Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny Review: Nickelodeon’s Multiverse Goes Full RNG

I went into Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny with cautious optimism. A Nickelodeon crossover RPG with dice-driven mechanics sounded like one of those gimmicky ideas that’s fun for a night and then forgotten. But after spending over hours with it, grinding through the Destiny Gauntlet with friends, I can say it’s much more than that. This game has rough edges, sure, but the chaotic fun and surprising strategy make it worth sticking with.

First Impressions

Right out of the gate, the tone sold me. The intro cutscene where SpongeBob, Katara, Leonardo, and the others get pulled into a multiverse ruled by dice is silly, but it nails that Saturday morning cartoon vibe. The writing isn’t groundbreaking, but it doesn’t need to be; it’s self-aware, goofy, and peppered with enough references to make old school Nickelodeon fans smile. What I didn’t expect was how much the dice mechanic actually changes how you approach combat. At first, I thought it was just another randomizer, but once you start building around it, the rolls become something you anticipate and play into. That shift kept me hooked.

More Strategy Than I Thought

Despite the name, The Dice of Destiny isn’t about dice rolls dictating every move; it’s a straight-up action RPG with Nickelodeon characters reimagined as fantasy classes. SpongeBob, Katara, Leonardo, Jimmy Neutron, and others each play differently, with unique skill trees and abilities that make experimenting worthwhile. Combat is fast and simple: light/heavy attacks, dodges, and specials on cooldowns, with boss fights that actually have patterns and mechanics to learn. Between missions, you explore themed worlds, pick up side quests, and upgrade your hero to reinforce your preferred style. The game really shines in co-op. Up to four players can share the screen, and when your builds complement each other, fights feel like controlled chaos. It’s less about luck and more about smart teamwork and progression.

The Roster: Smaller Than I Hoped, But Fun

The roster isn’t massive, and I felt the limits early on. The starting lineup of SpongeBob, Leonardo, and Katara works, but it’s when you unlock characters like Danny Phantom and Invader Zim that things get really interesting. Each character has a distinct playstyle, with different dice synergies and skill trees that actually encourage experimenting. Still, I can’t lie, I wanted more. With a brand as big as Nickelodeon, it’s hard not to notice who’s missing. No Jimmy Neutron, no Timmy Turner, no Rugrats (not even Reptar). The devs hinted at post-launch additions, but as it stands, I hit the point where I’d played every character extensively within a week. That didn’t stop me from replaying, but it does limit long-term variety. That said, what’s here feels good. The animations are expressive, the controls are responsive, and they really nailed the “feel” of each hero. SpongeBob fights with ridiculous slapstick, Leonardo’s combos are clean and fast, Katara’s waterbending flows beautifully, and Zim… well, Zim is as chaotic as you’d hope. It’s not just fan service, it’s fan service with teeth.

Style and Performance

Visually, the game is gorgeous in its own way. The art style smooths out the clash of different shows so SpongeBob and Katara don’t look out of place together. The arenas are colorful, packed with Easter eggs, and designed well enough that battles don’t feel repetitive. Performance was solid on my PC. Even with two players and dice chaos filling the screen, I didn’t run into major frame drops. The accessibility options are solid, too. I had a friend test out simplified controls and colorblind mode, and both worked great.

Weak Spots

The biggest flaw, aside from the limited roster, is pacing. Some campaign fights drag when too many modifiers stack up. The chaos is fun, but it can cross into sensory overload when hazards, buffs, and enemies are all firing at once. Boss fights in particular can feel like controlled mayhem that tips into messiness. Also, the campaign itself is short. Beating it twice only took me about 16 hours total, and while Gauntlet and versus mode added replayability, I was already wishing for more structured content. This feels like a foundation the devs could expand with DLC or seasonal updates.

Real Talk

After putting in serious time, I can say Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny is more than just a nostalgia trip. It’s a chaotic, surprisingly strategic action RPG that manages to be accessible to kids and engaging for adults. The dice mechanic isn’t just a gimmick—it changes how you play, how you build, and how you approach every fight. Yeah, the roster could be bigger, and the campaign’s short, but the moment-to-moment gameplay more than makes up for it. When you’re in the middle of a dice-triggered slime flood, laughing with friends while SpongeBob throws down next to Katara, the flaws don’t matter much.

FINAL SCORE: 78/100