Summary
- Atmosphere matters in roguelikes & roguelites, enhancing player experience and making games more immersive than just combat and procedural generation.
- From eerie underwater worlds to dark sci-fi landscapes, well-crafted atmospheres draw players in, even in the face of steep learning curves.
- Revita, Feed The Deep, & Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers show how unique atmospheres can elevate roguelike & roguelite gameplay experiences.
Roguelikes and roguelites are perhaps better known for their combat systems and procedural generation, among other things. However, the atmosphere can play a key role in a player's enjoyment of many games, and roguelikes/roguelites are no exception.
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A well-crafted atmosphere can help to immerse players in the experience, giving them a reason to stick out the often steep learning curves of the games in these genres. From traditional roguelikes such as Caves Of Qud to recent roguelites like Feed The Deep, there are a variety of immersive atmospheres on offer.
1 Feed The Deep
An Underwater Roguelite With A Foreboding Atmosphere
- Platform(s): PC
- Released: 2024
- Developer(s): Luke Muscat
- Genre: Rogue-lite
Developed by Luke Muscat (who previously worked on Fruit Ninja and Jetpack Joyride), Feed The Deep is an exploration-focused roguelite that plays similarly to games such as Dome Keeper. The game takes place underwater and puts players in the role of a diver attempting to complete objectives while avoiding suffocation and a host of nasty creatures.
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The game's atmosphere is tremendously immersive thanks to rich sound design and a fitting soundtrack. Furthermore, the design of the game's creatures and the dark, shifting waters of the environment result in a consistently eerie feel. Feed The Deep isn't traditional in its structure, however, as the game is made up of several missions, rather than being one long string of zones to complete. This results in a more bite-sized experience that's surprisingly accessible to newcomers.
2 Hades
Unique Art Direction, Talented Voice Acting, And A Fitting Soundtrack
Hades
- Released
- September 17, 2020
- Developer(s)
- Supergiant Games
- Platform(s)
- PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Switch, PC
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, Roguelite
Hades provides a slick and immersive atmosphere despite its roguelite structure, thanks in large part to expert art direction and a riveting soundtrack. Hades also focuses its efforts on narrative, providing players with voice-acted characters and a drip-fed story that enhances the game's atmosphere.
Hades features hack-and-slash gameplay with a variety of distinct weapons that keep the game replayable, but its atmosphere is arguably its greatest strength. The voice-acting, music, and unique art direction of Supergiant Games blend perfectly, offering a rich and unique atmosphere for the game's non-stop action.
3 Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers
A Roguelike Card Game In An Atmospheric Casino
- Platform(s): PC
- Released: 2024
- Developer(s): Purple Moss Collectors
- Genre: Rogue-like
Despite being a relatively static card game, Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers offers a tremendously immersive atmosphere thanks to its rich casino setting. Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers elevates its otherwise basic setting with atmospheric music and evocative pixel art, as well as flavorful text prompts and a diegetic user interface.
Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers is a roguelike that revolves around blackjack, which makes its setting all the more relevant. The game's atmosphere is kept fresh and exciting through the variety of zones in the casino, ranging from the VIP area to the Basement. This also helps to give each run a satisfying sense of progression.
4 Caves Of Qud
A Traditional Roguelike RPG With An Atmospheric Soundscape
Caves Of Qud
Although it may not look like much at first glance, with fairly minimal art assets filling in for traditional ASCII art, Caves Of Qud offers a rich and immersive atmosphere. This is all thanks to its mysterious sci-fi fantasy world, evocative writing, and - most importantly - its excellent music.
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It's this music, which is almost reminiscent of the soundscapes in Blade Runner, that sets the tone and fills the air with a mysterious atmosphere. Caves Of Qud is a turn-based, traditional roguelike RPG with relatively static visuals, but its atmosphere propels it forward and makes exploring its expansive open world a much more engaging activity.
5 Darkest Dungeon
Foreboding Music, Gothic Art, And Lovecraftian Horror
Darkest Dungeon
This strategic, turn-based roguelike features a harsh and unforgiving gameplay loop that tasks players with delving into dangerous dungeons and dispatching groups of Lovecraftian creatures. The game's punishing mechanics synergize with the foreboding music, Gothic art style, and dark tone, providing players with a rich and often gloomy atmosphere.
Darkest Dungeon also features RPG mechanics that have players leveling up their heroes over time, equipping them with various trinkets and upgrading their weapons and armor. This makes losing heroes in combat all the more devastating, as enemies permanently kill characters. Darkest Dungeon's narrator also adds to the game's dense and gloomy atmosphere with his deep, grizzled voice.
6 Duskers
Quiet, Grainy, And Unsettling
Duskers
- Released
- August 20, 2015
- Developer(s)
- Misfits Attic
- Platform(s)
- PC
- Genre(s)
- Strategy
Duskers is a science fiction game that puts players in the role of a drone operator, scouring abandoned spaceships for resources. The game's dark atmosphere and grainy visuals make for a unique roguelike that's distinctive in both its visuals and gameplay.
Duskers features grainy sci-fi visuals and a diegetic user interface that simulates a computer console. Through this, players can use commands to program and direct their various drones through each spaceship. These immersive mechanics, combined with the grainy visuals and rich sound design, provide a consistently tense and often eerie atmosphere.
7 Revita
An Action Roguelite With A Cozy Atmosphere
- Platform(s): PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch
- Released: 2022
- Developer(s): BenStar
- Genre: Rogue-lite
This platforming action roguelite plays similarly to other games of its ilk, but stands out with a unique mechanical twist and, more importantly, a rich and mysterious atmosphere that's akin to games such as Hollow Knight. Although Revita's roguelite structure doesn't allow players to dwell in its atmospheric environments for long, they are memorable all the same.
Revita's atmosphere is primarily sustained through an excellent and often joyful soundtrack, charming pixel art, and quirky NPCs. The game also features a hub area that takes full advantage of its cozy atmosphere, giving players a more than suitable place to recuperate between runs.
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