Roguelikes - a waking dream - vanilla is my flavour (so far)

[FogSpear]

Originally Posted by Sacksquatch

Similar situation, except I discovered Angband AND Linux about the same time. So I'm not just experiencing variants and their timelines, but my PC has become a platform for temporary linux distros, virtual machines, and usb live boots lol.

I believe I've settled on two favorites Angband and FirstAgeAngband (both of which have updates coming out soonish). I also spend quite a bit of time on Sangband, Sil, and Frogcomposband. You can play a lot of them at Angband Live, but I go back and forth between playing there and getting that SDL2 + sound experience. Angband Live is a great way to quickly jump in and get a feel for different variants. Plus the people are nice and helpful. I've asked a metric shit-ton of questions, and never got any 'tude from it hehe.

Brogue is a nice break. I love it because I find the situations it puts me in are hilarious at times.

If you want a phone version for life's dull moments (like waiting for the doctor to prove he exists) there are phone ports for Angband, Brogue, DCSS, and more. You may or may not find them on the playstore and may need to visit their git. One game you will find on the store is called Pixel Dungeon. It's pretty damn fun. I use the Shattered version, it has a bit more gameplay depth than the original (which is open source btw). Pixel Dungeon and Brogue will be the most phone friendly to play.

Oh and I *think* I've settled on Manjaro w KDE lol, but my mind is still blown away with the choices.

Thanks for the tip on Angband Live. It seems like a great way to quickly check out different variants. Call me old school for wanting to compile source and run locally. Good luck with your Linux learning. It is my escape platform.

[FogSpear]

Originally Posted by bughunter

The ASCII interface is part of the appeal to me.

...

Anyway, just the ASCII environment still gives me the sense of awe and wonder I had back in 1980. I've played mostly Nethack until about two years ago, and have switched to Angband. Playing the former, I learned to be a little more circumspect about diving quickly, but Angband actually rewards it.

To a degree...

I read somewhere that it makes playing a game more like reading a book (vs movie) - with the opportunity to enhance our own imaginative creations. Maybe that is it for me. I also find that by working at an experience a little more, I gain greater attachment to the experience itself.

[FogSpear]

Originally Posted by Grotug

The visual style of Angband is a major draw for me. I *like* the ASCII look, and its efficiency for conveying information is unmatched by other games and for that reason tile/graphic roguelikes are far inferior.

I, like you, also love vanilla Angband and cannot get drawn into other roguelikes, even other *Bands. I think a big reason for this is that the level designs in Vanilla work really well for the game's format and their relative simplicity and consistency of design contrast really well with the game's depth and complex mechanics. Other roguelikes and *bands are doing too many things and it's a bit much for my tastes. Vanilla Angband does have some funky environments from time to time to break up the consistent levels style, but they are quite rare. Vanilla, in general, may be the closest thing to a perfect game.

I agree with the too many things comments. One of the turn offs for me with the Nethack route seemed to be the lack of thematic integrity. The talk of the kitchen sink and the need to use spoilers has kept me from diving more deeply there (and those vi direction keys on a laptop - its easier to use arrow keys and 1,3,7,9 when I need them).

I forgot to add a couple of items that drew me to roguelikes/Angband: the open source copy-left ethos (I am a sucker for that) and the historical context/tradition of these creations being backroom diversions for university and engineering wonks.

[FogSpear]

Originally Posted by Selkie

I'll be honest, I've always felt a bit guilty for only playing vanilla Angband. I did dabble with ToME for a while but returned to what I knew. There are so many variants, and I do spend a lot of time reading about their strategies and idiosyncrasies (which makes it even weirder that I've never tried playing them).

Also, how strange it is to read an Angband vanilla noob asking for a return of the charisma stat. I mean it was an interesting dynamic in 1996 with my half orc warrior not getting a good price for his spellbook, but I can honestly say the game is so much better without pointless charisma... I make my own

I will have to explore that debate more. Perhaps, my desire for the stat block to look more like dnd is evidence of my mind being bent by pure marketing.

[FogSpear]

Originally Posted by whartung

I don't care for the graphic tiles. I like the ASCII interface as well.

Haven't played it yet, but a screenshot of Cogmind with tiles did not seem too bad. I do like the particle effects and ASCII animations in its related vids. We shall see. The key for me is an immersive environment - and nostalgia.

For Angband Vanilla, I turned on the shimmer multi-colored things and also madee uniques purple (with the Detect Life spell and Look Around, I find that helps me strategize about whether to target those uniques).

[Pete Mack]

There IS a pure d20 angband variant: Sil. Beware: it is not easy....