Zoeti

Despite its niggles, there’s a lot to like about Zoeti: its poker hand twist on typical card-based battler gameplay makes it stand out from the crowd. Add to that its beautiful 2D animation – and a surprisingly excellent soundtrack – and you’ve got a unique roguelike that we can see ourselves returning to again and again. With a bit of polish, it really could be a stand-out title in the genre.

Zoeti is a neat concept that desperately needs more polish. The poker gameplay setup might not be as fun to me as the standard deck-builder, but I still enjoyed it, and I could see myself getting deeper into it if I were more interested in the card game. The art style is cute and charming, and the characters are amusing enough. The bugs and general lackluster presentation drags it down, but it can still be fun. Zoeti is just going to struggle with distinguishing itself in a very full market.

Zoeti is a beautiful game with a steep challenge. While I don’t mind some difficulty, I do find the balance more than a bit skewed against the player. And I say that as a fan of the rogue genre. That said, if you don’t mind the challenge and can put up with some minor glitches, this is a game that is well worth your time.