Zeno Rogue
@zenorogue.bsky.social
roguelikes, mathematics, non-Euclidean geometry
HyperRogue (non-Euclidean roguelike), RogueViz, ZenoRogue (non-Euclidean visualization) on YouTube, Hydra Slayer (math roguelike).
HyperRogue (non-Euclidean roguelike), RogueViz, ZenoRogue (non-Euclidean visualization) on YouTube, Hydra Slayer (math roguelike).
Just like ADOM, Moonring, TOME, and many other roguelikes. Common design in the late 90s before DoomRL showed that short roguelikes can be fun too and DCSS made run-based format great.
December 3, 2025 at 9:26 AM
Just like ADOM, Moonring, TOME, and many other roguelikes. Common design in the late 90s before DoomRL showed that short roguelikes can be fun too and DCSS made run-based format great.
Vampire Survivors, being a clone of a popular mobile game Magic Survival, might be a better example.
December 2, 2025 at 8:10 AM
Vampire Survivors, being a clone of a popular mobile game Magic Survival, might be a better example.
Agreed. I also find it dumb that Jules Verne's works are not considered steampunk simply because they are too old.
(Beneath Apple Manor is obviously a roguelike even though it was released before Rogue.)
(Beneath Apple Manor is obviously a roguelike even though it was released before Rogue.)
December 1, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Agreed. I also find it dumb that Jules Verne's works are not considered steampunk simply because they are too old.
(Beneath Apple Manor is obviously a roguelike even though it was released before Rogue.)
(Beneath Apple Manor is obviously a roguelike even though it was released before Rogue.)
I think this example is not "level generation" but gameplay.
I mostly consider it procedural generation when it is interesting. So now you can ask where the cutoff is supposed to be for "interesting".
I mostly consider it procedural generation when it is interesting. So now you can ask where the cutoff is supposed to be for "interesting".
December 1, 2025 at 5:39 PM
I think this example is not "level generation" but gameplay.
I mostly consider it procedural generation when it is interesting. So now you can ask where the cutoff is supposed to be for "interesting".
I mostly consider it procedural generation when it is interesting. So now you can ask where the cutoff is supposed to be for "interesting".
(More seriously, I consider fractals to be procedural generation, whether they are randomized or not.)
December 1, 2025 at 5:09 PM
(More seriously, I consider fractals to be procedural generation, whether they are randomized or not.)
I think you are needleslly restrictive here. If you are doing `for(int y=10; y<20; y++) for(int x=10; x<20; x++) map[y][x] = WALL;`, you are creating a level using a procedure, so that is a procedurally generated level, even if there is no randomness.
December 1, 2025 at 5:07 PM
I think you are needleslly restrictive here. If you are doing `for(int y=10; y<20; y++) for(int x=10; x<20; x++) map[y][x] = WALL;`, you are creating a level using a procedure, so that is a procedurally generated level, even if there is no randomness.
Yes, C++. Emscripten to compile C++ into a web app.
November 29, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Yes, C++. Emscripten to compile C++ into a web app.
The engine is open source: github.com/zenorogue/zgdb
The visualization shown here is based on Kohonen's self-organizing map algorithm, implemented in RogueViz.
(I think I have not yet open-sourced the component which transforms the data into form accepted by RogueViz.)
The visualization shown here is based on Kohonen's self-organizing map algorithm, implemented in RogueViz.
(I think I have not yet open-sourced the component which transforms the data into form accepted by RogueViz.)
GitHub - zenorogue/zgdb: zeno game database
zeno game database. Contribute to zenorogue/zgdb development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
November 29, 2025 at 3:58 PM
The engine is open source: github.com/zenorogue/zgdb
The visualization shown here is based on Kohonen's self-organizing map algorithm, implemented in RogueViz.
(I think I have not yet open-sourced the component which transforms the data into form accepted by RogueViz.)
The visualization shown here is based on Kohonen's self-organizing map algorithm, implemented in RogueViz.
(I think I have not yet open-sourced the component which transforms the data into form accepted by RogueViz.)
The visualization above shows all games in the database, mapped by similarity.
"Roguetime" games (in which you move like in Rogue, aka #roguelike) are marked red.
Space-bending games are marked blue.
Games in the @thinkygames.com database are marked yellow.
html-classic.itch.zone/html/1568341...
"Roguetime" games (in which you move like in Rogue, aka #roguelike) are marked red.
Space-bending games are marked blue.
Games in the @thinkygames.com database are marked yellow.
html-classic.itch.zone/html/1568341...
November 29, 2025 at 3:41 PM
The visualization above shows all games in the database, mapped by similarity.
"Roguetime" games (in which you move like in Rogue, aka #roguelike) are marked red.
Space-bending games are marked blue.
Games in the @thinkygames.com database are marked yellow.
html-classic.itch.zone/html/1568341...
"Roguetime" games (in which you move like in Rogue, aka #roguelike) are marked red.
Space-bending games are marked blue.
Games in the @thinkygames.com database are marked yellow.
html-classic.itch.zone/html/1568341...
The specific issues were external controllers not working (but this is mostly a 1P game, multiplayer is experimental), some menu crash (I have noticed this complaint just now so I have not checked this), and the "search for setting" minor feature assuming that the user is using a keyboard.
November 29, 2025 at 3:30 PM
The specific issues were external controllers not working (but this is mostly a 1P game, multiplayer is experimental), some menu crash (I have noticed this complaint just now so I have not checked this), and the "search for setting" minor feature assuming that the user is using a keyboard.
It was previously tagged "playable", I have recently improved the SteamDeck support in HyperRogue and asked Valve to re-review it, they complained about some things that I consider minor/irrelevant and they changed the status to "unsupported". I had no time to work on these issues yet.
November 29, 2025 at 3:26 PM
It was previously tagged "playable", I have recently improved the SteamDeck support in HyperRogue and asked Valve to re-review it, they complained about some things that I consider minor/irrelevant and they changed the status to "unsupported". I had no time to work on these issues yet.
A rough formula is (√3)ⁿ. (It is not exactly √3).
November 28, 2025 at 11:11 PM
A rough formula is (√3)ⁿ. (It is not exactly √3).
10000 means the radius is 13 tiles, so it would be quite close to your guess. Big enough to cover everything visible, small enough to not delay the simulation (although it renders tiles of size ≥ 1 pixel, that part did not work in real time).
November 28, 2025 at 10:49 PM
10000 means the radius is 13 tiles, so it would be quite close to your guess. Big enough to cover everything visible, small enough to not delay the simulation (although it renders tiles of size ≥ 1 pixel, that part did not work in real time).
The program takes the 10000 tiles closest to the center, and performs the simulation on these 10000 tiles (monsters on tiles without parents simply disappear, and monsters on tiles without children are generated randomly, but that is not visible on screen). Just picked this number by intuition.
November 28, 2025 at 10:32 PM
The program takes the 10000 tiles closest to the center, and performs the simulation on these 10000 tiles (monsters on tiles without parents simply disappear, and monsters on tiles without children are generated randomly, but that is not visible on screen). Just picked this number by intuition.
(BTW I think it would be good to tag the devs of popular survivors-likes so they could help sharing)
November 27, 2025 at 10:12 PM
(BTW I think it would be good to tag the devs of popular survivors-likes so they could help sharing)
Good luck with this great initiative! It is crazy how it still does not have a tag. I would add survivorslikes.com as a good place to learn about this genre (with a database and lots of interesting research), and that haters would probably also love a tag to separate them from other roguelites :)
November 27, 2025 at 10:10 PM
Good luck with this great initiative! It is crazy how it still does not have a tag. I would add survivorslikes.com as a good place to learn about this genre (with a database and lots of interesting research), and that haters would probably also love a tag to separate them from other roguelites :)
No, they are not welcome in general :)
November 27, 2025 at 5:16 PM
No, they are not welcome in general :)
They are trying to kill it for like 30 years, the roguelike genre won't die that easily. Spire-likes are not welcome in r/roguelikes and we see lots of new releases recently.
November 27, 2025 at 4:37 PM
They are trying to kill it for like 30 years, the roguelike genre won't die that easily. Spire-likes are not welcome in r/roguelikes and we see lots of new releases recently.
Sounds more like some Hades marketing to excuse its repetitiveness than "the point of roguelikes".
November 26, 2025 at 12:50 PM
Sounds more like some Hades marketing to excuse its repetitiveness than "the point of roguelikes".
Why fear roguelikes, just try out a good free one (e.g. Moonring is a good intro).
November 26, 2025 at 12:45 PM
Why fear roguelikes, just try out a good free one (e.g. Moonring is a good intro).
Roguelike players know that the best games are truly free. Gambling usually requires payment, so we won't gamble.
November 25, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Roguelike players know that the best games are truly free. Gambling usually requires payment, so we won't gamble.
Caves of Qud (has an enemy who causes you to sleep, and the dream is a run-based game)
Legerdemain (if you die, you are sent back to the last inn, and it is explained that it was a nightmare)
You can roleplay like this in mostly any roguelike, even if the official story pretends it is all real.
Legerdemain (if you die, you are sent back to the last inn, and it is explained that it was a nightmare)
You can roleplay like this in mostly any roguelike, even if the official story pretends it is all real.
November 25, 2025 at 3:15 PM
Caves of Qud (has an enemy who causes you to sleep, and the dream is a run-based game)
Legerdemain (if you die, you are sent back to the last inn, and it is explained that it was a nightmare)
You can roleplay like this in mostly any roguelike, even if the official story pretends it is all real.
Legerdemain (if you die, you are sent back to the last inn, and it is explained that it was a nightmare)
You can roleplay like this in mostly any roguelike, even if the official story pretends it is all real.