Given the number of roguelike deckbuilders out there, it is getting to be increasingly difficult to find new and worthwhile ideas developers can bring to the table to help them stand apart. While some have gone for the presentation end of the spectrum, trying to make the decks themselves or the combat more visually interesting, there are still some brave folks out there trying to find ways to add more nuance and challenge to the mix in some way. Journey to the Void has opted to go the latter route, adding an extra layer of variability and challenge, but depending on how you feel about being subject to the whims of the RNG gods, you may or may not ultimately find that it suits you.

Aside from its more decidedly cute overall looks, the main differentiator here is that there’s an extra layer to consider when choosing your cards. Due to the fact that your enemies will attack you from all directions, simply attacking up, down, right, or left isn’t quite sufficient. Since they’re on a grid, you could have up to 3 attackers coming from any direction, putting them in one of 3 positions as well, so your cards will need to be chosen accordingly. An indicator on the top of your cards shows which of the 3 positions they’ll be effective in, and the majority of what sets this game apart is that added challenge as you try to make the most of every card you have, especially since at the corners you can double up your attacks as long as you have the right cards to work with. Compared to most of the competition, that can make the diversity of the card abilities themselves feel a bit more on the light side, but with this other component to consider, you’ll still need to carefully plot out your decks to try to maximize your effectiveness.

Where the game struggles a bit is that more so than usual it feels like your success is driven quite heavily by chance. You’ll be able to see enemies coming, and can try to be sure to hold onto cards that will set you up for success, but as things get tougher you could even have strong cards, but if they won’t line up well with your incoming enemies you need to focus on, you can get into trouble. I’d say that the controls don’t particularly help either, especially as you try to move between your deck and different areas of the screen, which can sometimes be needlessly frustrating as well. Credit to the developers for coming up with an idea that shakes up the typical expectations for this sort of title, but I wish the rest of the experience was as inspired and more polished as a whole.