Summary
The roguelike genre is broad and varied, with its origins going back to the 1980s with the release ofRogue, the genre’s namesake. This genre is technically turn-based by its very definition, though the general perception of roguelikes as a genre has become somewhat warped over the years, incorporating more modern gameplay mechanics and morphing into sub-genres like the action roguelike, which share little in common withRogueother than its permanent death mechanic.
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This topic focuses on strictly turn-based roguelikes that feature gameplay that is generally more modern than the traditional roguelike. However, there are a handful of traditional roguelikes here, but many of them also feature modernization and quality-of-life changes that make the experience more palatable to a modern audience.
This visually pleasing traditional roguelike is a colorful dungeon crawler that has players battling a variety of monsters in well-crafted fantasy environments to the tunes of an SNES-era soundtrack. Like most turn-based roguelikes,Tangledeepfeatures permanent death, but there is a gameplay mode that removes it.
Tangledeepfeatures a distinctive job system that’s reminiscent of games likeFinal Fantasy, complete with a variety of skills to learn, allowing every character to feel unique. Unlike many turn-based roguelikes,Tangledeepis a colorful and fast-paced experience that’s great for beginners and fans of old-school RPGs.
This traditional roguelike features colorful, modern, animated visuals that allow it to be both tactical and accessible at the same time. AlthoughCrown Trick’svisuals may be one of its biggest selling points, it’s still a highly strategic game with a focus on turn-based combat.
Unlike traditional roguelikes, however,Crown Trick’sruns are much shorter, allowing for a more casual pick-up-and-play experience that, when combined with the game’s excellent visual style, makesCrown Trickone of the most accessible turn-based roguelikes on Steam, and a great entry point to more traditional roguelikes.
ThisDOOM-inspired turn-based roguelike features an appropriately heavy soundtrack, a voice-acted protagonist, and cover-based shooter combat.Jupiter Hellis a successor toDOOM RL, later renamedDRL, which was heavily inspired by the originalDOOMand traditional roguelikes.
Jupiter Hellfeatures top-down 3D visuals that help to make the turn-based tactical combat a more immersive and visceral experience, something that is furthered by the game’s abundance of gore, talented voice work, and excellent music. Furthermore,Jupiter Hell’semphasis on cover-based shooting helps to distinguish it from similar roguelike games.
This game, from the burgeoning indie team PUNKCAKE, combines traditional Chess with turn-based roguelike combat to create a unique, easy-to-learn, fast-paced experience in which every decision matters. Although a few modern roguelikes have attempted to use Chess as a theme,Shotgun Kingarguably does it best.
Shotgun Kinghas a brilliantly minimalist pixel-art aesthetic, and due toits Chess theme, the game is tremendously easy to read at all times, allowing players to make informed decisions and reducing the risk of players being frustrated by misinformed moves.
AlthoughCataclysm: Dark Days Aheadmay not feature modern graphics, its gameplay has been heavily streamlined and modernized to be accessible for broader audiences, despite its core gameplay being very similar to that of an old-school, traditional roguelike.
Cataclysm: Dark Days Aheadis a post-apocalyptic roguelike packed with nasty creatures ranging from standard zombies to giant hornets. The game’s world is extremely inhospitable, making it one of the tougher games fans may experience. On top of its turn-based gameplay,Cataclysmalsoembraces RPG mechanicsin its skill system and NPCs.Cataclysmalso features a crafting system that allows players to build andcustomize their own vehicles.
This roguelike plays more similarly to puzzle games with its Chess-like grid-based strategy and tactical gameplay.Into The Breachisa mech-themedturn-based battler/puzzler in which players control a small and customizable squad of mechs with a limited set of abilities.
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Every mech inInto The Breachis tremendously important, making losing a mech mid-mission devastating. However, players can’t lose mechs permanently inInto The Breach, only the valuable pilots in their cockpits. Mechs without pilots can still operate, but inefficiently.Into The Breachhas all the core aspects of a turn-based roguelike, including permanent death, a variety of equipment and upgrades, and turn-based combat.Into The Breachis a distinctive game, and won’t be for every roguelike fan.
Dungeons Of Dredmorfeatures a variety of quality-of-life improvements over the traditional roguelike while keeping its core aspects intact. Tile-based turn-based combat, permanent death, and procedural generation all feature prominently inDungeons Of Dredmor.
This game isa straightforward dungeon-crawlerwith a focus on positioning, timing, and the collecting and use of various items. Players will spend a lot of time managing their inventory, building their character, and planning the best moves in combat.Dungeons Of Dredmor’sgreatest quality, however, is perhaps itscharacter creation system, which features plenty of variety and customization through a long list of expandable skills.
AlthoughCogmindmay not be the prettiest game, and it certainly looks like an overly complicated mess, it’s actually an elegant, addictive, and creative roguelike with truly unique gameplay wrapped up in a traditional package.
Cogmind’saesthetic may be initially off-putting, but its user interface and minimalist animations give it a computer terminal look that helps to make the otherwise minimal graphics somewhat immersive. However, what makesCogmindso great (and so unique) is its building mechanics, in which players must build out their robotic character by scavenging the levels and scrapping other robots. Since the game has no classes to speak of, a player’s character inCogmindis almost entirely defined by what parts they’ve equipped, allowing players to switch out their build on the fly to best suit their needs.
This hardcore roguelike RPG may feature an old-school minimalist aesthetic, with its basic tilesets and vague character art, but its unique and detailed approach to procedural generation and massive variety of character builds and customization make it a highly replayable experience.
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Caves Of Qudis packed with procedurally generated caves to explore, characters to meet, and quests to complete. The game features a main storyline as well as side quests, and even procedurally generated quests. Despite its heavy RPG elements, the game originally doubled as a traditional roguelike. However, it has more recently added beginner-friendly options that allow players to play through the game like a regular RPG, without worrying about losing their character permanently.
This combat-focused roguelike features lightelements of deck-building, despite not being a card game. With charming pixel art graphics and a quick and easy tutorial that teaches the game’s easy-to-learn yet highly strategic mechanics,Shogun Showdownis a tour de force of accessible turn-based roguelike gameplay.
Unlike many turn-based roguelikes,Shogun Showdownfeatures single-screen combat from a side perspective, completely changing the feel of the game.Shogun Showdown’scombat is heavily focused on positioning, movement, and timing, combining various attacks to outsmart waves of enemies and powerful bosses.
