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Roguelike Level Design Addendum: Static or Procedural? (Patreon)

Published:
2019-03-28 02:10:29
Imported:
2024-07
Tags:

Content

My latest article discusses the advantages of static and procedural maps in a roguelike, naturally taking Cogmind as an example since it includes both for different reasons. (This is yet another extension of the original level design article.)

I've embedded it in image form below, but Patreon is actually terrible with images and formatting (which is why I also didn't just write/copy the article itself here) so it's probably easier if you check out the text version here.

The password for access is "static"



Comments

Via

Static vs procedural, just a few weeks ago I talked about this in another roguelike discussion. It's very interesting that you've inclusively explained what was talked in there, such as 'after many random villages we can feel a static village as like restful home.' 'too much procedural maps lack certainty as a footing for build strategy and sometimes create a "miss" world.' I'm rather a proceduralism worshiper, but on second thought, suitable static parts have always benefited good gameplay of Cogmind. On the other hand, a game with pure procedural caves made me feel barren and tiredness for exploration.

Kyzrati
>>21249477

I love procedural maps myself, but one of the main issues is that it's very easy for them to feel meaningless, similar to what you're saying. Not that all maps must have meaning, especially when it comes to mechanics-and-systems-heavy gameplay, but why not add more meaning, more feeling, to an otherwise procedural world, or individual procedural maps, if we can? :) Of course it's not impossible to create fully procedural maps that have a decent amount of this "meaning," either, but it's 1) extremely hard to do so, and 2) it'll never be quite up to par with what handcrafting can do for a map, even if the latter is just bits and pieces here and there. Full-on proceduralism is all about creating a virtually limitless number of permutations and "experiences," but that's completely unnecessary--a limited number of permutations with more effort put into mixing them with handcrafted content will create a much more well-rounded experience in my opinion! It's been interesting watching players react to both Cogmind and other roguelikes, either explicitly mentioning they enjoy having safe and/or recognizable spaces, or at least have those feelings reflected in their behavior.

Suslik

In your ||W|| layout example the hidden tunnel connects to the bottom of entrance area and it's shown as static. Does it mean that your static layouts have multiple variations(i.e. a variation with the secret tunnel on top)? If so, it would mean that it's possible to tell where the tunnel is before entering the base. More on subject though, I definitely agree that there has to be some amount of static/recognizable content to create feeling of familiarity.

Kyzrati
>>21281042

Yeah the W side entrance there has two possible static variations, specifically so that even though the general concept is static, the player won't know in advance which one it is (either top or bottom). I mean once you learn there are two possibilities you can then investigate and be sure beforehand, if you want to, but the main point is not to obfuscate the escape route, but instead actually provide two different gameplay scenarios, i.e. the top route is clearly easier to use, whereas the bottom one is more of a death trap which is best avoided :P