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Retronauts Episode 184: PC Roguelikes (Patreon)

Published:
2018-11-19 12:37:08
Edited:
2020-01-01 04:09:15
Imported:
2021-08

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Content

Another listener request topic this week—one that was a bit of a challenge to coordinate, to be honest. This was our THIRD attempt to line up and coordinate schedules for people who could speak to the topic, and even then it didn't go entirely right—one of our guests dropped out at the last second due to family matters. But we had to press on and get it done (by request), and the result is... not too shabby, really. This is admittedly an episode where a lot of material is based on online research rather than personal experience, but we think we can be forgiven for not having been active in the early ’70s PLATO scene at a handful of universities in the Midwest...

Description: By patron request, we delve into the cryptic history of what might be the world's most complex genre: PC roguelikes. Genre aficionado Steve Tramer walks Bob and Jeremy through the unforeseen consequences of Rogue, Nethack, Dwarf Fortress, and more!

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Comments

ItsumiMario

LOVING this episode so far! Steve Tramer is a fantastic guest. Jeremy where did that Rite of Spring-like music come from beginning at 48:36? I gotta know.

John Simon

<a href="https://youtu.be/rIB0y_kwFuY" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/rIB0y_kwFuY</a> This is a live speedrun of nethack at a festival in front of a live audience with commentary. The final level and how he completes it is one of those “Crossing the finish line of the Indy 500 upside down and on fire” moments.

retronauts
>>17290364

All the music here is from either Dragon Crystal, Fatal Labyrinth, or Shiren the Wanderer for Vita.

RoryDropkick

Jeremy, you mentioned Nightmare of Druaga right off the bat. I was the goof who went home and played that like crazy after my job selling Halo 2, since it came out around the same time. I still have my copy along with my Japanese strategy guide, and secretly wish they would give it a fresh coat of paint and a retranslation for Switch.

Ken Hoyt

I finally get the feeling I always wondered about for other people who have retronauts do an episode on something they are obsessed about. Whenever I've heard those episodes about "people are still playing this game decades later" I have always felt that it was cool but how do they do it. Well I guess I've done it with roguelikes! A few corrections (with love!), ADOM was developed by Thomas Biskup (It sounded like Biskuff on the podcast), NetHack is called Nethack because it was a Hack developed online/the net (ie. the people only knew each other online), and just an opinion but Caves of Qud is one of the best new roguelikes out there (Steve said he thought it was interesting but didn't know if it was good) :) Beyond those, and that I could listen to people talk about roguelikes forever, I really liked this episode. I hope you do another one with John Harris on it, as I would love someone with really intricate knowledge. There is also a really really great roguelike podcast called: <a href="http://www.roguelikeradio.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">http://www.roguelikeradio.com/</a> and maybe you could get one of them on the podcast too. Tales of Maj'Eyal (Madge Eye All), Caves of Cud, Cataclysm Dark Days Ahead and a few others have really kept "traditional" roguelikes a going and modern concern, imo.

Anonymous

Regarding the PLATO system, when you expressed hope that the software was preserved somewhere, I wanted to tell you that there was a PLATO terminal on display in the National Inventors Hall of Fame Museum at the US Patent and Trademark Office up until as recently as last year, when they changed all the exhibits. I played some of these PLATO games briefly and gravitated towards the RPGs, though I didn't have long to really dig in as it was just one terminal in a small public space. I distinctly remember being impressed by the graphics and sophistication of the games available, especially considering the age of the system. As I remember, this was due to the unique way the display technology would retain pixels, which reduced the memory needed to draw graphics on the screen. I don't remember exactly what I played - I picked some games like "Dungeon" completely based on a list of titles and tried them out, but I found the controls confusing since they weren't in line with the learned expectations of modern video games. I do remember being impressed at the levels in the high-score table, and wondered who was able to spend that much time in the museum. I'm sorry I don't have more detailed recollections, but I wanted you to know that this software is apparently archived somewhere and could still be played through 2016.

LuccaPucca

Great episode! I loved hearing about PLATO in the Wizardry episode, and getting to revisit it here was really neat. I hope someone figures out a way to do a book/short documentary on it and be able to talk to some of it's users while they're still around. Classic roguelikes have always interested me, so this served as a great primer for a genre that's generally super daunting.