Dungeons of Aether is a turn-based strategy dungeon crawler video game set in the Rivals of Aether universe. You will control four unique heroes as they explore the Julesvale Caverns, battling enemies and uncovering secrets along the way. Each has its own unique skills and abilities, and you must use them to battle enemies.

Dungeons of Aether features a dice draft system for combat and two different game modes: Story Mode, with a more relaxed experience including interactions with NPCs and exploration, and Challenge Dungeons, a more difficult and randomly generated mode with a leaderboard based on your end-of-run gold.

Rivals of Aether

Dungeons of Aether follows the adventures of four new heroes as they explore the Julesvale Caverns to uncover their mysteries. The ultimate goal of the game is to delve deeper into the caverns and uncover the secrets of Julesvale along the way. The combat in this game uses a dice draft system, where you’ll draft dice each turn to determine their actions. 

This system ensures that each battle is unique and challenging, as you must adapt your strategy at each turn based on the pool of dice available to them. Challenge Dungeons, for a more detailed description, are randomly generated and offer a more difficult experience with unique rules and starting equipment. The goal is to make it through all of the biomes in the game in a single run.

Throughout the game, you can collect Journal Entries that reveal more about Julesvale and its legendary past. You can tailor their dice pool to fit your playstyle and strategy, making each run unique. There are tons of features here that you can explore and utilize, however, death in this game resets the player's progress, which is discouraging for players who like to see their progress and growth over time.

Challenging, but good

Despite having a lack of progression, all in all, the gameplay experience of Dungeons of Aether is a combination of strategic turn-based combat, exploration, and roguelike elements that provides players with a challenging and exciting adventure in the world of Aether. This is highly recommended for those who are looking for a true roguelike difficulty and a challenging game to play.