What would happen if you get into a blender nightmare before Christmas, Telecos, Alice: Madness Returns and several classic board games?
Well, it would come out something very similar to Lost in Random, the new game of Zoink!, A Swedish study known by Faith and Ghost Giant, which becomes its second title developed for the EA Originals program.
After almost four hours of play, its aesthetic remains the most striking of the title, although there is much more between the basin.
Winner of the Best Independent Game Award granted by the Jury of the Gamescon’21, Lost in Random is one of those small jewels that remain in memory, videogames to remember with love, although they have passed months and years since they played.
In short, an excellent first impression after approximately one third of the proven game.
Despite its appearance, it is still an Indie game, developed by a study of about 80 people, according to Klaus Lyngeled (creative director) and Olov Redmalm (Game Director), during the presentation of Lost in Random.
“It is definitely our biggest and most ambitious project. If I am sincere, the game has been developing around four years,” Lyngeled explained.
At this time, the first part of the project is told, which according to the study members themselves, began with drawings and figures, inspired by the animations in ‘Stop Motion’ of Nightmare before Christmas, “one of Klaus’ favorites.”
Afterwards, everything focused on the image of a girl with a die as a central axis, something they wanted to relate to a world of board games and the theme of randomness.
“Everything flowed very naturally, we wanted to mix things from another of our games, Flipping Death, with the narrative of Ryan North, who has worked in comics as Marvel’s invincible squirrel ‘,” said Lyngenge.
By very ‘random’ that sounds, the house combination perfectly.
When an inhabitant of any of the six kingdoms of Random turns 12, the evil queen, who governs everything, makes him throw away a die that will mark his destiny.
The six-sided die, will tell you where you will spend the rest of your life and what your time will be dedicated (in each district they do a type of work), Unburb, Londos, Triena, Mount Four, Cincópolis or Sistopia.
The story focuses on two sisters separated by one year old, the older, odd, during the first day of their sixteenth birthday, draws a 6, so it has to march to Seistopia.
In theory, this is the best place of all, where the Queen lives surrounded by luxuries and amenities, although nobody returns from there and besides, it is inaccessible to all those who have taken less than 6 in the ‘roll of life’.
It is then when her little sister of her, she will go in search of her, accompanied by Dadelio, a given given manner that will be the base of the mechanics of the game.
The game is taking the protagonists by the different areas of the kingdom that seem to put the accent on issues such as self-acceptance, the search for balance and their own and not self-imposed road, the brotherhood and perhaps, a small criticism of classism, since the
Random citizens are valued depending on the district in which they live and the work they perform there.
Aesthetically, each zone is different, allowing more or less free exploration (except those convenient obstacles that go to the character by particular areas), even changes the meteorology or time of day according to the district.
The inhabitants also change, although they share aesthetic patterns (some like the wolf men, are cousins brothers of the Lobo de Nichemilla before Christmas).
In addition, your personality is adjusted to the particularities of the area, for example, in Londos, all the inhabitants have double personality and this is changing every 24 hours depending on the Queen’s roll, although some of them manifest them at the same time
.
That is why couple will not know how to meet when she interacts with them according to the time of day.
Parent and odd parents, designed with a totally nineteenth aesthetic, reside in the district in charge of loading and unloading large boats that trade between areas, all with night aesthetics and tarry, as if it were the port of a London of 1888.
While another of the places, it is inspired by Alice in Wonderland and Lewis Carroll obsession for the letters.
Despite giving a certain sensation of exploration, progress is quite linear, although it allows to lengthen the main history with secondary and collectible missions that will make the delights of the trophies and hunters.
In addition, by allowing different choices of answering during dialogues, it allows the player to score for a certain personality, using friendly, impertinent or more or less neutral replies.
There will also be alternative paths on maps, some with destroyable objects that will give points, with which you can buy improvements and other objects, which will help to rid the necessary battles until you find your sister.
In addition, it can be sent to Dadelian to reach the places to which pair does not have access.
Board games are present at Lost in Random DNA, not only at aesthetic level, but on a gameplay itself.
To deal with the enemies, pair only has the help of the tirachin, at first, of course.
Then, shooting the crystals that appear on the body of the enemies, he will be filled with the die energy, unlocking a series of letters that activate different skills.
When the energy is filled, it can be launched at Dadelio, the die, then time stopped, allowing the player to choose the letters he wants to play against enemies.
Each of them has a cost and this is linked to the number that has come out in the die.
This is where the Lost in Random stands out, offering an innovative proposal of tactics and strategy.
The game does not make it easy to first (it is not a difficult game, not a Dark Souls), in the sense that Dadelio is lacking points, that is, it can only take off low runs until little by little, pair is getting points
Black with which filling the rest of the faces, in this way you can access better letters with more powerful skills.
The cards allow from putting traps or pumps on the map, until creating a sword, a hammer or a magical arc with which to directly attack the enemies.
They will also be
Exchangeable for life or by advantages in one’s own.
In addition, inventory can develop different customizable decks, with up to 34 different letters that will be unlocked, to choose one or another strategy in combat, depending on different categories such as damage, weapons, risk, traps and luck.
During the different maps, torque will find Manu Barajas, which, although it has a triler name, is actually a closet-shaped merchant (or from enclosed and merged creature with a closet), reminiscent of the resident evil village, but
It is its most gothic version.
Because if you had an emo or gothic phase, you took backpacks from Jack Skellington and listened to My Chemical Romance, this is your game, although if you were a more moderate teenager, too, because medievil and Little Nightmares liked everyone and Lost in Random moves
The same chromatic range.
The soundtrack, by Blake Robinson, is at the level of the rest of the game aspects.
It is the typical music that you will also be able to listen to out of the game, while you study or go on a way to work.
This composer, who also made the soundtrack of The Stanley to kind, has indisputably inspired himself at Danny Elfman, wrapping from darkness and tenderly the different moments of the game.
“Robinson himself wrote the lyrics of the songs and sang it with the voice of the characters. Something that surprised me since he in person he is a quite shy guy,” said Olov Redmalm.
Lost in Random is one of those difficult games to forget, just as recalls other movies and videogames while playing, at the end of cause the opposite effect, you will not stop thinking about it when you see references in the future.
Despite the lack of platform, which results in four automatic jumps, visual quality is so great, along with the original gameplay, which almost goes unnoticed.
Characters like the evil queen, which we have been reserved for the end, are simply incredible, with a design as impeccable as implacable (as the Queen’s opinions), with an aesthetics between terror and children’s stories, fully achieved.
On September 10, we will go out of doubt if Zoink!
He has been able to keep rhythm during all hours of play, when Lost in Random leaves for all consoles, including Nintendo Switch, and PC.
