You’ll undoubtedly be familiar with the genre ‘roguelike’ and its sibling ‘roguelite’. They’re terms bandied about with abandon, and you’ll have encountered them numerous times when browsing for something new to play. Heck, we write about different roguelike games here practically on a weekly basis.
The roguelike genre is a subgenre of RPG, with its games typically revolving around procedural generation. Levels, items, and enemies are randomly generated, ensuring that each playthrough is unique and unpredictable. Another defining characteristic is permadeath, meaning that when a player’s character dies, it’s back to square one. No saves, no checkpoints, and no continues.
It’s a high-stakes, high-challenge genre and, if you haven’t noticed, it’s one that is massively popular.
Some roguelikes might use turn-based gameplay, where players and enemies alternate turns, requiring strategic planning and careful decision-making. Think Slay the Spire and its ilk. Others tend to be complex dungeon crawlers, featuring a wide array of items, abilities, and strategies that players must master. Think Hades and Neon Abyss.
Roguelite games, on the other hand, aren’t all that different from roguelikes: they just tend to have simpler mechanics (hence the term ‘lite’). They still use procedural generation, but might instead use persistent progression, allowing players to unlock new abilities, characters, or items and not lose them when they die.
Roguelites frequently feature real-time gameplay, offering a fast-paced and dynamic experience. They often borrow from other genres too, blending in puzzles, platforming, or shooting elements to stand out from the crowd.
In other words, roguelike and roguelite games can take many forms, but their core principles — permanent death and replayability — are always steadfast. And there’s a very good reason for that.
A genre 40 years in the making
Why are they called roguelikes and roguelites? Where does the term ‘Rogue’ come from?
‘Soulslike’ is a fairly new phrase coined to describe games that are like Dark Souls. But that term didn’t come from nowhere: it follows the template of roguelike. If you haven’t guessed it yet, Rogue is the game that roguelike comes from. Games like Rogue.
Now, there’s a good chance you might be scratching your head and wondering why you can’t recall it. That’s because it’s about Rogue is about as retro as retro can get. Released back in 1980, it was originally made for Unix-based systems but different versions eventually became available on numerous platforms, including Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari 8-bit and Commodore 64 amongst others.
While primitive by today’s standards, at the time there was no other gaming experience like Rogue — or even close to it.
Rogue draws players in with its simple yet challenging top-down perspective. Like many roguelikes of today, Rogue tasks you with making your way through a gauntlet of dungeons, encountering monsters as you go. The player character and monsters are all depicted by ASCII symbols. A “V” means a vampire, for example, and a “Z” is a zombie. This is 1980, you see, and graphics barely exist.
You interact with keyboard commands (“t” to throw a weapon) as you navigate through the dungeon, finding treasure and food, and seeking the stairs to the next level. As you descend, the monsters become progressively harder, though the treasures don’t necessarily improve with depth; a random early find can just as easily be the key to success. Runs are short too, and that allure of “just one more go” always proves too tempting.
For more on the gameplay and story, check out this detailed breakdown on CRPG Addict.
The loveable Rogue endures
The enduring appeal of Rogue lies in its engaging mechanics, strategic depth, and the constant pursuit of a new high score. These elements combine to create a gaming experience that is both accessible and deeply rewarding, and it’s what has become the foundation of the roguelike genre today.
Glenn Wichman, one of the designers of the original Rogue, had little idea of the impact his passion project would have on gaming. The genre remained pretty cult-like for years, and it’s only in more recent years have roguelike and roguelite games become so popular. In an interview with Temple of the Roguelike in 2007, his thoughts on the future of the genre weren’t very optimistic.“It feels like the community is dwindling. That’s probably okay; nothing lasts forever.”
How wrong he was.
Rogue is available to play today in numerous forms. There are plenty of free versions out there that you can play on your internet browser of choice, but for those looking for an easy (and paid) option, it’s available on both Steam and Switch.
So, if you’re a fan of Hades and Dead Cells, why not have a go at the game that started it all?
