The Living Dungeon

I recommend this game with reservations. It has some very cool things going for it. First off, if you are a fan of board games (like me) then this definitely scratches that particular itch, most of the time. There are a handful of levels in the story mode that are distinctively puzzles - that is to say, you don't really roll the dice or draw cards but rather attempt to play the dice and cards that you are are prescribed in the correct (and only correct) order to succeed the only way possible. These levels, for me, are the weakest part of the game. Yes, there is satisfaction from figuring out the solution - and you will have to figure it out, the game isn't big enough to be able to find any walkthroughs for - but the frustration begins to set in quickly when you realize that you want to play a tabletop board game, not a puzzle. Also, the RNG is often unfair. Now, let me clarify that I LOVE randomness in games. My favorite board games are Ameritrash style (Camp Grizzly, Fortune and Glory, Marvel Legendary, I could go on and on) and my favorite pen and paper RPGs are ones with random character generation (Heroes Unlimited, TMNT, well, anything old-school Palladium) so I am not at all one of those people who screams with rage every time he sees a game with RNG elements. However this game does sometimes take it a little far. Example: I was once tasked with killing two enemies who start out in the same room as each other on the opposite side of the map from me. After ten or so failed attempts I just happened to start the game with a Sentinel card in my hand. I placed a Sentinel in their room. Bam, two dead enemies in one round and I never had to leave my starting square. There were other times that the RNG had a similar sort of play against me. And as much as I love randomness, it is simply not fair to win or lose before you (or your opponent) even get to make a turn. Finally, the voice acting is tolerable, but the voice casting is atrocious. And if you don't know the difference, imagine if Bobcat Goldthwait had been cast as Groot. Sure, he could have said the lines, but it would have sounded ridiculous. I have the same problem here - Sajotir in particular just sounds silly. Now, I have bashed the game on three seperate criteria, but recognize that both the first and third issues only affect Single Player Story Mode, and frankly, board games like this are never as fun unless you're playing with friends. Also, both are small issues. I can overlook some bad voicing especially since you only hear the voices during the between-mission cutscenes. I can overlook some puzzle missions since they are not the majority. And while some will never get over the RNG issues, they were not enough to kill my entertainment completely. So, if you are a fan of board games and tactical games that require you to rethink strategies on the fly to deal with random elements, then this game is definitely worth picking up.