helpful aid. Just like its technical niceties that add so much to the pixelated aesthetic, it’s what the game doesn’t reveal at the outset – and thus, that desire to figure out the true path to success – that is by far the most impressive thing about Loot River. One that not only justifies its quirky alternative to run-based progression, but through it transforms the game from that of a humble roguelite into one that, strangely enough, is just as much puzzle-platformer as it is grueling dungeon-crawler. That initial leftfield and admittedly attention-grabbing pitch was reason enough to ponder. It’s what Loot River slowly but inevitably drip-feeds further in that truly makes straka.studio’s creation a stand-out in 2022.
