Toy Odyssey: The Lost and Found is a difficult game which is similar to titles like Dark Souls and Lords of the Fallen. However, it’s an action platformer. The game is basically similar to a Metroidvania-like experience that takes you back to your childhood. However, it’s not all rainbows and unicorns. Toy Odyssey takes place in a world made from childhood nightmares. You play as Brand, an action figure who has recently come to life. You don’t know what exactly is going on but you do know that you have to save you owner, Felix. The whole game revolves around that and trying to uncover the mystery behind the house.
The game appears to be randomized when it comes to rooms and this feature also appears in the story. You have to determine why the house keeps rearranging itself. Being a roguelike, you have to venture out into the house each night and upgrade your weapons and attire. There are blueprints, crafting materials and many other items to keep you scavenging for more. The main currency is bolts that are required as currency to upgrade and craft objects.
Toy Odyssey features some voice acting but the majority of the dialogue takes place as text boxes. The story is intriguing even though it’s a little basic. All of it is designed to mask the gameplay. Your actions in the game are explained by the story. Towards the end of the experience you become quite the fighting force and are unstoppable but the journey their is filled with pain. You will die a lot.
For the first hour or two, I would recommend just going out and killing as many enemies as you can and collecting bolts. When you die keep on upgrading your equipment so that your health increases. Enemies hit really hard so you need a lot of health. As you upgrade, you also gain passive abilities like additional damage and the ability to double jump. This significantly changes gameplay and makes traversing the rooms much easier which feature numerous platforms and enemies around every corner. There’s also a fast travel system if you challenge the rats in the rat holes. Yes, you heard that right.
If you want to know more about the story and the emotional side of the game, be sure to read the diary entires found around the house. I feel the diary pages have a more substantial tale to tell than what happens during gameplay. It’s unfortunate because many gamers will probably skim over them or ignore them entirely. I would recommend you read them during your playthrough.
I nearly forgot. Another interesting aspect of Toy Odyssey has to be ability to upgrade your bedroom into a fortress. You need a lot of materials and bolts but it’s worth it. There are so many layers to this game that you sometimes forget that it’s made by a small studio. Usually when you think of roguelikes you imagine small levels and a lot of repetition to upgrade basic stats. Toy Odyssey includes so much more it’s truly staggering.
Summary
Overall, Toy Odyssey: The Lost and Found is a great game if you can look past the flaws. If I were to bring up a complaint apart from the basic story, it would be that the combat feels a little clunky in the beginning when you don’t have many abilities and advanced weaponry. Despite that, it’s still an expansive roguelike experience that people who like the genre must play. You’ll love it if you adore games like Bard’s Gold and Rogue Legacy.
Asher and Xian is a shared byline ICXM used for 18 articles co-authored between 2015–2017 covering game reviews, and Xbox news. See the individual contributor profiles for the writers behind these collaborations.