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Back to Life! (7drl)'s itch.io pageResults
| Criteria | Rank | Score* | Raw Score |
| Traditional Roguelikeness | #2 | 4.000 | 4.000 |
| Aesthetics | #17 | 3.667 | 3.667 |
| Scope | #44 | 3.000 | 3.000 |
| Fun | #78 | 3.000 | 3.000 |
| Completeness | #104 | 3.000 | 3.000 |
| Innovation | #151 | 2.333 | 2.333 |
Ranked from 3 ratings. Score is adjusted from raw score by the median number of ratings per game in the jam.
Judge feedback
Judge feedback is anonymous and shown in a random order.
- I really enjoyed the theme, idea, and aesthetics of this one. It feels like this adventure has a lot of potential. I love being in the underworld, and fading out as you take damage is both informative and a nice touch. There are just enough traditional roguelike mechanics to make you feel like you are using your tools and getting strong. I appreciated the simple leveling system. I played both the original and updated version, and the updated one adds a lot to the experience. However, it also introduces some issues-- I like auto-pickup, but it's also annoying to drop stuff and then just pick it back up if you have to walk on that space again. The addition of the shortbow adds a nice element, but monsters further than 2 or 3 tiles had issues realizing that they were being shot. I was thankful for that in the end, though. Also, there is no reason to prevent players from equipping both a bow and sword at the same time-- as it was I had to swap back and forth over and over and over. I liked the monsters in general, and having really strong demons makes you feel like you are descending deeper into hell. The only issue I had was-- why are there goblins? Goblins are such a generic monster, they felt very out of place in an otherwise thematically consistent game. As far as I could tell, there is not wait key, but walking into a wall passes a turn. I tend to believe that passing a turn when a player tries to walk into a wall is bad because players only do it by accident, or to exploit some system. The only other issue was that the game was too long. I was enjoying myself, getting new items, and seeing new monsters, but after maybe 10 floors everything is the same and the next 16 floors are very repetitive. I did like the new environment at the end and it was satisfying to win. These gripes are fixable though, and I would love to see this idea expanded on.
- A very solid foundation for a roguelike here! The pacing is a bit too slow, and at least a bit more variety in terms of items and equipment would go a long way here. More spells in particular would be a good way to improve this beyond having the strategy be to simply always use the best equipment you've found and balance the use of health restoration vs paralyzation scrolls. There aren't a whole lot of real decisions to make in this as it is.
- * Good use of ascii graphics, like the colours. * Interesting themse * Gameplay is classic, could do with some elaboration.
Successful or Incomplete?
1
Did development of the game take place during the 7DRL Challenge week. (If not, please don't submit your game)
Yes
Do you consciously consider your game a roguelike/roguelite? (If not, please don't submit your game)
Yes
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Comments
It's a decent rogue like game. I think my only problem is that it feels more like maybe a rogue clone than a rogue like, but maybe that's just me. I couldn't figure out which key equips the defense items though...
Capital W should open the "wearable" menu. Here is a link to the post-7drl version, where all item interaction is contained in the inventory menu and is hopefully less confusing.
I liked this one very much, a simple but solid roguelike, I'll probably come back to this one casually. Great stuff!
Very solid roguelike! Made it to level 6 after I started quaffing souls like an addict hehehe. Way to go.