| Developer | Two Tiny Dice |
| Publisher | Indie Asylum |
| Genre | Roguelike Deck Builder |
| Release Date | 2024 |
| Platforms | PC macOS |
| Where to Play/Wishlist | Steam |
Before I begin my review, it is necessary to note that the game “Pyrene” was offered to me for free by the developers and publishers on behalf of thedailygamepad.net. As a result, I want to thank the developer/publisher for providing me with a free copy of the game to play and review.
Pyrene is a deckbuilding roguelike game with dungeon-crawling gameplay. Defeat a legendary evil and rebuild your home. Collect powerful artifacts, relics, and spells for your many heroes while discovering the truth about your village’s demise.
Pyrene is a roguelike deckbuilder with a dungeon exploration element, which sets it apart from other deckbuilders I’ve played in the past. The demo only enables you to play as two characters: Atanaia, the village hunter, and Akohan, the local priest. However, it appears that the complete game will feature at least 8 playable characters, including the Blacksmith Mathlida.
The gameplay is really unusual and unique; in order to progress, you must find the Votive Alter. To do this, move your character card across other cards over a number of rounds until the Alter appears; if it’s an enemy card, attack it, Healing cards heal you, and you can use more weapons to strike opponents with. In addition, you acquire resource cards to help rebuild the village. Atanaia begins her voyage in the grasslands and continues until she reaches the mountains, where she discovers Akohan, the local priest, and Zoe Akohan’s companion. After you’ve built the tavern, you can switch to Akohan.
Akohan begins his travels in the mountains, and he is accompanied by his loyal ferret Zoe, who fights alongside him in dangerous situations. Akohan begins his travels in the mountains, and he is accompanied by his loyal ferret Zoe, who fights alongside him in dangerous situations. This is accomplished by alternating between the two characters and utilizing a power that is available at any moment. The sole disadvantage is that once Zoe dies, she gets deleted from your deck for the rest of your battles, so be cautious while employing her. The good news is that both Akohan and Zoe have separate HP pools; but, after Zoe dies, Akohan will begin to take more damage, so keep that in mind as well.
Another interesting component of the game is the day and night cycle. So, once you’ve made all of your movements, you’ll need to cycle into the night to fill the vacant locations on the board with cards. If there are still monsters on the board, they will grow stronger; therefore, you should be sure to clean the board completely. Switching from day to night consumes your rations, and after you run out, it depletes your HP. When I play with Atanaia, if she clears the entire board, she does not spend any rations. However, because Zoe is always on the board, he will use rations, therefore, playing with Akohan requires you to be very strategic.
Once your character has reached the round with the Votive Alter, the more creatures you defeat, the higher the prizes from the alter. You can either go straight to the altar or take your time and reap the rewards. After you destroy the alter, you are free to proceed. You will then encounter a corrupted version of the Alter on your travels, which will provide even better benefits but is more difficult to open.
Overall, I thoroughly loved Pyrene’s Demo. The game’s mix of deckbuilding, roguelike, and dungeon-crawling features provides strategic depth and replayability. I also enjoyed the gameplay, and Pyrene brings something fresh and different to deckbuilder games that I haven’t seen before. So, if you enjoy roguelike deck-builders, I recommend that you try Pyrene and put it on your wishlist.
