Game-related ramblings.

Tag: Brogue

Roguelike Updates: Let It Whip

As always, you can click on images to view larger versions.

It’s been a long time since my last Roguelike Updates post. Actually it’s been a while since I posted anything. I am running behind.

The biggest recent roguelike news (technically roguelike-like news) is that The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, a remake/expansion of The Binding of Isaac, has been released. But I haven’t played it yet. I haven’t even bought it yet. That is how behind I am. What I have played, however, is the latest version of Brogue (v.1.7.4), which adds many things, including whips.

Roguelike Updates: Gargoyles Are Pretty Good

Readers who are unfamiliar with roguelikes may wish to read my introduction to the genre, or peruse the various Roguelike Highlights posts. Also remember that you can click on images for larger versions.

Only two of the roguelikes I’ve previously covered have seen updates since my last Roguelike Updates post. Brogue had been sitting at v1.7.2 for some time, but it’s now been updated to v1.7.3. I haven’t had a chance to play it much, but the major changes relate to the stealth system and the progression system for friendly allies. Given that the last major update removed player leveling from the game, making combat a completely optional endeavor, I’m excited to see how the new stealth system plays out. A sneaky adventurer who slips past enemies unnoticed would be fun to play.

The other big news was the release of v0.13.0 of Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup last month. I have had a chance to play with this one, and I tried the new playable species that came with it: the gargoyle.

Roguelike Updates: Axe And You Shall Receive

Readers who are unfamiliar with roguelikes may wish to read my introduction to the genre, or peruse the various Roguelike Highlights posts. Also remember that you can click on images for bigger versions.

Just because I spent four months playing nothing but indie platformers doesn’t mean that the various roguelikes I’ve covered on the blog have stopped updating. It’s time to catch up with the latest developments! The biggest news for me was the release of Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup v0.12 (it’s now at v0.12.2 with a few more bugfixes). While the nickname for this release, “High Vaultage”, refers to the redesign of the Vaults dungeon branch, I was actually more interested in another change: axes now hit up to seven targets around the wielder with each attack. This presented an excellent incentive to return to a race/class combination that I’d dabbled with before: the deep dwarf berserker.

Roguelike Updates: Who Needs Leveling, Anyway?

It’s time for another roundup of updates to the various roguelikes I’ve covered on this blog. The big news is that Brogue has reached v1.7, with some major changes.

With the exception of its scrolls of enchantment — which allowed players to customize their characters not by some up-front character generation choices but by which pieces of equipment they chose to enchant — Brogue was quite similar to the original Rogue on first release. But the scrolls of enchantment were a great idea, and the strict rationing of these scrolls created strategic dilemmas not found in other roguelikes. By the time I wrote about it, other features of Brogue had already started to follow suit. The player character’s strength (and therefore, ability to use heavier weapons and armor) was no longer tied to experience level, instead being granted by potions of strength which were rationed just like scrolls of enchantment. This meant that it was no longer necessary to fight lots of enemies before getting to use better equipment, and stealthy tactics were more viable.

Still, fighting monsters for experience points to gain levels remained at the core of Brogue, and gaining levels was the only way to gain more health. Until now. With v1.7, leveling has been completely removed from the game.

Roguelike Updates: Dunegons of Dredmor Expands, Brogue and Dungeon Crawl Update

I should have realized this would become a series, given the various roguelikes I’ve covered and their propensity to update. New readers may wish to read my introduction to roguelikes or peruse my Roguelike Highlights. Everyone else can read on for the updates!

The big news is a new, free expansion pack for Dungeons of Dredmor (read my highlight here), released not long ago. What’s it called, you ask? Well you see, You Have To Name the Expansion Pack. Although when I tried it out, I was dismayed to discover that naming the expansion pack is not actually required. But it is possible. I named mine “Dredmore” because I am not as clever as I think I am. Pleasingly, it seems I can rename it as many times as I want, so I can change it once I think of something better.

Roguelike Updates: New Versions of DoomRL, Dungeon Crawl and Brogue

Several of the games I’ve covered in my Roguelike Highlights series have recently received some major updates. First up is DoomRL v0.9.9.6 (read my highlight of DoomRL here). DoomRL is, of course, a roguelike based on Doom, and the new version is the first to include a graphical tileset (although the original ASCII graphics can still be used). The graphics, incidentally, are made by Derek Yu, the same man responsible for Spelunky. There are several gameplay and balance changes as well; the full changelog is here, and you can see some shiny new screenshots here.

Roguelike Highlights: Brogue

[Be sure to read my introduction to roguelikes, and check out my first roguelike highlight here. Also, you can click the images for larger versions.]

Brogue is a more traditional roguelike than Dungeons of Dredmor, but it’s still pretty easy to learn, and it has some really nice features. It’s a good starting point if you want to become acclimated to a typical “keyboard shortcut” control scheme, and it will provide some decent training before trying to tackle the most hardcore roguelikes. Plus it’s enough fun to appeal to veteran players too, and it’s completely free!

It’s also a fairly recent roguelike, with the first version released in 2009, and the most recent update arriving earlier this month. While traditional in its gameplay, it definitely has a modern aesthetic in its design, which makes a great mix.

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén