Deckbuilders & Roguelites 101: How To Approach A New Genre
MAY 20TH: KICKSTARTER DEV LOG
Note: These posts were written for the Kickstarter campaign that ran April-May. Some information may be outdated or incorrect. Always read the latest updates to be up to date on Malys!
Hi everyone! We thought we'd give those of you on the fence and unsure a little 101 on deckbuilders and roguelites to see if we can comfort any nerves!
(...What even is a roguelite deckbuilder??)
Good question! If you’re asking - you might be me when we kicked off Malys, having never played one and honestly regarding them with pure fear. Isn't cardplay for solitaire and last ditch efforts to wow from unimpressive tinder dates?? WAIT IF I DIE I HAVE TO START FROM SCRATCH??? 💀
Hi! I’m Katy, Marketing Coordinator and resident theatre kid at Summerfall Studios and also generally a narrative, adventure and puzzle gamer. I’ve blasted through God of War, Dragon Age, Return of the Obra Dinn and Bugsnacks but I am certifiably NOT a Dark Souls girlie or a lover of pain. You give me a combat hurdle? I’m lowering the difficulty.
Yet this week, I rolled credits on a roguelite deckbuilder completely of my own free will. And I enjoyed it! I’m not even lying.
So what gives? Turns out I was wrong. Both about what the genre meant and my own preferences. Let's get into it.
What is a deckbuilder?
Slay the Spire
OKAY so basics. Not everyone agrees perfectly, but most deckbuilders are games where you are creating a deck of cards to use in certain scenarios as you play. You might pick a starting deck, but changing, adding, removing, or adjusting your cards along the way is usually a core part of the game. Simple enough, but why cards?
The cards stand in for all sorts of things. This is often a combat - with cards like ‘attack’ or ‘defend’ representing those actions - but it can be a negotiation (Griftlands), building construction (Blue Prince) or in the case of Malys, an exorcism! The cards played create an emergent narrative - a story that you build as you play.
Wow. How deceptively intriguing! But…what is a roguelite?
Inscryption
That’s a great question, me! Look, there’s lots of differing opinions on exactly what a roguelite is and what the difference is, but this is my take. Roguelites (and roguelikes) are games typically featuring a degree of permadeath and procedurally generated levels; when you die, you start from scratch, and the encounters change every time. In each ‘run’ you attempt to reach a goal: defeating an enemy, reaching a location, learning information etc. A roguelite differs from a roguelike in that there is often ‘meta progression’ (don’t worry-I got you 🫡).
‘Meta progression’ essentially means that progress persists between runs - you can potentially earn permanent upgrades, unlock items or areas. For some games that’s a permanent boon that you get to choose (Hades), a card that continues to upgrade (Inscryption) or, like in Malys, a narrative that evolves (along with some of those other things, but we can't talk about those just yet👀).
So…you’re enjoying them now?
Blue Prince
I am! They’re not so scary. I promise! Especially when they get you - ask any of your friends who’ve fallen into Balatro - it can become pretty addictive to just jump into another run…
I’ve learned for myself that I love to have a hook to keep me going - whether that’s an ongoing mystery, a compelling story, or honestly just a ripper score and juicy audio design. For some the challenge itself is the drawcard, the ability to learn something new each run to put into practice for the next, for others still it’s about finding new synergies between card play. There are truly a lot of ways to love them!
Gosh Katy, it sounds like there’s a whole genre out there that I’ve never touched! So many stories and experiences I’ve never experienced! Where do I start?
Balatro
Well, I personally started with Inscryption - the mystery and escape room elements in combination with its impeccable vibes and audio got me intrigued enough to jump in. Then, the gameplay really got me (shout out infinite squirrels 😘). Recently I’ve been deep into Blue Prince, and I know members of the team absolutely adore Slay The Spire (basically the King of the genre), Griftlands and of course, Balatro.
But if you’re here, I hope you’ve been thinking about Malys. Our hellish roguelite deckbuilder has classic elements of the genre: deck strategy and synergies, meta progression between runs, procedural levels etc. And for those who want a hook, there’s a narrative woven throughout, an ending and characters who go on their own journeys across multiple runs.
Plus the gameplay is literally exorcisms!!
I can also guarantee an exceptionally juicy soundscape 🧃
Fingers crossed this has maybe helped your understanding a little and made the genre a teeny tiny bit less scary? Maybe even exciting??...maybe! What was your experience with your first roguelite deckbuilder - or will it be Malys?
Katy
