the arcade is dead. With this lapidary phrase he titled Housemarque in 2017, when they were still remaining as independent developers and before launching their first roguelike, an entry on his blog that fell like a bullet in the chest for fans of the studio. The failure of sales of their latest games, including the widely awarded Nex Machina, led them to this sad conclusion: there is no place in the industry for us. Or at least, for what they had been to date.
“The poor sales of Nex Machine have led us to decide that it’s time for our long commitment to the arcade genre to come to an end”, commented the president of Housemarque, “although this genre will always hold a special place in our hearts, the industry is moving towards multiplayer experiences with robust and strong communities, and it is time for Housemarque to move forward together with the industry”. A clear nostalgia, and even sadness can be interpreted in the words of the study. It is undeniable that the industry has evolved leaving many behind, from gamers to, as was the case with Housemarque, developers. Renew or die, as they say.
But this evolution does not necessarily involve making a 180º turn towards the multiplayer approach or games as a service, where the competition is fierce. As Housemarque herself would verify some years later, arcade is not dead, but it has evolved into new genres with divergent elements, more adapted to current tastes and possibilities, but maintaining the essence of what fans of one of the oldest genres liked. Let’s talk about the roguelike: the modern arcade.
From Rogue to Roguelike
You have probably already heard of this genre, especially in recent years thanks to the growing popularity of titles like Hades, The Binding of Isaac or Dead Cells. Its name comes from Rogue, a 1980 game that cradled the foundations of this genre: procedurally generated levels to a greater or lesser extent, a challenging difficulty level and auto-conclusive progress in each game —or run, if we use it. widespread Anglo-Saxon term—, however, today this is not exactly the case in most cases.
In most modern titles, including the three cited in this paragraph, a certain progression between games is maintained through the unlocking of new objects or levels, or even more deeply in the case of Hades, where our character becomes increasingly skilled and strong. Among certain groups of fans, the term “roguelite” has been coined as a subgenre to refer to these titles that are not so purist in their similarities to Rogue, but its use is not really widespread and can complicate the discussion, so we will refer to indifferent way to all the titles of the genre as roguelikes.
the new arcade
With the explanation above, you have probably already been able to connect the dots as to why we consider this genre to be the “modern arcade”, since it shares many of its key characteristics. In general, they offer auto-conclusive games of a short duration with mechanics that are simple to understand, but difficult to master. It is usually encouraged to make “clean” games, as perfect as possible, using scoring systems and even measuring the time it takes to complete them. High scores and finishing games in record times will often lead to unlocking new achievements and rewards.
A very important aspect is that of the daily runs, which invite all players to compete with each other to see who can get the best score in a run with the same characteristics. These scores are later presented on an online board, in the purest style of competitions within the “lifelong” arcade machines. In the same way as with the great arcade classics, the unique mechanics of each roguelike and the rush to get the best scores in these daily games mean that the most popular titles continue to be played years and years after their release.
Merging the current with the classic
What differentiates the roguelike genre from the arcade, and what seems to fit more with the current tastes of users, lies in the way in which this progression that we were talking about before has been incorporated. Times have changed, and competing for the highest score in the various levels of a title is no longer enough to attract players. This is where titles like The Binding of Isaac stand out, where a huge number of hours of gameplay is offered in which we will not stop unlocking new characters, levels and objects at all times.
The great component of randomness in each of our runs offers enormous freshness and perfectly complements the arcade bases of this genre. Yes, the games are auto-conclusive and we can perfectly pass them the first time we start playing, if we are skilled enough. But if we want to dedicate all our attention to the game for days, weeks or months —something that today is the interest of more and more players— roguelikes allow us to have a meta progress above each individual game. Truly, this approach feels close to managing an injection of modern title features into our favorite arcade games.
New Horizons
It is necessary to assume that in the same way that the shooters that are successful today are not the same ones that broke records four decades ago, arcade games that appeal to today’s audiences can’t be the same as those that did in a time when home consoles didn’t even exist. Video games have been transformed during all these years, and with it the expectations and desires of the players. In spite of everything, you only have to keep an eye on phenomena such as The Binding of Isaac, which continues its success after more than 11 years since its initial release, or Hades, which has become one of the most popular indie titles in recent years, to see that the interest in this type of proposal is still there. The roguelike genre is attracting more eyes than ever, and with this one thing is clear to us: the arcade is still alive.