Depths of Tolagal - Released, First Reviews

The Depths of Tolagal, a roguelike with an emphasis on combat, has recently been released onto Steam. In addition, a few reviews have come out.

Rock Paper Shotgun has had their take, which seems to be positive:

The Depths of Tolagapalooza doesn’t have an enormous amount of stuff to play with, as some of the best roguelikes do (NetHack has kitchen sinks, fer cryin’ out loud), and its dungeon layouts aren’t particularly notable. It’s a game about combat rather than exploration and the brilliance of that combat is the reason it deserves attention and rewards it with a tremendous tactical experience.

A site known as Entertainment Buddha has also published their take on it:

Made by a typically small team and originally a Project Greenlight (and now, Humble Bundle) product, The Depths of Tolagal has a lot of competition in the indie/retro/roguelike space, but its turn-based take on the genre is definitely helps it stand out from the pack. Refreshingly non-dependent on platforming or timing–instead focusing on tactics and wise use of limited moves–Tolagal overcomes a rather unimpressive first impression. A more robust tutorial and controller support would be welcome but The Depths of Tolagal is ultimately earns at least a few hours of your time.

For those who are curious, Depths is a follow-up to a free browser game called Return to Tolagal, which you can try here. The official website for The Depths of Tolagal can be found here.



More information.

Can it compete with Tales of the Maj`eyal? For me that is the standard to beat in fantasy roguelike.

I get the sense that Depths is more combat focused than most roguelikes, but I honestly don't know that much about either. I don't think it can compete in terms of pure open-ended exploration and variety with any of the established roguelikes, but that's just based on the little I've read.

Angry Toad Studios surpassed expectations. Indeed a combat focused game and what an excellent work they appeared to make judging from youtube gameplay! The item descriptions have tolerably minimal amount of "idiotic humor" and are strikingly scientific. So the game world must be a Wizardry VII-type cross between science and fantasy. Have to try this one out for sure!

Didn't play too many Roguelikes yet. One I did play and also finished was Sword of The Stars: The Pit, which had 30 levels (at that time) and an rather unsatisfying ending (a "ending" picture with some story is what I need at least).

So I am wondering what other rogue likes look like Campaign wise.
From Graphics and Design following roguelikes look interesting to me:
Depths of Tolagal
Dungeonmans
Dungeon Dashers

Does anyone know whether or not these are "endless" games or if you can actually finish them? Don't find the "play as long as you can for a greater highscore"-idea very appealing. Can anyone also tell something about a story in these games? I don't need a big story and cutscenes, but a bare minimum of a couple of screens and texts would be appreciated (like this as an intro)

Looks awesome! I'll try the demo first though.

I may give this one a try at some point too. RSP compares it to hoplite, which is a brilliantly simple and very addictive IOS game. That makes me very interested in checking it out.