A lot of games cross my desk these days, and it takes a strong premise to really stand out from the crowd. On that note, today I caught wind of a new roguelite platformer that hopes to capture the spirit of one of the all-time greats. It’s called: Magic the Wandering.
The work of solo mage Mike Gubriansky, AKA Sernato Games, Magic the Wandering is a fusion of roguishness and Lemmings.
If you’re less advanced in years than I, and you’re not sure what Lemmings is: it’s a platformer where you control a gang of cute little lemmings and have to use their various abilities to overcome obstacles and get as many of them to the finish as possible.
Magic the Wandering takes that basic premise but then throws in a variety of different wizards types and magic spells that unlock at the end of each level. It sounds nice and chaotic, and the whole thing is being served up with a healthy side portion of slapstick comedy.
There appears to be multi-route levels, and on top of the standard way to play we’re promised a so-called Highlander mode “where you only have one wizard the whole run.”
Not only has it got a good name, but this is one of those games that sounds really great on paper, and now I’m just hoping that it lives up to its inherent potential.
If you like the sound of Lemmings with little wizards, you can do the whole wishlisting thing over on Steam ahead of the game’s launch. When will that be? We’re promised a demo before October and then a full release by the end of the year!
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Still with us? Of course you are! If you want to keep reading about great hand-picked rogues, the following articles represent a huge collection of the best roguelike games ever made.
Next, there are genre-specific lists that delve into the best roguelike games of all types. I’ve pulled out the best examples from each category, alongside the links to more in-depth articles!
The best turn-based roguelikes: Caves of Qud | There are some seriously incredible turn-based roguelikes out there. Of all the modern games, these are the closest to the original Rogue.
Awesome first-person rogues: Gunfire Reborn | We almost went with Blue Prince for this spot, but most people checking out first-person rogues probably want to wield a gun, you know?!
Cool roguelike deckbuilders: Balatro | Sorry, Slay the Spire fans, but this poker-solitaire deckbuilder has stolen Mike’s heart and won’t give it back.
Exciting roguelike platformers: Spelunky | Now, don’t get us wrong, Dead Cells is an incredible game, especially with all the DLC switched on. But when it comes to impact, you just can’t beat Spelunky.
Amazing action-roguelites: Hades 2 | And finally, let’s wrap things up with our favourite of them all. There’s no beating the original Hades, although Hades 2 comes pretty close!
