Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos
A Zelda-inspired roguelite with procedural dungeons and no permadeath.
Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos is an action-adventure game from Heliocentric Studios, published by Team 17 in 2021. It combines the exploration and dungeon-crawling feel of The Legend of Zelda with roguelite mechanics like procedurally generated dungeons, though it does not include permadeath.
In the game’s world of Tasos, a great evil is sealed inside four dungeons by goddesses, who later send heroes to defeat the evil when it resurfaces. Players control one of six character classes. Upon dying, the hero is sent back to town, where loot can be spent. The overworld is open for exploration, and the town can be heavily upgraded using collected loot.
The concept originated when programmer Josh Gump experimented with Zelda-style procedurally generated dungeons. To avoid chaotic layouts, the team used templates with variations that become less likely to repeat once seen. Cooperative multiplayer was added later, after noticing its absence in other Zelda-inspired games. The project was crowdfunded in 2018, and Team 17 released it for Windows and Nintendo Switch on February 23, 2021.
The game received positive reviews on Metacritic for both platforms. Daniel Tack of Game Informer called the Windows version “simple yet satisfying” and “pixelated comfort food” for fans of its inspirations. P. J. O’Reilly of Nintendo Life described the Switch version as “a delightful Zelda-inspired roguelite” full of secrets and top-notch dungeon crawling. Joel A. DeWitte of Nintendo World Report called it a no-brainer for classic Zelda fans and co-op players, and his best gaming experience of 2021. Sean Martin of Pocket Tactics found the single-player mode not especially engrossing but recommended it for cooperative play.
Quick Facts
- Title
- Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos
- Developer
- Heliocentric Studios
- Publisher
- Team 17
- Engine
- MonoGame
- Platforms
- Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
- Released
- WW · February 23, 2021
- Genre
- Action-adventure
- Modes
- single-player, multiplayer
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The idea for Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos originated when Josh Gump, a programmer at Heliocentric Studios, began experimenting with procedurally generated dungeons in the style of the Zelda series. To prevent the dungeons from becoming a random mess of interconnected rooms, the developers used templates to make rooms more interesting; each template has variations and becomes less likely to be seen again once encountered. Later in development, cooperative multiplayer was added after the team noticed that feature was missing from other Zelda-inspired games. The game was successfully crowdfunded in 2018.
Reader's Guide
Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos is significant as a modern homage to classic Zelda gameplay, incorporating procedural generation while retaining handcrafted room templates to maintain quality. Its lack of permadeath distinguishes it from many roguelites, allowing players to return to town upon death and spend loot. The game received positive reviews on Metacritic for both Windows and Nintendo Switch. Critics praised it as 'simple yet satisfying' and 'pixelated comfort food' for fans of its inspirations, and as 'a delightful Zelda-inspired roguelite' full of secrets and surprises. The cooperative multiplayer was highlighted as a strong feature, with one reviewer calling it 'the best gaming experience so far for me in 2021' for co-op fun, though the single-player component was noted as not 'especially engrossing' by another critic. Its legacy lies in successfully blending nostalgic design with modern roguelite mechanics and cooperative play.
Did You Know?
- The game was crowdfunded in 2018.
- Cooperative multiplayer was added later in development after the team saw it missing from other Zelda-inspired games.
- The game does not have permadeath; upon dying, the player is teleported back to town.
- Dungeon rooms are generated using templates that become less likely to appear again once encountered.
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