Use time itself as a weapon in new roguelike Panta Rhei, which you can play now

I was a little late to the roguelike genre, only fully understanding the impetus to play the same levels over and over again when Hades span a narrative thread through my runs in 2020. Since then, I've immersed myself in the classics of the genre, as well as the roguelite subgenre. I've put numerous hours into FTL, Into the Breach, and Slay the Spire, and found many more gems besides. And it's in the wake of these lesser known indies like Blue Prince and Ravenswatch (the latter the best Hades clone to date) that Panta Rhei emerges. Full of charm and with a time-bending twist, it looks right up my street.

What can you add to such a saturated genre? All the best roguelike games have one thing in common: they're unique. Panta Rhei adds a solid mechanic that is rarely used in the genre, the ability to time travel. Kind of.

Your main weapon looks like a tuning fork, or some double-bladed sword, but you've also got another trick up your sleeve: the ability to rewind time. You don't have complete freedom to travel to any point in your run, but it's perfect for those moments when you lose your last hit point seconds before delivering the killing blow to a boss, or when the bridge beneath your feet collapses unexpectedly.

Protagonist Phi's adventure of self-discovery will take you through 25 locations across three distinct biomes, adapting their abilities and crafting potions to suit your playstyle. And of course, their mastery over time allows you to pause, rewind, and accelerate gameplay in order to solve puzzles and overcome enemies.

The 'lite' aspect of this roguelite comes in the form of the Garden of the Past. Cultivating your plants here provides you with bonuses across future runs, allowing Phi more power and freedom as you gain more knowledge of the strategies you need to beat each run.

You can play Panta Rhei on Steam now.

This already seems like it will be one of the best Steam Deck games to me, perfect for taking on the move - or to the loo. Time will tell if Panta Rhei breaks into our exclusive list of the best indie games, though.

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