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Why are there so many bloody roguelikes or roguelites, and what really makes a game roguish?
md5
6350b1aa2bcc3d9606b017db45cf76ec
link
https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/why-are-there-so-many-bloody-roguelikes-or-roguelites-and-what-really-makes-a-game-roguish
image
https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/eurogamer-11o3td.jpg?width=690&quality=85&format=jpg&auto=webp
description
Some days, I think I'd rather gouge my eyes out than read another email about a new roguelike or roguelite. This confuses me, because many of favourite games are roguelikes or roguelites, including Dead Cells, Balatro, FTL: Faster Than Light, and the recent Morsels, a reeking procedural dumpsite that speaks to the overproduction of Rogue/rogue derivatives at large.
Roguish games are everywhere right now. According to SteamDB, 1602 games tagged "roguelike" were published in 2024 out of 18567 total, versus 312 out of 9655 in 2020. Stir in roguelites and the countless games that advertise themselves as having "roguelike mechanics", and I sincerely worry that you're describing the majority of PC releases from the past couple of years.
content_html
Some days, I think I'd rather gouge my eyes out than read another email about a new roguelike or roguelite. This confuses me, because many of favourite games are roguelikes or roguelites, including Dead Cells, Balatro, FTL: Faster Than Light, and the recent Morsels, a reeking procedural dumpsite that speaks to the overproduction of Rogue/rogue derivatives at large.
Roguish games are everywhere right now. According to SteamDB, 1602 games tagged "roguelike" were published in 2024 out of 18567 total, versus 312 out of 9655 in 2020. Stir in roguelites and the countless games that advertise themselves as having "roguelike mechanics", and I sincerely worry that you're describing the majority of PC releases from the past couple of years.
content_text
Some days, I think I'd rather gouge my eyes out than read another email about a new roguelike or roguelite. This confuses me, because many of favourite games are roguelikes or roguelites, including Dead Cells, Balatro, FTL: Faster Than Light, and the recent Morsels, a reeking procedural dumpsite that speaks to the overproduction of Rogue/rogue derivatives at large. Roguish games are everywhere right now. According to SteamDB, 1602 games tagged "roguelike" were published in 2024 out of 18567 total, versus 312 out of 9655 in 2020. Stir in roguelites and the countless games that advertise themselves as having "roguelike mechanics", and I sincerely worry that you're describing the majority of PC releases from the past couple of years. Read more
pub_date
28 November 2025, 3:13 pm
guid
https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/why-are-there-so-many-bloody-roguelikes-or-roguelites-and-what-really-makes-a-game-roguish
creator
Edwin Evans-Thirlwell
processed
TRUE
id: 87470
uid: FfRoC
insdate: 2025-11-28 15:30:01
title: Why are there so many bloody roguelikes or roguelites, and what really makes a game roguish?
additional:
category: Rock Paper Shotgun
md5: 6350b1aa2bcc3d9606b017db45cf76ec
link: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/why-are-there-so-many-bloody-roguelikes-or-roguelites-and-what-really-makes-a-game-roguish
image: https://assetsio.gnwcdn.com/eurogamer-11o3td.jpg?width=690&quality=85&format=jpg&auto=webp
image_imgur:
description:
Some days, I think I'd rather gouge my eyes out than read another email about a new roguelike or roguelite. This confuses me, because many of favourite games are roguelikes or roguelites, including Dead Cells, Balatro, FTL: Faster Than Light, and the recent Morsels, a reeking procedural dumpsite that speaks to the overproduction of Rogue/rogue derivatives at large.
Roguish games are everywhere right now. According to SteamDB, 1602 games tagged "roguelike" were published in 2024 out of 18567 total, versus 312 out of 9655 in 2020. Stir in roguelites and the countless games that advertise themselves as having "roguelike mechanics", and I sincerely worry that you're describing the majority of PC releases from the past couple of years.
content_html:
Some days, I think I'd rather gouge my eyes out than read another email about a new roguelike or roguelite. This confuses me, because many of favourite games are roguelikes or roguelites, including Dead Cells, Balatro, FTL: Faster Than Light, and the recent Morsels, a reeking procedural dumpsite that speaks to the overproduction of Rogue/rogue derivatives at large.
Roguish games are everywhere right now. According to SteamDB, 1602 games tagged "roguelike" were published in 2024 out of 18567 total, versus 312 out of 9655 in 2020. Stir in roguelites and the countless games that advertise themselves as having "roguelike mechanics", and I sincerely worry that you're describing the majority of PC releases from the past couple of years.
content_text: Some days, I think I'd rather gouge my eyes out than read another email about a new roguelike or roguelite. This confuses me, because many of favourite games are roguelikes or roguelites, including Dead Cells, Balatro, FTL: Faster Than Light, and the recent Morsels, a reeking procedural dumpsite that speaks to the overproduction of Rogue/rogue derivatives at large. Roguish games are everywhere right now. According to SteamDB, 1602 games tagged "roguelike" were published in 2024 out of 18567 total, versus 312 out of 9655 in 2020. Stir in roguelites and the countless games that advertise themselves as having "roguelike mechanics", and I sincerely worry that you're describing the majority of PC releases from the past couple of years. Read more
pub_date: 28 November 2025, 3:13 pm
guid: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/why-are-there-so-many-bloody-roguelikes-or-roguelites-and-what-really-makes-a-game-roguish
creator: Edwin Evans-Thirlwell
related_games:
processed: TRUE