Games That Helped Popularize Roguelike Mechanics

Trends are something that is unavoidable in the gaming market. Companies see an idea making money and they want to learn how they can capitalize on it next. This goes from genres to equipment. For example, when the Wii exploded in 2006, Microsoft and Sony eventually made motion control peripherals too, chasing that motion dragon.

Related

The Best Roguelike RPGs, Ranked

With so many new ones coming out every month, it's been a tough debate between the fans of the genre to see which one stands at the top.

Posts

Now it seems like the new hotness in the genre market is roguelikes. Thanks to indie successes like Hades, it has become an attractive genre to follow that even a big AAA game like God of War: Ragnarok got a roguelike mode. So, for history’s sake, here's a look back at some roguelikes that helped define or improve the genre.

8 Children Of Morta

Centralized Around One Family With Class Types And Added Co-Op

• Metacritic Score: 82 (PC)

Children of Morta was released in 2019 and it had a couple of significant features that other roguelikes learned from. First, the game revolved around a central family, The Bergsons, as they were chosen guardians of this land. When a curse breaks free, they must dive in to solve this crisis and players would learn more about them after every victory or failure.

Almost every family member is playable and they control differently like a class in an RPG. John, for example, uses a sword and shield while Mark uses his fists and is more agile. This class-based system in Children of Morta was unique as was the two-player co-op as most roguelikes, even now, are meant as solo adventures.

7 Darkest Dungeon

Using The Roguelike Formula For A Tactical Turn-Based RPG

• Metacritic Score: 85 (Switch)

Roguelikes are meant to be challenging endeavors that players can overcome through repeated deaths. That has been the standard since the beginning but Darkest Dungeon took that difficulty level to new lows in 2016. It is so against the player that it can have a lasting effect in real life.

It’s a dour game but that made every victory even sweeter. The challenge was certainly one thing players liked about it due to an experience that could be compared to a Soulslike, even though the two genres are different. It was also a new twist on gameplay as it was a 2D turn-based RPG with some tactical elements like positioning members in battle. This was no Final Fantasy though.

6 Dead Cells

A Roguelike With Metroidvania Elements

• Metacritic Score: 91 (Xbox One)

Dead Cells was one of the bigger roguelikes that tried to incorporate multiple routes and Metroidvania elements into its core gameplay in 2017 during its Early Access. Players could learn new techniques or gain equipment to discover new areas in dungeons they may have played through a hundred times.

Related

8 Best Roguelike Horror Games

Fans in the mood for some roguelike horror can't go wrong with these examples.

Posts

By  Maya Sattar

From breaking through the floor with a mighty stomp to making vines grow, there were a lot of cool abilities. There was a somewhat permanent upgrade system that made potions heal better but nothing truly improved stats. Instead, the skill-like tree would unlock new equipment to look forward to in future runs and there was a lot to see. For players who have a collector mentality, Dead Cells is for them.

5 Hades

A Godly Assist Function And A Deep Story

• Metacritic Score: 93 (PS5)

Hades was a critical darling thanks to its boom in Early Access in 2018, an era when players had a lot of time on their hands. One of the biggest features it introduced widely to the genre was its God Mode. Turning it on would reduce damage and that percentage amount would increase by 2% every time players died.

God Mode was used in Hades 2 as well, and overall, assist-like features have become commonplace in more than just roguelikes. Hades should also be commended for making death a journey as the story was fully integrated into failures, even more so than Children of Morta. NPCs always had something new to tell the hero, Zagreus, upon his return, even giving tips. It added context to death that other roguelikes lacked.

4 Hand Of Fate

Using Cards To Tell A Story

• Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One
• Released: February 17, 2015
• Developer: Defiant Development
• Metacritic Score: 80 (Xbox One)

Hand of Fate did a lot of odd but significant things for the genre when it hit Early Access in 2014. It was kind of like a choose-your-own-adventure game wherein players could decide where they wanted to go based on a deck of cards they acquired. When players entered battle on this card map, the perspective would shift into a 3D arena wherein combat was action-based.

This blending of genres was a clever idea as was the emphasis on cards. Many card-based roguelikes have popped up since like Slay the Spire which is admittedly a different approach to cards than Hand of Fate but still equally important.

3 Rogue Legacy

A Progression System To Copy

• Metacritic Score: 85 (PS4)

Rogue Legacy was one of the earliest roguelikes in 2013 to incorporate a high degree of permanent upgrades. It was no longer a genre wherein players had to traverse and conquer a dungeon in a single run. They could earn gold and find blueprints that could be used to upgrade the family castle or to buy new equipment.

Related

18 Great Roguelike Games On Steam That Deserve More Attention

Roguelikes offer great replay value, but even they can go under the radar. These are some great roguelikes that deserve more attention.

Posts

By  Ritwik Mitra

Building on the family castle would unlock classes and boost stats like health. It made death less evil, giving players hope that they may one day be able to beat Rogue Legacy through RPG-like grinding. Above all others, this is an easy roguelike to get through given time.

2 Spelunky

An Arcade-like Four-Player Co-Op Deathtrap

• Metacritic Score: 90 (PC)

Spelunky is another very early indie roguelike, from 2012, and one that was surrounded by many others like The Binding of Isaac and Risk of Rain. Technically it came out in 2008 but that original free version is a bit rough around the edges which is why it was remade in 2012. Spelunky and those other examples brought the genre into the cultural zeitgeist, giving players an idea of what a game could be.

Spelunky was hard, but it could be conquered through studying gameplay. It taught players to be aware of how enemies behaved or what traps to look out for. It was also unforgiving and it had an early idea of co-op. Altogether, it was kind of like an arcade approach to the genre and one that has evolved through time. It didn't need a progression system or a story to be fun.

1 Vampire Survivors

An Auto-Battle Twin Stick Shooter Hybrid

• Metacritic Score: 95 (Xbox Series X/S)

What if someone turned a twin-stick shooter into a roguelike? Vampire Survivors is the answer to that question and since it debuted in Early Access in 2021, many others have followed. Players can choose a character in the game and then gameplay would be presented on one map.

The character would automatically attack enemies and players could get upgrades to make that character fire faster or command new attacks. It was an auto-battler as a twin-stick shooter which doesn’t sound fun on paper but millions of players have gotten into it. This style of roguelike seems like the new hotness and who knows what indie creation will eat Vampire Survivors’ lunch next.

More

10 Best Roguelike Survival Games

From Risk of Rain 2 to Muck, these are ten of the best roguelike games that incorporate survival elements and aesthetics.

Posts

By  Sarfraz Khan