Gamers who like roguelikes will like the Seven Day RogueLike Challenge at Cymon’s Games, where 28 games in the genre from a range of amateur developers are now freely available for download and play.
The challenge was simple: Make a roguelike game in only seven days, then submit it to Cymon’s Games, a site dedicated to amateur game development. Cymon’s Games has hosted various challenges over the past four years and this time around a “historic” 28 games were submitted and are now ready to be tried.
For those not in the know, “roguelikes” are simply games that share similarities with the 1980 classic Rogue, the great-granddaddy of action-RPGs. While most roguelikes are turn-based and feature ASCII graphics, the style has grown from its humble roots and games like Diablo and other action-RPGs are sometimes considered part of the genre as well.
“Generally they’re text based, but not always,” the Cymon’s Games site says. “Generally they’re D&D type cRPGs, but not always. Generally they employ line of sight or area of sight mechanics, but not always. Sometimes they’re painfully difficult and sometimes they’re perfect for killing 5 minutes of a coffee break.”
The 28 games on tap include reviews to help potential players decide which ones will be the best time-killers. And although the 7DRL Challenge isn’t a competition, Cymon’s Games is taking votes on Best of Show, Best Visual Presentation and Technical Merit, with polls open until the end of April. Try one, or try them all, right here.
