Engine Builders: an analysisIn recent years, a new, very popular genre has emerged: games heavily focusing on upgrades and synergies. People creating games in this…Mar 6Mar 6
Permaconsequence and PermadeathPermadeath is the idea that, when your character dies, they cannot be brought back to life. Simple, right? Well, no. There are many flavors…Nov 9, 2023A response icon2Nov 9, 2023A response icon2
Permadeath considered harmfulTypical video games take 10–100 hours to complete; when something bad happens, e.g., your character is killed, you can just reverse the bad…Jan 4, 2023A response icon1Jan 4, 2023A response icon1
What is the difference between Roguelike and Roguelite?Roguelike is a genre primarily defined by its immediate gameplay (just like genres such as platformer or first-person shooter). Roguelites…Apr 9, 2022A response icon2Apr 9, 2022A response icon2
What to Say instead of RoguelikeInfluential games sometimes get genres named after them. However, such genre names tend to be unclear. Which feature of the influential…Apr 6, 2021A response icon1Apr 6, 2021A response icon1
The Monty Hall problem, but differentSuppose you’re on a game show, and you’re given the choice of three doors: Behind one door is a car; behind the others, goats. You pick a…Feb 14, 2021A response icon3Feb 14, 2021A response icon3
H. P. Lovecraft and non-Euclidean geometryAfter creating the first versions of HyperRogue, I have learnt that people often associate non-Euclidean geometry with the works of H. P…Jan 29, 2021A response icon2Jan 29, 2021A response icon2
What “Roguelike” MeantSeveral recently released games have rekindled the old discussions on the meaning of the word “roguelike”. This post is an attempt to…Nov 6, 2020A response icon2Nov 6, 2020A response icon2
Non-Euclidean geometry and gamesThe term “non-Euclidean” is often used by gamers to mean any kind of game where geometry does not work exactly as in our world. While such…May 1, 2019A response icon4May 1, 2019A response icon4
Life, Complexity, and RoguelikesWhile two-player strategy games (Go, Chess) are very important in our culture, and puzzles (both pen-and-paper and computer-based) are…Mar 22, 2019Mar 22, 2019
