Roguelike Games That Punish You For Being Too Cautious

Highlights

Caution can be deadly in games like Risk of Rain 2, where every second counts and slow play means harder challenges.
Rushing through levels like in Ravenswatch forces players to adapt and make quick decisions to survive the boss fights.
In games like Skul: The Hero Slayer, being too cautious can lead to an early death, while strategic aggression is more beneficial.

As a seasoned gamer with years of experience under my belt, I must say that these games have truly tested my mettle! Each one presents unique challenges that force me to question my strategies and adapt quickly.

Generally, being cautious is often beneficial as it helps people avoid danger in situations they might otherwise find risky. For instance, being mindful of your environment can keep you safe in potentially hazardous conditions. However, the concept of ‘safety’ associated with caution varies across video games. Some games encourage and reward careful decision-making, while others may penalize players who adopt this strategy.

In the realm of roguelikes, these games are infamous for their harsh consequences. A single misstep in many of these games can spell doom for your current playthrough, often leaving players disheartened. Consequently, most gamers adopt a cautious approach when playing such games to minimize losses. Yet, this strategy might not always be advantageous. Here, we delve into some outstanding roguelike games where adopting a careful approach could actually work against you, so it’s more of a drawback than an asset.

7 Risk of Rain 2

Time is Your Enemy In This Game

Roguelike Games That Punish You For Being Too Cautious

Starting off, let me highlight “Risk of Rain 2,” a game where every moment counts. Being overly cautious in “Risk of Rain 2” can be fatal not just in terms of movement (standing still often results in death), but also because the game becomes increasingly difficult as time passes. The longer your run in “RoR2,” the more challenging it gets. Interestingly, there’s an ongoing debate among the “Risk of Rain” community about whether it’s more advantageous to empty each map of all chests or set a time limit before activating the teleporter.

Furthermore, in the fourth stage of the game, there’s a chest that only opens if players act quickly within a 10-minute timeframe. Hence, it can be concluded that Risk of Rain 2 is likely one of the most compelling demonstrations of a roguelike genre title that rewards swift action over caution.

6 Ravenswatch

A Game Designed Around Rushing the Player

In Ravenswatch, like in RoR2, careful gameplay is penalized with time constraints. Instead of providing ample time for each level, this game sets a limited number of ‘days’. As you progress through each stage, the days tick down until you’re compelled to confront the boss. This can be altered slightly using in-game modifiers, but the structure of the game generally pushes players towards faster, less cautious play, as they strive to accumulate levels and items before engaging the boss.

As a fellow enthusiast, I’ve found that while it’s possible to navigate Ravenswatch with extreme care if one wishes, being overly cautious can backfire. During skirmishes, it’s essential to be mindful of enemy power, or else a single blow could leave us vulnerable. However, if we’re too careful, we might find ourselves underprepared to take on any boss without investing a significant chunk of time, say 10 minutes or more, without taking a hit.

5 Skul: The Hero Slayer

Don’t Let Its Art Style Fool You

Skul: The Bone-Crushing Tale is a lesser-known roguelike that’s worth exploring. In this charming game, you control Skul, a diminutive skeleton lad, who can swap heads to unlock distinct skills. While the game may appear endearing at first sight, beware! Its complexity and narrative are far from child’s play. In reality, this game is incredibly challenging, with a full run lasting between 40 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on your cautiousness in navigating each level.

In the game Skul, even if you tread carefully during boss fights, it’s likely that you’ll sustain damage because there are numerous attacks and a lot of action in the later stages. Eventually, these encounters transform into a race against time to deal as much damage (DPS) as possible. Being overly cautious in such situations will merely prolong your survival and expose you to more dangerous attacks, usually resulting in an early game failure rather than a successful run.

4 Astral Ascent

A Tough (But Beautiful) Pixel Roguelike

Astral Ascent, much like the lesser-known gem, is another remarkable roguelike that deserves more recognition. In many ways, it mirrors the action-packed adventure of Skul: The Hero Slayer. As you delve deeper into this celestial-themed space prison escape, the boss encounters become increasingly outlandish. While it’s somewhat easier to dodge these boss attacks compared to other games, the difficulty remains formidable.

In most cases, being excessively cautious in this game can often result in an early demise, unless the player’s careful approach is flawless. But as you advance towards the boss fights, being cautious or even overly cautious is perfectly fine since there are no strict time limits that penalize players for taking too long.

3 Dead Cells

A Truly Difficult 2D Platformer Roguelike

In this case, we’re discussing Dead Cells, a challenging 2D platformer with roguelike elements where being overly cautious often backfires. The Boss Cells feature of the game adds an extra layer of difficulty, making subsequent playthroughs increasingly tough and ultimately contributing to the final outcome. More often than not, in our experience, fighting enemies too conservatively in Dead Cells results in more damage and failed runs rather than advancement.

In Dead Cells, it’s often more effective to launch multiple attacks after an attack and dart past the enemy, rather than taking a cautious approach of poking and retreating. This strategy isn’t always ideal against every enemy, boss, or situation, but generally speaking, aggressive gameplay tends to be more successful than defensive gameplay in this roguelike game.

2 Moonlighter

Store by Day, Dungeon Crawler by Night

In this collection, it’s intriguing to see Moonlighter included, as this game exhibits roguelike elements, but only half the time. By day in Moonlighter, players manage their own shop, while at night they venture into dungeons to gather items for resale during the daytime. This dual nature of the game consistently poses a dilemma for players: should they press on further to collect more items or even clear the dungeon, or should they exit and take the loot they’ve already amassed?

As a devoted fan, I can tell you that in Moonlighter, if you pick the wrong path and deplete your health by continuing, you’ll forfeit all the equipment you’ve amassed thus far. This means advancing through the game with fresh weapons, gear, and enhancements becomes a challenge because you have fewer items to sell, resulting in less cash to splurge on new acquisitions. Essentially, Moonlighter is meticulously designed to instill doubt in your reckless playstyle, making it a perfect fit for this list.

1 Darkest Dungeon 1 & 2

Brutal By Design

To wrap things up, let’s discuss the game titled ‘Darkest Dungeon‘. Both the original and sequel versions of this game share characteristics that warrant their inclusion on our list. Like ‘Moonlighter‘, these games from ‘Darkest Dungeon‘ have a design structure that subtly encourages players to ponder whether they should continue or retreat. However, unlike in ‘Moonlighter‘, where excessive ambition might result in losing valuable gear, in ‘Darkest Dungeon‘, overzealousness can lead to dire consequences such as characters going insane, turning against each other, and failing to complete the dungeon, which is a key reason these games are infamously challenging.

In the gaming world I inhabit, I’m drawn to titles that seem to mete out punishment for every move I make. It’s a constant learning curve, as these games require players to grasp and adapt to their harsh penalties. Now, being overly cautious can occasionally pay off in these games, but more often than not, it results in missed progress, lost gear, or stagnated character development.

2024-08-10 13:04