Rogue's Legacy: Retro RPGish Sidescrolling Beat-Em-Up with a Twist
Courtesy of Kotaku, here's the launch trailer for Rogue Legacy. The post about it caught my eye by claiming it's a game where having OCD is an advantage. That's only slightly misleading. The protagonists in this new indie computer game all have a medical condition that impacts how they play the game. The OCD knight earns bonus points for breaking all the pots. The colorblind knight plays in a grayscale environment. The near/farsighted knights have blurry vision for distance/closeups.
Rogue Legacy is a rogue-lite game, meaning the levels randomly (technically, procedurally) generate to a point. Think The Binding of Isaac. You're not going to randomly get the final boss battle after the title screen, but you can't predict which of the first world stages you'll get before advancing to the second.
The real draw of the game is another randomly generated feature. Say your character dies before you beat the game in one go. Your character's child will avenge your death. They just have a different condition to deal with. Your first character might be bald; his daughter might be a flatulent giant; her son might be depressed and colorblind. Each time you play the game, you have to change your strategy to adjust to the new abilities of your new player. The child, no matter what, is stronger than the parent. You just need to figure out how.
You can download a free PC demo (sorry Mac users) at the game's website. The game is available to purchase and download on their website, Steam, Desura, Gamersgate, and Good Old Games. You can also stream it on PC and Mac with the OnLive game app.
Here's the launch trailer. Share your thoughts in the comments below.