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[mwanafalsafa]

Playing DF adventure mode has gotten me interested in trying out other roguelike ASCII games. But I really have no idea where to start...

So what are considered to be the gold standard of roguelike adventure games new and old?

And how can I get my hands on them?

Also I am on a Mac, so preferably they would be games playable on OS X somehow. But I'm interested in PC games too.

Thanks!

[Ze Spy]

ADOM, Nethack, Dwarf fortress(ASCII)

Elona, Rogue survivor(Graphical)

Just to name afew

[Simmura McCrea]

Crawl was my first, aside from DF. There's a thread on here, and I think it's Mac-friendly.

[vikingefar]

I would recomend Prospector. Its different, has addictive game mechanics, and is fun and easy to get into, especially after Deons tiles got added. dont know if its for mac though.

DoomRL springs to mind as well.

[Tilla]

Dungeon Crawl: Stone Soup and TOME 4 are really good barebones kind of RLs that have terrific user interfaces including mouse control and graphics

[0x517A5D]

I'll be a rebel and recommend Desktop Dungeons, the 10-minute roguelike.

Fast, starts out simple, becomes deceptively complex, compelling, combat has no random numbers, there is a Mac build.

And you won't spend hours building a character only to be insta-killed by soldier ants or cockatrices or some other super-strong monster that you don't know how to deal with because you were avoiding spoilers.


I'll second third the Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup recommendation.  Hard but fair.  Thank you, Linley Henzell, for opening the source when you stopped development.

[Demented Dwarfling]

Desktop Dungeons is great, but it's more like a puzzle game with a dungeon theme. Do try it tough, lots of FUN in there even if it is a bit more abstract then DF's gory variety. And don't get fooled into that " 10 minute " thing. If you have the time it will be one of these "just one more try / level" games.

I'll have to second ADOM, I tried various roguelike and this is the only one that managed to capture my interest for longer periods of time. I don't really know how to put it ... it is more focused with all the non-random or semi-random parts and quests, closer to something like Ultima than the other roguelikes. ( You can just goof around or try to dive into the Infinite Dungeon, though, and it's still really fun).
www.adom.de

[Haschel]

Can't comment on the mac portion of things, but I'd second (or third etc) Elona, Rogue Survivor, and Prospector. They're graphical but that really shouldn't be considered a bad thing, considering how utterly unique they all are in terms of gameplay.

I haven't had much time to get into it, but Caves of Qud seems good and actually feels a bit like DF adventure mode. I'm pretty sure a decent amount of people here would recommend it as well.

[nenjin]

DC I think is a good intro to the Rogue-like mentality. It's very random and can be very unforgiving.

It also will spoil you features-wise compared to a lot of other Rogue-likes. It's highly usable because it's been under continual development.

Rogue Survivor is a fun one as well, that's quite mechanical (i.e. it has quite a few game play features.)

If you want to go back to the roots, try Nethack. It's even more random, and less forgiving, than DC though. It's interface wasn't near as hot the last time I played it, either.

I don't make a distinction between graphical and ascii rogue-likes. Graphics done right only enhance a Rogue-like IMO.

[Koja]

I'd probably go from TOME 4/2 to ADOM/elona and so forth. Rogue survivor's fun, but lacks the equipment depth to push my loot button.

Diablo 1/2 is nice as well, albeit not ASCII; if you're used to graphics, it might be a nice intermediary.

[BigD145]

Here's where you start and end: http://roguebasin.roguelikedevelopment.org/

[Duelmaster409]

Caves of Qud has a DF feel to it, like someone said previously, so I highly recommend it.

[Sowelu]

Angband is of average complexity but easy for a roguelike.  In my opinion it is far and away the best one to start on (okay, maybe ZAngband, but none of the totally whacked-out ones.  Angband itself is still fine).  It is very survivable because nothing forces you to go deeper into the dungeon; you can tool around in random easier dungeon levels for as long as you like.  No pressure.

DoomRL is simple (relatively) but of average difficulty for a roguelike.  However, it is also short, and you are likely to win it at least once within your first week (different difficulty settings help).

Nethack is of high complexity and hard for a roguelike.  It is also the gold standard, and the deep end of the pool.  Jump in.  Prepare to die.  Think of it as Contra:  Losing on the first couple levels is normal.  Most players have never come close to winning.  Avoid spoilers...for a little while anyway (there's no way in fucking hell that you would learn some of the tricks otherwise).

ADOM is of moderate complexity and average difficulty for a roguelike.  It has a lot of gotchas and Guide Dang It moments, though.  It is almost as survivable as Angband, which is to say, very survivable:  There's not all that much forcing you onward if you don't want to (Or is there?).  In my opinion, its magic and archery systems are more fun than average roguelikes.  Archers are a true joy to play.  Skills are annoying as all fuck, and you practically need to read the Guidebook to get them right (if you don't pick a race/class combo with the Healing skill, or know how to get it early on, you don't have a chance).

Elona is on fucking crack, and the game balance is totally whacked out.  You want to avoid gaining levels for all practical purposes, for example.  It bends a lot of roguelike molds.  I do not recommend it until you are more experienced with roguelikes; otherwise, you will get the wrong ideas.

[raalph]

Crawl was my first, it is awesome.

[nenjin]

CastlevaniaRL if you want a more action-oriented (real-time) rogue-like experience.