The Beacon Roguelike Early Access: Is It Worth Playing Yet?

The Beacon just wrapped up its first public playtest on Epic Games. The big news is that the team has finally committed to the Ronin blockchain, meaning they can (hopefully) focus more on refining the gameplay instead of dealing with backend headaches.

But how does The Beacon actually play right now? Here are my thoughts after running through its current build.

Core Roguelike Gameplay

At its heart, The Beacon is a roguelike dungeon crawler with a simple but fun gameplay loop.

• You start each run with zero power-ups.
• As you progress, you pick up buffs and upgrades that make you stronger.
• An NPC occasionally appears between rooms, offering a chance to power up further.

It’s the classic “start weak, grow stronger” roguelike formula. The dungeon run feels rewarding for the first run.

The Speed Potion: Overpowered but Fun

If there’s one power-up that stood out to me, it’s the speed potion.

The burst of movement makes it so much easier to:

• Weave between enemy attacks.
• Close the gap for melee hits.
• Keep momentum flowing in combat.

Right now, it feels a little too strong. Most of my successful runs leaned heavily on speed bursts. Balance tweaking will likely be needed, but I must admit that it makes the game feel great in motion.

Content Limitations in the Current Build

Of course, this first playtest is just a small taste of what’s to come. Here’s what’s missing:

• No bosses yet, just standard enemies across about 10 floors.
• NPCs in the village are placeholders, no trading or progression yet.
• No permanent upgrades outside the dungeon.
• Runs end with a simple reset back to the outside.

For now, expect a demo-level roguelike rather than a fully fleshed-out game. I’d love to see the addition of bosses, village progression, and more long-term rewards in future updates.

Login Process & Onboarding Concerns

One thing I found a bit clunky was the login system.

• You need to connect a Beacon account to Epic before even playing.
• Registration feels like it comes before the fun.

For a game hoping to attract more than just the Web3-native crowd, this could be a barrier. Most non-Web3 gamers just want to download, play, and figure out account linking later.

Where’s the Web3?

Speaking of Web3, I haven’t seen much of it yet.

• No in-game trading systems are live.
• No blockchain features except for skins from external markets.
• Nothing yet that sets it apart from a standard roguelike.

The obvious path is skin trading or collectible cosmetics, but I’m hoping The Beacon experiments with more unique Web3 hooks. How cool would it be to have a shared daily dungeon challenge, similar to Spelunky’s Daily Challenge, where everyone plays the exact same run for leaderboard spots?

My Wishlist for The Beacon

Here’s what I’d love to see in upcoming seasons:

1. Boss fights that test skill and strategy.
2. Village upgrades that make the hub world meaningful.
3. Trading features that show off Ronin’s blockchain integration.
4. Daily shared dungeons for competitive replayability.
5. Balance fixes (looking at you, speed potion).

Verdict: A Promising Start but Needs More Identity

The Beacon’s first playtest gave me hope that there’s a good roguelike at its core. But if it wants to stand out in the crowded dungeon-crawler market, it needs to lean into unique mechanics, memorable content, and meaningful blockchain features.

• ✅ Fun roguelike core loop with solid dungeon runs.
• ✅ Speed potion feels powerful (maybe too powerful).
• ❌ No bosses, village upgrades, or long-term progression yet.
• ❌ Login process could deter non-Web3 players.

I’ll definitely be back for the next playtest to see how things evolve.