• Nacktmull
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      11 months ago

      The answer to your question has been a subject of endless nerdy discussions for years. However I would answer it like this.

      Rogue-like, loose definition: A defined genre of games, based on the classic game Rogue. Key features of such games are:

      • dungeon crawling
      • procedurally generated levels
      • perma death
      • turn-based gameplay
      • grid-based movement

      Rogue-like, strict definition: A defined genre of games, based on the classic game Rogue. Key features of such games are:

      • dungeon crawling
      • procedurally generated levels
      • permadeath
      • turn-based gameplay
      • grid-based movement
      • non modal (every action should be available to the player regardless of where they are in the game)
      • complexity
      • resource management
      • hack and slash combat system
      • exploration of areas and items
      • typically such games are displayed in ASCII but it´s not a must

      Roguelike, examples:

      • Hack
      • NetHack
      • Ancient Domains of Mystery
      • Moria
      • Angband
      • Tales of Maj’Eyal
      • Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup

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      Rogue-lite, definition: Not a defined genre at all but just an umbrella term for games from any genre that share at least some of the following characteristics:

      • permadeath (a must have)
      • procedurally generated levels
      • metaprogression
      • short to medium length runs with victory conditions (a run can usually be finished in one sitting)

      Roguelite, examples

      • FTL - Faster Than Light
      • Dead Cells
      • Nova Drift
      • Hades
      • Children of Morta
      • Nuclear Throne
      • Nova Drift
      • Enter the Gungeon
      • The Binding of Isaac
        • Nacktmull
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          11 months ago

          You are welcome. I enjoy to systematize things :)

      • ryathal@sh.itjust.works
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        11 months ago

        That definition of rougelike seems overly strict to me. I’d say the main difference is a system that provides progression outside of runs to make future runs easier. That would more things like FTL, enter the gungeon, and binding of Issac into the rougelike category.

        • Nacktmull
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          11 months ago

          The answer to your question has been a subject of endless nerdy discussions for years. However I would answer it like this.