Nicktoons and the Dice of Destiny is a smart action rpg aimed at kids but satisying enough for adults who grew up with the characters.
There seems to be a Nickelodeon based game every year, where a bunch of characters across their many (MANY) products come together in a new genre. Fighting games, check. Racing games, check. This year we’re being treated to a dungeon-crawling action RPG in Nicktoons and the Dice of Destiny and, unsurprisingly, it includes variations of many many many of our favorite characters, this time with an actual plot worthy of the cartoons that it’s based one.
CHECK.
NATDOD throws several characters together on a quest to find a missing magical die that can send them back to their native worlds. They’ve been sucked in to a strange place thanks to Timmy Turner making a wish, and now their only hope is to band up and head out, defeating their known adversaries along the way. It’s a silly plot, but it’s pursposefully easy to digest and the little sonnections are very on-brand for each character and world.
Suffice it to say, the game is easy, albeit there are a couple moments where we might find ourselves woefully underpowered or (more than likely) hell bent on following the plot and not grinding enough with each of our characters. We choose a hero, whether it’s a melee or ranged or magic-wielding star, and move through the simple levels hacking away at enemies until we’ve made it to the goal. There are treasure chests and lite obstacles in the way, but the game really wants us to just move forward and enjoy the plot. That’s most obvious in the minimal use of secrets or alternative paths within the stages, as we almost always end up in the same place with the same loot, no matter what we try.
All of that said, the game focuses on two things, charm and accessibility for kids, and it succeeds in both. Not only are the voices and conversations and character redesigns great, but they’ll make both kids and adults chuckle. The kids will do so because they like to see SpongeBob say silly things and the adults because we actually understand what SpongeBob is saying. The gameplay itself presents the basics of the genre, including experience and charcater growth and abilities and armor and weapons. The basics. They’re all there, and they’re not trying to be more complex for the sake of it.
I’m reviewing this as a 47… um, 27 year old, but that places specific expectations on a product. I connected with this because I watched the shows in and post-college, giggling and enjoying CARTOONS. My younger, 9 year old nephew took what was supposed to be a short crack at the game that ended up lasting a couple of hours before the Steam Deck’s battery died. Both of us enjoyed our times with it, and both of us can find something goofy and fun and enjoyable, albeit not super deep.
That’s not what we, or anyone, is looking for anyways.
We just want a cool, fun, nicely presented game that just so happens to capture the silliness of Nickelodeon’s shows.
CHECK.
This review is based on a Steam code sent to SideQuesting by the publisher. This video originally appeared in The SideQuest LIVE for December 02, 2025.
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