Can you turn anything into a roguelike? Should you? The genre is a proven recipe for replayability, so as AAA games like God of War Ragnarok and The Last of Us 2 catch up to the largely indie-incubated trend of procedurally generated, run-based games and modes, and as games like Ghostrunner 2 also embrace the Rogue within, these questions have been weighing on my mind. My heart says 'yes,' while my more cautious brain says 'honestly, maybe.'
Hyper Light Breaker, an upcoming 3D open-world roguelike from the makers of decidedly Rogue-unlike games Hyper Light Drifter and Solar Ash, could be one of the most interesting cases yet. It's a bold idea and a big change in direction for a small development team – Heart Machine, a studio that hasn't whiffed a single time – and it's been at the top of my 2024 wishlist practically since its reveal. It's matching even Hades 2 in my must-play hierarchy simply because I never know what to expect from this developer apart from fun. It's due this year and I'm ravenous to try it, but some question marks remain.
