Unexplored

Unexplored: Unlocked Edition

unExplored is a real-time graphical roguelike in which you descend the Dungeon of Doom to find ye old Amulet of Yendor. I purchased this when I was deep into a roguelike phase and desperate for anything on Switch. I hated it. I could barely play an hour. Then I came back a few months later and absolutely loved it, so I have no idea what my damage was. In the interim I played several other roguelikes, including the Switch’s other offering, Yōdanji, so it may be I was better able to appreciate what unExplored brings to the table. Chiefly, a comparatively low learning curve, intuitive play, and very good level generation. The game has a strong Brogue feel, which is always a plus for me. I was initially put-off by the vector graphics, having become so accustomed to ASCII or pixel tiles, but later came to appreciate how easy it was to read a room and the directions enemies are facing.

My main lingering complaint is the interface is a bit clunky and the text is quite small on the Switch handheld and there is no way to increase the font size. The UI is quickly learned but inventory management can become a game of “shuffle the item” because you have to manually select and move things around. The game does not take advantage of the Switch’s touch screen (sadly, few games do). This can be a little troublesome in a real-time game, but you have the option to set auto-pause when the inventory is opened. After a while you will accumulate a pile of unlabeled potions and scrolls and will occasionally find it necessary to stop and paw through them, which means scrolling about in your main and side inventories in a manner reminiscent of digging through a large sack, but it could certainly be worse.

The real-time movement is smooth and fast, so combat becomes a whirl of circling around objects and enemies, attempting to catch them in a vulnerable spot without getting caught yourself. Real-time gameplay is something purists may take issue with, but I enjoy this aspect.

Level design is where Unexplored really shines. The game uses cyclic level generation rather than linear branching. (The developer wrote a paper on level design prior to creating unExplored.) As a result the game has a more organic, natural feel, and there is a minimum of backtracking, but it also means the game routinely pauses to generate another aspect of the dungeon. The regular interruptions are slightly annoying, but it’s hard to argue with the end result. The levels are varied and interesting, which was definitely a nice change of pace after the sameness of so many dungeon crawlers. There are puzzles and traps, some supplemented with dropped diaries or signs. As with Brogue, there is no leveling and your stats are only increased via equipment, which encourages exploration over combat. Over time you gain achievements and unlock classes and starting items, and at the start of each new run you can use your accumulated wealth to buy additional items. There are also many tweakable options in terms of difficulty, more traps, more bosses, etc., as well as an arcade mode which, true to its description, is indeed more mayhem.

Screenshots are worth 1000 words dept. I was warned not to use unidentified magical staffs in enclosed areas. Naturally, I did not listen, and my 23rd hero’s introduction to firey doom staffs was traumatic, to say the least.

I don’t think any roguelike will ever usurp Brogue as my first and true love, but unExplored is the first game I’ve played since then that provides a distinct experience while maintaining such a strong Brogue Feel. Though these games are, by their nature, somewhat inaccessible to newcomers, I think unExplored is about as welcoming as a roguelike can get.

If you’ve never played these types of games before let me put it to you this way. I read a guide which said something along the lines of, “If you get set on fire as often as I do…” If that line in any way appeals to your sensibilities as a gamer, consider roguelikes.