Indie Roguelike Games to Play if You Like Hades

One of the biggest gaming success stories of 2020 was the roguelike ARPG Hades from indie studio Supergiant Games. After being released in September out of early access, Hades was met with universal critical acclaim and a massive following. Winning multiple awards at the Golden Joystick Awards and the Game Awards 2020, Hades helped the roguelike genre generate mainstream attention with its emphasis on narrative.

In Hades, while the player will often die, they also continue to receive buffs, treasures, and weapons, making subsequent runs a little easier. This mechanic along with the use of procedurally generated rooms and enemies define the roguelike genre. While Hades has undoubtedly become the new face of the genre, there are a number of fantastic indie roguelikes that players should not miss out on.

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Updated October 31, 2024, by Huzaifa Haq: Supergiant's success with Hades might seem like it came out of nowhere, but the studio has been in the game making business for a while, with incredible titles like Bastion and Transistor under its name. With the early access release of their sequel to Hades, it is about time to revisit this list and update it with some new competitors that have entered the arena. Hades is a roguelike game with an incredible amount of polish and a lot of character, but there are roguelites — games that blend the roguelike genre with another one — that are sure to strike fans' fancy as well.

Skul: The Hero Slayer

Charming Role Reversal

Everyone has played the hero fighting off hordes of monsters and slaying the big bad necromancer attacking the castle. But Skul: The Hero Slayer asks players to approach the same situation from a different perspective: that of the monsters.

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Instead of a traditional story about humans fighting off skeletons, the player takes control of a cute little skeleton that goes to fight off the big bad human army that's threatening to destroy its entire life. The game features a variety of powers, cute graphics, and a surprisingly gripping story.

REDACTED

A New Look At Black Iron Prison

An in-depth look at the final moments of Black Iron Prison, from the Callisto Protocol, REDACTED has the player take control of a guard fighting through hordes of monsters, and a couple of fellow would-be-escapees, to reach the last shuttle leaving the site.

The graphics of the game are unique, with a fun comic-book aesthetic that isn't found in many titles. This style is a departure from the one used in Callisto Protocol, and the tone of the story is quite different as well. The game features decent combat variety, with a couple of different suits and weapons for the players to choose from.

Gunfire Reborn

Endless Multiplayer Replayability

Gunfire Reborn is an FPS experience that blends progression and roguelike mechanics masterfully. The graphics of the game are a little simplistic, but they only add to the overall charm of the title. The vast weapon selection and character roster keeps players coming back for more.

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Additionally, the game is co-op, meaning players can finally having a good rogue experience with their friends. There isn't an intricate story to follow while players smash through enemies, but the combat is good enough to carry the experience to great heights.

Realm of Ink

Let The Foxes Out

The developer of Realm of Ink took the base ingredients from Hades, combined them in a Chinese-style hot pot, added folklore elements from the great nations of the East, and presented Realm of Ink. The game has a lot of the same gameplay elements as Hades, but has enough differences to keep it from feeling tedious or unoriginal.

The combat feels good and the enemies are quite varied, but the game lacks truly great metaprogression. The currencies are too easy to obtain, the perks aren't very good, and the player can unlock almost everything after a few semi-successful runs. The game is decent, but it doesn't have a lot of replayability.

Cult of the Lamb

Lead A Cult To Glory

Cult of the Lamb gives the player control of a deceptively cute lamb, and tasks them to take over a cult, as one might expect from the name of the game. The gameplay is a mixture of base management, resource gathering, a little fishing, and a lot of roguelike combat.

The game has surprising depth, with tons of customization options and combat mechanics. The contrast between the cute appearance of the player and cult members, and their barbaric practices makes the game very fun to play.

Hades 2

Imperfect, But Satisfying

What's a great game for someone who really likes Hades? Why, the direct sequel to the game developed by none other than Supergiant Studios themselves. Admittedly, Hades 2 is a little lacking when it comes to content and polish compared to the original, but that's because it's still in early access.

It can be a little disappointing for someone looking for a fleshed out experience, but it is still a lot better than many other games in the genre. Everything that made Hades great, Hades 2 has in droves. Good combat, great lore, amazing dialogue, in-depth lore, and infinite replayability; what was in the original, can be found in the sequel. Hopefully, the full release will resolve any lingering issues the game has.

Wizard of Legend 2

Magician's Day Out

Wizard of Legend 2 brings to life the elemental magic dreams that fantasy nerds all over the world have had since their childhood. Whether its lobbing giant rocks at enemies, summoning a mini tsunami, or firing ice spikes at monsters, Wizard of Legend 2 has it all.

The bosses in the game are a little annoying to deal with, but they can be defeated with dedication, the proper tools, and the right mindset. There aren't a lot of things to upgrade in the game, but players can tweak the difficulty settings in different ways to make their runs more interesting.

Balatro

Not Quite Poker

Poker is part luck and part skill. Take both those factors, crank them up to 200, pray to the RNG gods, and viola! It's Balatro. A roguelike poker game with no microtransactions, no actual gambling, and no predatory design; the only thing Balatro is going to take away is the player's time.

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The game is a single-player experience that has the player counting cards and spamming powerful perks for a chance to win it all. It has a surprising amount of build variety, enough replayability to keep thousands of players coming back, and a score counter that keeps on rising.

Enter The Gungeon

Almost A Bullet Hell

Enter the Gungeon is a fast-paced roguelike that deserves all the praise in the world for being such an unapologetically fun game. The game almost feels like a bullet-hell shooter at times, given how much stuff can be happening on the screen at a moment's notice.

Getting great weapons and blasting the opposition never fails to be entertaining. Enter the Gungeon deserves a ton of credit for its mesmerizing gameplay loop and more people should check this amazing game out.

Slay The Spire

Math Was Never This Fun

The idea of combining roguelike gameplay with deck management sounds like a rather odd experiment on paper. So, props should be given to Slay the Spire for the innovative manner in which the game manages to combine both forms of gameplay together.

The end result is a highly replayable game that is a ton of fun to get through. After a few runs, players will have a great set of abilities to tackle even the toughest foes in the game.