Temple of The Roguelike Forums

Development => Design => Topic started by: chooseusername on January 20, 2014, 11:42:22 PM

Title: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: chooseusername on January 20, 2014, 11:42:22 PM
Exactly what a roguelike is, is contentious.  Given this, what exactly a roguelikelike is, becomes even weaker.

What makes a game a roguelikelike?

Does it mean anything worthwhile, or is the author unwilling/incapable to write an actual roguelike, and they're desperately clinging to the dream?
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: guest509 on January 21, 2014, 03:12:19 AM
A roguelike-like, something I often call a hybrid roguelike, is just a game that shares some but not all of the the major roguelike traits. Generally it's a game that has procedural generation but is missing the turn based or permadeath components.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: AgingMinotaur on January 21, 2014, 08:45:42 AM
"Hybrid Roguelike" is actually a pretty good term, more precise and much more palatable than Roguelikelike. Most games designated Roguelikelikes take their core gameplay from some other genre and slap on "the stuff that makes Roguelikes fun".

As always,
Minotauros
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Quendus on January 21, 2014, 09:08:13 AM
People write whatever games they want, and they call whatever games they want roguelike. If someone (the creator or otherwise) thinks that a game isn't a roguelike by their own definition, and if they see some elements of a roguelike game or hear someone else say it's a roguelike(like), they might call it a roguelikelike.

Berlin interpretation aside, both concepts have such variable meaning in the wider game community that they're not very precisely descriptive outside of small, like-thinking groups or one's own head.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Rickton on January 21, 2014, 12:19:32 PM
To me, it basically means "not a roguelike, but inspired by them." It's kind of a silly term, but I see its usefulness. Calling something like FTL or Binding of Isaac a roguelike would make the definition even more meaningless than it already is, but they're clearly inspired by roguelikes and use some of the features and design goals of roguelikes. And so: roguelikelike.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Vanguard on January 21, 2014, 07:28:07 PM
"Roguelike-inspired" is a much better term.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: guest509 on January 22, 2014, 04:09:34 AM
In practice it's a game with procedural generation but not a turn based crawl.

Examples are Spelunky and Binding and FTL.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Enke on January 24, 2014, 02:25:21 AM
For me, the things that make a game a rougelike are turn-based combat, high levels of interactivity with the world, permadeath, and a general focus on gameplay over story.

Also, I'm pretty sure that this topic has been done before.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Eben on January 24, 2014, 05:26:30 AM
In practice it's a game with procedural generation but not a turn based crawl.

Examples are Spelunky and Binding and FTL.

I'm pretty much on board with this, although I'd count FTL as an actual roguelike largely because of the active pause system giving you the full advantage of the turn based "think for as long as you want, we'll wait" style
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Vanguard on January 24, 2014, 01:48:05 PM
Also, I'm pretty sure that this topic has been done before.

It's the only topic allowed on this forum.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Krice on January 24, 2014, 09:49:45 PM
I want to falcon punch the guy who invented that term.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: chooseusername on January 25, 2014, 01:14:42 AM
I want to falcon punch the guy who invented that term.
Wait till you see my roguelikelikelike, it's also kind of a platformerlikelike and a rpglikelike.  ;D
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: guest509 on January 25, 2014, 02:43:55 AM
If you do the falcon punch in real time it's a falcon_punch_like.

 ;)
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Slash on January 25, 2014, 05:46:28 PM
A rogue likelike is a like-like gone out of control.

Further info: http://zeldawiki.org/Like_Like (http://zeldawiki.org/Like_Like)
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Vanguard on January 25, 2014, 06:27:45 PM
A rogue likelike is a like-like gone out of control.

Further info: http://zeldawiki.org/Like_Like (http://zeldawiki.org/Like_Like)

A 7drl called Roguelikelike where you play as/hunt down a berserk like like would own.
Title: Re: What does roguelikelike mean?
Post by: Slash on January 25, 2014, 10:18:13 PM
might do for this year's 7DRL :P