D&D-inspired roguelike Soulblight is all about role-playing

Paul Bellow · Nov 19, 2017

Polish developer My Next Games hates to see players obsess over grinding experience in RPGs. In lieu of bigger numbers, they reckon the genre could use a shot of good old-fashioned role-playing, and they intend to give it one with Soulblight, a top-down roguelike that's fundamentally about writing and playing a character. It's currently on Kickstarter, with My Next Games asking for $US11,729 to bring it to life. At the time of writing, its campaign has earned $US3,311 and will run for another 30 days.

"We look back with nostalgia at our pen and paper RPG memories," My Next Games says. "Back then, gaining XP and leveling up was only part of the fun. The thing we were most excited about was actual role-playing. For a brief moment becoming a character with all their merits but also with all their flaws. Sometimes their shortcomings would stand in the way of solving a quest at hand making the game more difficult. But because of that the characters felt more alive and that’s why we wouldn’t have it any other way."

To translate role-playing into roguelike form, Soulblight uses a 'tainting' mechanic. When you clear a level of the Sanctuary, the procedurally generated main dungeon, you select a new 'taint' for your character. It might sound negative, but taints aren't strictly limitations or debuffs. My Next Games describes them as "a new way of gaining power" based on how closely your actions accentuate and mirror your character's taints.
Click to expand...

http://www.pcgamer.com/dd-inspired-roguelike-soulblight-is-all-about-role-playing/

Log in or Sign up

D&D-inspired roguelike Soulblight is all about role-playing

Paul Bellow Forum Game Master Staff Member LitRPG Author Shop Owner Citizen Aspiring Writer

Share This Page