A Bastard King, Desperate Retreats, and Tactical Mayhem: Is Lost In The Open Our Next Obsession?
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
Lost In The Open is a thrilling low-fantasy tactics RPG that blends the desperate roguelike retreats of FTL with the evocative art and mood of Wildermyth and The Banner Saga, casting players as a 'total bastard' king on the run. Expect brutal permadeath, tough tactical choices, and a surprising narrative hook around repentance (or strategic apologies).
Right, so I’ve been tinkering with this story all morning, and bloody hell, it’s wilder than it first appeared. Imagine this: you’re a king, right? But not just any king. You’re King Nrvesk, known far and wide as a *total bastard*. Someone, quite understandably, decides to give you a diplomatic dinner knife-massage, and now you’re on the run. An entire army is sweeping the countryside, baying for your blood, and all you’ve got is a ragtag bunch of bodyguards and hastily-recruited vagrants. Sound like a good time? Welcome to *Lost In The Open*.
This low-fantasy tactics RPG, cooked up by the clever bods at Stockholm-based Black Voyage Games, has got me more curious than a cat with a quantum entanglement device. It’s got that desperate, running-away roguelike vibe of *FTL: Faster Than Light*, spliced with the gorgeous, melancholic mood and art direction of games like *Wildermyth* and *The Banner Saga*. If you've ever found yourself hopelessly outnumbered in those worlds, scrambling for every advantage, then you're probably already halfway to hitting that 'wishlist' button.
My first dance with *Lost In The Open*'s demo ended, shall we say, rather spectacularly. My plucky (read: terrified and under-equipped) crew ran straight into the full might of the Strathian military. I’d legged it through the mountains and forests like a wizard escaping an overdue library book, thinking I was being efficient. Turns out, I was just being an idiot. I should've spent more time grinding bandits, looting forgotten forges, and hoarding resources for the inevitable smack-down. But can you blame a dying king for wanting to put a bit of distance between himself and an angry army? Reckon not.
This isn't just about frantic fleeing, though. Oh no, mate. You start with a couple of guards – two, on 'Merciful' difficulty, which I’m already suspicious of – and your job is to bolt north from the capital, trying to reach your home realm of Ruedome before the Strathaian vanguard paints the map red with your royal insides. Every map node throws up a choice: a battle, a chance to gather resources, or a more ambiguous, multi-part story quest. I met a noblewoman once who wanted an heirloom back from some robbers. I’ll let you discover whether my good Samaritan act was a stroke of genius or a one-way ticket to a permanent dirt nap. Picking fights is consequential, you see.
And by 'consequential,' I mean *bloody* consequential. Units can die permanently if they’re KO'd, like a spell backfiring and turning your mate into a newt. Even if they survive, they’ll need a long time to heal, guzzling up precious medical supplies. Injuries can become 'Marred,' permanently distorting stats unless treated with the utmost care. And if King Nrvesk bites the dust, well, that's your run over, old chap. Game over, man. Game over.
So, you’re caught in this beautiful, terrifying loop. You *need* to fight to level up, gather scrap, and find gold for upgrades and bartering. But every fight is a gamble. Every decision could be your last. It’s a bit like trying to navigate a minefield while juggling enchanted grenades – thrilling, but prone to explosive results. You've also got to make friends along the way, recruiting fresh faces for your doomed cause and forging alliances through quests that might just pay dividends further down the road. Or, you know, might lead you into another ambush. Who can say? That's the roguelike life, isn't it?
The battle system itself is entertaining, if a little familiar. Characters act on an initiative bar, flanks and rears are juicy targets for extra damage, and there’s a degradeable armour layer that soaks up hits before health is affected. You’ve got your classic archetypes: crossbowmen who need to reload (tactical depth!), tanky shieldbros protecting their mates, and berserkers who get stronger the more foes they’ve already, ahem, *moidere*d. While I’m basing this on a cheeky 62 minutes with the Steam demo – barely enough time to scratch the surface, mind – it looks like a solid foundation for some desperate, nail-biting encounters.
Fair dinkum, the full game launches into early access on September 26th, packed with the first of three acts, five factions, twenty unit types (most recruitable!), three zones, three biomes, varied terrains, six boss encounters, and hundreds of unique events. That's a fair bit of digital real estate to explore, especially when you’re constantly looking over your shoulder.
One thing I'm genuinely curious about is King Nrvesk himself. The game's Steam page suggests "you must recruit strategically, fight desperately and repent sincerely." Now, that "repent sincerely" bit has my eyebrow doing a solo dance. This is a king known as a "total bastard," remember? Can a leopard really change its spots while fleeing for its life? Or can one, as I'm optimistically chaotic enough to wonder, "repent strategically"? I'm pretty sure Machiavelli had a few things to say about timely apologies and how they can be... deployed. It’s an interesting thematic hook, particularly with the home realm being called Ruedome – that 'rue' isn't just for show, I reckon. It’ll be fascinating to see if your moral compass gets a workout alongside your tactical prowess.
*Lost In The Open* feels like it’s brewing up a potent blend of tension, tactical depth, and narrative intrigue. It’s got that 'just one more run' pull of *FTL*, the grim beauty of *Banner Saga*, and the emergent storytelling potential of *Wildermyth*. If you're a gamer who loves a good challenge, a desperate fight, and the chance to maybe (just maybe) redeem a right royal wrong 'un, then keep an eye on this one. It might just be the next chaotic adventure we're all looking for.
Source: Rock Paper Shotgun, Original article by Edwin Evans-Thirlwell, published on Sept. 24, 2025.
Tags: Tactics RPG, Roguelike, Indie Game, Fantasy, Early Access
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun