Rogue Legacy Review
Played on Nintendo Switch
Time Played: 15+ hours
It's in the Genes
I have to admit, my first few (very short) runs in Rogue Legacy were not very enjoyable. I found the controls too floaty and soft and didn't feel like I had enough control over my character to avoid taking damage or attack precisely. I'm glad I stuck with it though, as this simple little roguelike platformer has an addicting gameplay loop and became one of my favorite games on the Switch.
Rogue Legacy is, at its core, a pretty straightforward roguelike. You play as a knight whose sole purpose is to reclaim your family's castle. To do so you must slay the four beasts within and thus unlock the throne room. Each beast is found in one of four unique environments inside the castle.
What makes Rogue Legacy unique is that each time you die you come back as an heir to your previous character. When starting a new run you are given the choice of three offspring and each one will have different traits and characteristics that affect the gameplay. Some of the traits are useful, some are a hindrance, and some are just funny.
For example, picking a character with the "Vertigo" trait flips the screen requiring you to play the entire run upside down. Another, "I.B.S." causes your character to fart sometimes when you run or jump. Another trait gives you back MP for casting spells every time you smash something. There are 37 traits in total, so it really adds a lot of variety to the game. And because you get to pick from three options at the start of the game you can typically avoid certain traits that you really dislike.
There are also surprisingly in depth class and upgrade systems that you'll need to utilize to advance in the game. There are 10 different classes that you can unlock as you play, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. My favorite was the Lich who adds to their max HP with every kill. The Miner is also very useful because while they are weaker than normal, they gives you a bonus to all the gold you find.
Gold is very important in Rogue Legacy as you use it to permanently upgrade your weapons, armor, class, and abilities before you start each run. You earn gold by killing enemies, opening chests throughout the castle, and smashing furniture as you explore. You have to give up all your gold when you start a new run so it doesn't make sense to not spend as much as you can. This also forces you to get better at the game because if you aren't getting far enough into the castle you won't be able to afford any upgrades on your next run.
The upgrades are what you would typically expect in this sort of game. You can increase your max health, MP, or damage. You can increase your carry weight which allows you to wear heavier armor that may give you different bonuses as well. One of my favorite upgrades allows you to keep some gold at the start of each run which allows you to get more upgrades faster.
At the end of the day, the amount of customization you're offered in Rogue Legacy is staggering. There are 32 upgrades you can unlock, most of which you can upgrade multiple times to improve their effect. There are 11 different runes and 15 sets of armor (comprised of five pieces each) for you to find as you explore the castle that you can then mix and match as you see fit. I admit, once I unlocked the full upgrade tree I was a little overwhelmed and focused on upgrading the traits that were the most useful to my play style.
Storm the Castle
All the customization in the world doesn't mean anything if the gameplay isn't good, but luckily that is not a problem in Rogue Legacy. As I mentioned, I did not care for the controls when I first started playing, it almost felt like a mobile game to me. But as I stuck with it I got used to the movement and was able to string together some longer runs in the castle. This game does a great job of making you feel like a champion when you go on a long run, especially when you see the giant pile of gold you have to spend when you start your next run.
In true roguelike fashion, the castle itself is procedurally generated so each run is different. There's actually a character at the start of each run who you can pay to keep the castle the same as your previous run if you like the layout, but I never found that necessary. My gold was always better spent upgrading my character.
The castle is broken down into four different areas, each with their own boss that must be slayed to gain access to the final boss. Surprisingly, there is a "correct" way to progress through the game. You always start each run inside the castle proper, but from there you can go to any of the three remaining areas in any order you want. However, each area has its own innate difficulty level, so while the game isn't going to stop you from exploring wherever you want, chances are you will not be able to make significant progress in the most difficult area until you've sufficiently upgraded your character.
Each of the four areas contains a variety of enemies. Some are tougher reskins of the enemies from the first area and some are new enemies unique to a particular area. While the game isn't breaking any new grounds on enemy design, there are plenty of baddies attacking you or firing projectiles to make sure you're always on your toes as you progress. I really liked the inclusion of mini bosses in each area that are completely optional but always drop good rewards.
The bosses are, again, nothing you haven't seen before and include a giant eyeball and a flaming skull. Still, there is some learning required to figure out their attack patterns and they're tough enough that they'll definitely present a challenge, especially if you choose to fight them before you've significantly leveled up your character.
The bosses are all in separate rooms that you have to manually enter, so theoretically you could explore the entire castle before fighting a single boss. What it took me a few hours to realize is that once you beat a boss they're permanently dead and you no longer have to fight them. I thought I was going to have to beat each boss in a single run to unlock the final boss. Honestly, by the end of the game I was good enough at the game that having to beat it all in a single run was definitely doable, and would have been really fun. That would have been a neat addition for new game plus, which is a mode they've already included.
No Time To Game?
Rogue Legacy is the perfect game for people who have limited time for gaming. As you get started your runs will be incredibly short, but even later in the game runs are never super long. Because you only have to beat each boss once, once you know where you need to go next you can head there relatively quickly.
There is a basic form of fast travel, there are rooms that allow you to teleport between them once you find them. There is always a teleporter where you start and in the final room of an area before you enter the next zone. It's not always convenient but it's better than nothing. There are times where the castle will generate a string of rooms that end in a dead end and require you to backtrack, these occurrences were few and far between and not a huge problem.
Final Thoughts
After a rough start I really fell in love with Rogue Legacy. This became a game where I constantly found myself reaching for my Switch to try and sneak in another run anytime I had a few spare minutes. Simple gameplay combines excellently with a surprisingly deep customization system to create truly rewarding and addictive gameplay loop. Best of all, the game is just plain fun to play.
Screenshots courtesy of www.TrueAchievements.com