It's a wild time for indies. Just this week, I've had the opportunity to review Zero Parades: For Dead Spies as well as preview Mina the Hollower, two of the biggest indie releases of the year that, quite frankly, could compete for GOTY in an incredibly stacked 2026.
Among the many new releases, I also find myself spending quite some time with Rune Dice, a very unique roguelike that nails the simplicity of being a pick-up-and-play kind of game. Its short runs are fun in bursts, though it lacks more nuanced depth if you are hoping for longer play sessions.
In Rune Dice, developed by Smart Raven Studio, you can play as up to eight different classes, each with unique dice and different characters. The general vibe is that of a cutesy, pixelated high-fantasy setting, which fits perfectly with the tabletop nature of the game. You won't be throwing any 20-sided dice here, but what is offered is a blend of physics and deck-building that will easily satisfy your craving for a quick time-killer.
The gist of the gameplay is simple: pick a hero equipped with unique dice, select a boss, and move through a series of randomized encounters while equipping perks, purchasing items from shops, and powering up by defeating enemies along the way.
The meat of the gameplay is split into two halves: building a deck of dice with different abilities, and finding the right angle to merge them on the table to dish out massive damage.
Your starting die will always be a 1. From then on, the rest of the board is populated by a series of other dice of different denominations and abilities. Shooting your initial die into another 1 will merge them, creating a 2. This newly formed die will then bounce around, trying to reach another of the same denomination to merge into a 3, and so on. As they bounce, dice of the same number will constantly try to magnetically attract each other. While it's not a guarantee that you'll pull off an insane trick shot, it is incredibly satisfying when you do.
Once the dice stop bouncing around your screen, all of the merged dice are piled up, letting you reap the rewards of a crazy combo—or deal with the consequences of getting completely screwed by the game's physics. It's a balancing act between playing it safe at the expense of dealing relatively low damage, or going for a pool-esque trick shot to merge those sweet, high-numbered dice spread across the board. Furthermore, modifiers add an extra layer of strategy to what otherwise looks like a very simple game.
Dice come with unique modifiers, both class-dependent and available as rewards as you progress through the map. For instance, the Rogue class has a Dodge die that protects against incoming physical attacks. General dice include damage-dealing abilities like Bomb dice, which hit every opponent in an encounter. You will also find great utility in Coin or Healing dice, which grant currency or health depending on the number associated with the die you are merging (a 2-die gives you two coins, and so on). Choosing utility means sacrificing immediate damage, and I often found myself weighing whether to heal up or calculate the perfect angle to finish enemies in one go to deny them a counterattack.
Unlocking all eight classes can be tough, but if you're hooked on the base lineup, making the effort to get the Bard class is absolutely worth it. To unlock the Bard, you have to successfully merge a die until it reaches the number 8. The exclusive dice for the Bard include one that returns to the board after being activated with a +1 value, and another that inflicts a stackable debuff on enemies.
Beyond dice, you can collect a wide variety of trinkets known as Relics and Runes. Relics power up your specific build with interesting passive modifiers. The same principle applies here as it does to classes: there is general utility available for everyone, alongside more niche, class-specific Relics. For example, remember those Rogue Dodge dice? If you equip the Phantom Strike Relic, you earn +1 damage to direct strikes per stack of Dodge. If you want to play extra carefully, adding the Evasive Maneuvers Relic grants an additional Dodge stack whenever you merge a Dodge die with a value of 3 or more.
As for Runes, these are one-time-only consumables that can help you overcome sticky situations. A bunch of them are basic and uninteresting—granting simple shields or healing—but eventually, you'll run into the really fun stuff. The Gravity Rune, for instance, pulls all the dice it covers into each other without ending your turn. If you have a juicy stack of 2s or 3s sitting on the board, that is the perfect time to let it rip.
Because this is a roguelike, getting all the pieces you need to make an overpowered build is up to chance. Repetition is highly incentivized, as you'll consistently unlock more Relics, Runes, and dice across runs.
That said, the maps are very short, consisting of only three locations with three different bosses each. The structure remains identical per region, though the specific encounters change every time you boot up a run. You get your standard enemy fights, mini-bosses for juicier rewards, shops to purchase items, chest rewards, and a few unique events—like a jester who challenges you to complete a specific trick shot for a high payout.
Unfortunately, once you play for a couple of hours, you have essentially seen everything Rune Dice has to offer. I would have loved it if the developers had committed more heavily to the actual dice physics. They could have gone crazier with the bounces or added unique modifiers around that specific mechanic, which currently feels a bit neglected. Sure, it's fun that each die has different abilities, but the actual act of flicking the die feels dull over time. Imagine a Relic that let you curve your shot, or one that let you spike a die to bounce it through the air. Features like that would make the board setup even more engaging. I appreciate the simplicity of the gameplay, but I just wish there was a bit more meat to chew on.
There is real underlying potential in Rune Dice, but the execution lacks that final "oomph" factor. The reason why a similarly simple concept on paper, like Balatro, works so incredibly well is because it nails the sheer wackiness of its mechanics and turns them up to 11, letting you essentially break the game.
Ultimately, Rune Dice is a charming, well-constructed distraction that perfectly understands the assignment of being a simple time-killer, even if it leaves you wishing for a bit more punch in its mechanics. It's wonderful to boot and play, especially if you just have a spare 15 minutes before heading out to work or school, making it a neat indie to add to your collection.
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