If you’re done with Palworld, try this monster-catching game next

Who would have thought that 2024 would be the year of the monster-collecting game? While several have tried (and often struggled) to recapture the joys of Pokémon, this year’s Palworld is perhaps the first game that’s ever truly been able to pull it off. Granted, it did that by trading in finely tuned RPG combat for Ark-like survival crafting that makes it an entirely different game, but a win’s a win. While Palworld has broken records on Steam, its early access nature means you can hit its bottom quickly — something fans seem to be struggling with as its player count continues to drop.

Thankfully, there’s another monster-catching game you can move on to next. Dicefolk is a new roguelike where players amass a team of animal pals and control them in turn-based battles with dice. As is fashionable as of late, it’s another indie genre fusion that looks to mix roguelikes, deck-builders, and monster-catching RPGs. While it doesn’t excel in any individual category, Dicefolk does offer a creative mash-up of the three that’s sure to find its loyalists.

Gotta roll ’em all

Dicefolk follows a fairly traditional roguelike formula, though one that’s loaded up with twists. When I start a run, I’m dropped into a small map dotted with different icons. Some take me into a battle, while others give me upgrades or let me shop for gear. My goal in each level is to find and defeat the boss encounter, while tackling as many of the area’s challenges as I want to refine my party.

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That tried-and-true format comes with two distinct twists. The first is monster catching. I don’t fight any foes directly, but rather have a team of three chimera who I can throw into turn-based battles. Each has its own base attack value, HP, and gear slots that let me equip relics. Since I can