Great aesthetics, fun character writing, and a predictable but inoffensive plot - at least, from what I saw. I dropped it partway into Chapter 4 as it was just too tedious.

Wading through all the available options each turn to figure out the correct move - and there is almost always a correct move - isn't especially engaging. That's mostly because the correct move often boils down to a purely defensive play, which doesn't progress the game state at all and boils down to "see if next turn's dice draft is more advantageous." Attempts to vary this formula don't go far enough, and by the end of the third chapter (of six!), I felt like I'd seen more than enough of what the game had to offer.

If I stopped right before a huge twist that invalidates everything I had to say, please let me know - I want to like this game. I really like the Aether Team, and this game's core mechanic is clever. Maybe this is the fate of a game borne out of a celebrated itch.io game jam entry - a strong start that peters out far too early, unable to stretch its progenitor's excitement into a full game.

This game is pretty awesome. I will admit that I'm a bit fan of Dan's work so I'm biased, but the aesthetics and music are top-notch and are in line with Rivals' game feel.

There are some flaws though, for one, there are some systems that are just not implemented well. I didn't know, like the fact that you could drop items, for example. So I kept moving back and forth selling things that I didn't want. I also wish the bosses were a little tougher, since by endgame I had so many pieces of epic/legendary equipment that I seemed to breeze through with damage boosters and dice-altering scrolls.

On the whole though, sweet game! I love that The Aether Team put a lot of effort into giving each character a specific playstyle that matches their personality. It motivated me to switch up my habits every once in awhile.