The Best Roguelike Games to Play Right Now
If you’re the kind of person who likes games that kick you when you’re down, reward you for getting back up, and toss you into a new mess every time, roguelikes are your playground. These games don’t just test your skills - they make you want to master them. From old-school dungeon dives to wild, modern action, roguelikes aren’t just a genre - they’re a rite of passage. Here’s a list of the best ones out there, ready to eat up your free time and keep you saying, “Alright, one more run.”
Hades
Supergiant’s Hades isn’t just a game; it’s a whole experience. The combat feels buttery smooth, the artwork is gorgeous, and the story keeps getting better every time you die (which, let’s be honest, is often). Whether you’re new to roguelikes or think you’ve seen it all, Hades pulls you in and doesn’t let go.
The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth
This one’s weird, a bit disturbing, and completely impossible to put down. The Binding of Isaac stuffs each run with hundreds of wild items, bizarre power-ups, and secrets that practically beg you to keep playing. There’s a reason this game became a modern roguelike legend - it’s gross, it’s funny, and it will eat hours of your life.
Dead Cells
Want something fast? Dead Cells moves like lightning. It mixes the best bits of Metroidvanias with that punishing, “oops, you’re dead” roguelike formula. You’ll die a lot, sure, but each run feels better than the last. It’s tough, but that’s half the fun.
Slay the Spire
Ever built a deck of cards so good you felt unstoppable - until one bad hand took you out? That’s Slay the Spire. It’s smart, brutal, and every run is a puzzle you can’t help but try to solve. Deck building plus dungeon crawling equals hours lost in the best way.
Enter the Gungeon
Wild, ridiculous, and packed with puns, Enter the Gungeon is a bullet hell wrapped in charm. One minute you’re dodging a storm of bullets, the next you’re unlocking a playable bullet character. It’s absurd, stylish, and a total blast.
Spelunky 2
Spelunky 2 takes that “just one more try” feeling and cranks it up. It’s a platformer where everything wants you dead, and even the simplest move can end in disaster. But every time you lose, you learn something new. Win once and it feels like you just climbed Everest.
Risk of Rain 2
Here’s something a little different - roguelike, but in 3D and with co-op chaos. Risk of Rain 2 lets you team up or go solo, fighting through waves of enemies as the difficulty keeps climbing. Each run gets wilder and more intense, and you’ll want to drag your friends along for the ride.
Rogue Legacy 2
Rogue Legacy 2 plays with the idea of inheritance in the funniest ways. Each time you die, you play as your own descendant, complete with weird traits like colorblindness or irritable bowels. It’s clever, polished, and makes every run feel fresh - and a little ridiculous.
Darkest Dungeon
Gothic horror, crushing difficulty, and a whole lot of stress. Darkest Dungeon isn’t just about fighting monsters; it’s about surviving the toll it takes on your heroes’ minds. You’ll watch your party crack under pressure, and somehow, you’ll keep coming back for more.
Noita
Noita is chaos in game form. Every pixel reacts to everything you do, so you can (and probably will) blow yourself up by accident. But that’s the magic - every run turns into a weird, unpredictable experiment. It’s messy, it’s tough, and it’s impossible not to love.
Whether you’re after frantic action, brainy strategy, or just a never-ending gauntlet of pixelated doom, these roguelikes have you covered. Just remember: dying isn’t losing. It’s all part of the fun.
