GROGPOD Roguelike Podcast

Oy, Gary! Is that you? Join us this week as we rehydrate some prisoners for derelict spaceship looting zaniness with Void Bastards! A 2.5D space shooter with more mutated freaks than the typical bus stop in Yoker, we try to appease the voice from the Stanley Parable with some bureaucratic busywork in the form of gun shooting. All the while fending off space pirates, space whales, and assessing if that gas station sandwich you just spent your credits on is or is not going to give you a parasite to start talking with a Glaswegian accent, aye?

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1:19 - game stats

2:33 - one sentence(?) description

5:29 - Art style appreciation and initial gameplay impressions

11:17 - Story setup and tutorial sequence discussion

15:02 - Immersive sim comparisons and system complexity debate

22:30 - Looting mechanics criticism and lack of meaningful decisions

28:30 - Story problems and space whale encounter disappointment

34:23 - Weapon crafting system and progression unlock issues

43:30 - Development ambition vs execution capability discussion

48:40 - Character trait system praise and gameplay variety

54:18 - Missing boss battles and set piece sequences

58:40 - Wild Bastards sequel preview and comparison hopes

1:03:48 - rankings and final thoughts

1:12:37 - similar games

Next episode: Inscryption

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Chip Whickham - Space Walk

Outro music: Ryan Roth - Walk the Plank!

Caw caww!! It’s almost every episode that we reference Slay the Spire in some way, so what better time to finally cover it for the podcast than on our 50th episode spectacular?! Listen in as some Spire pros educate some Ascension 0 players on skills, powers, potions, relics and attacks. Every card is a block card if you try hard enough in this episode, but is Claw, in fact, Law? Who watches The Watcher? Why didn’t my Fairy Bottle trigger? With about 1,200 hours of gameplay under our Champion Belts, surely we can Slay these questions along with the beating of that hideous Heart! But will this game be the one that finally ascends the Spire that is our rankings list? You’ll have to tune in to our longest (and therefore highest quality) episode to date! Or just skip ahead to the rankings timestamp with those fancy Wing Boots of yours.

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2:24 - game stats

3:33 - one sentence description

12:37 - our story begins

23:32 - the characters and archetypes

47:20 - general gameplay

52:00 - ascension mode

1:03:00 - ideal win percentage

1:08:00 - Slay the Spire 2 wishlist

1:11:52 - Downfall

1:16:00 - music and art

1:18:50 - victory…?

1:26:46 - rankings and final thoughts

1:44:57 - similar games

Next episode: Void Bastards

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Dave Brubeck - Take Five

Outro music: Clark Aboud - Exordium, The Guardian Emerges

Hey everyone look, an old man is talking! This week we feel the weather change via our bones as we play the turn-based colony sim roguelite dotAge, created by solo developer Michele Pirovano! Listen in as we battle omens on the horizon of time and try to swiftly shuttle our pips and pippins to ward off the impending evils that await the village. And remember: the gift quote must be met, as Santa won’t accept ANY excuse! Now where was I? Oh yeah! The import thing was: I had an onion on my belt, which was the style at the time. You couldn’t find any white onions, because of the war. The only thing we had were those big yellow ones…

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2:06 - game stats

3:02 - one sentence description

8:44 - Tech Tree Mechanics & Randomization Critique

13:17 - Memory System & Meta Progression Complaints

18:10 - Agricola Board Game Comparisons & Design Philosophy

22:52 - Story Setup & Prophecy Mechanics Introduction

28:20 - Domain System & Doom Event Explanations

32:56 - Losing Mechanics & Rim World Comparisons

38:41 - Domain Implementation & Boss Battle Critiques

47:08 - Santa Claus Elder & Alternative Game Modes

54:12 - Development History & Early Access Discussion

59:26 - Difficulty Settings & Accessibility Issues

1:10:03 - rankings and final thoughts

1:27:58 - similar games

Next episode: Slay the Spire

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Marian McPartland - I’m Old Fashioned

Outro music: Luigi di Guida - Je Vivroie Liement

It is a good day to dice! This week we polish up some D6’s for the dungeon crawler Slice & Dice and throw them against all sorts of hideous monsters. We’re talking goblins, zombies, exploding skeletons, bloodthirsty fanatics, and so many more. In a game with modes on modes on modes, we try to navigate being cursed, blessed, and blursed while slaying dragons, succubi and undead samurai. Can our party of housecats and an over-levelled wizard save the day or will all of our dice be turned to stone and we get swarmed by imps? Ready to roll out!

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1:46 - game stats

4:42 - Game Addiction & Mobile Gaming Appeal

8:33 - Undo Mechanics & Core Gameplay Differences

13:50 - Order of Operations & Dice Strategy Discussion

18:14 - Game Content Stats & Character Variety

23:16 - Game Mode Varieties & Cursed Gameplay Options

28:47 - Run Length & Difficulty Scaling Complaints

35:30 - Final Boss Problems & Surprise Counter Mechanics

39:08 - Item Shop Critique & Agency Issues

44:46 - Cursed Mode Strategy & Player Agency

51:27 - Dice Rolling Physics & Animation Quality

56:28 - Auto-Flee Mechanics & System Explanations

1:02:39 - rankings and final thoughts

1:10:04 - similar games

Next episode: dotAge

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Thelonius Monk - April in Paris

Outro music: Louigi Verona - Ancient Books of Magic

Demonic presence at unsafe levels, podcast in effect! For our listener request week, we summon a granddaddy of the traditional roguelike pantheon: DoomRL - Doom: The Roguelike. But we couldn’t talk about a game with a 20+ year legacy without also crash landing on its gorgeous modern 3D remaster: Jupiter Hell. A traditional roguelike with…graphics? Voice acting? A b-b-budget? Come listen in on how to configure .ini files, assemble tactical rocket launchers, and learn how to be a sailor-mouthed hellish freight train on wheels. That’s how we do things downnnnntownnnnn.

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2:24 - Doom RL Release History & Developer Background

4:23 - One-Sentence Game Description & Roguelike DNA

8:17 - Roguelike History & Revolutionary Aspects Discussion

15:45 - Childhood Gaming Memories & Doom Experiences

20:16 - Story Setup & Mars Base Scenario

25:16 - Hell Arena Side Branches & Risk Reward

28:22 - Weapon Assembly System & Modification Mechanics

33:45 - Jupiter Hell Development & Legal Issues

38:08 - Production Values & Visual Upgrades

45:17 - Traditional Roguelike Evolution & Budget Impact

56:34 - Tutorial Quality & Cover System Mechanics

1:07:12 - Corner Shooting Exploits & Game Balance

1:19:28 - Music Comparison Between Games

1:23:35 - rankings and final thoughts

1:30:41 - similar games

Next episode: Slice & Dice

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: The Geeky Guitarist - At Doom’s Gate (E1M1) Jazz Fusion Cover

Outro music: Sonic Clang - E1M1

Adagio, listeners! This week is our summer special focusing on the wide diversity of music found in roguelike games! From the biggest budget orchestras, to the lowliest growling chants that 1bitdragon can muster, there’s a lot of love to be listened to when playing $5 indie games. We thank the listeners that wrote in with tons of suggestions for us to cover and we’ll definitely have to revisit this format in the future. We also have some listener correspondence to cover on topics from not liking games, randomness, and how long is TOO long for roguelikes at the end of the show. Enjoy and be sure the blast some GROGPOD on the beach for all your friends this summer weekend!

A talking-free version of all the tracks featured today can be found on our youtube playlist here: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-ShOmyMvd4gaydO4wbNhLsDIFbEsBTUO

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00:00 - Vampire Survivors - Tides of the Foscari

6:39 - Crypt of the Necrodancer - Disco Descent (1-1)

11:19 - The Last Spell - Distant Memories

17:40 - Hades - The Unseen Ones

23:08 - DoomRL - Unholy Cathedral

27:09 - Returnal - Ascend the Spire

32:05 - Caves of Qud - Lazarus

37:23 - Rogue Tower - Orcs Attack

42:04 - Path of Achra - Main Theme

46:13 - Dwarf Fortress - Main Theme

51:07 - Risk of Rain 2 - The Rain Formerly Known as Purple

57:56 - Balatro - Main Theme

1:04:57 - Spelunky - Yeti Caves

1:08:47 - Brutal Orchestra - Feel the Rhythm (Music Man Theme)

1:15:01 - Enter the Gungeon - Enter the Gungeon Rap

1:19:58 - Rimworld - Waiting for the Sun

1:23:36 - Lonestar - Main Menu Theme

1:27:45 - Inscryption - Leshy’s Theme

1:33:00 - FTL: Faster Than Light - Last Stand

1:38:22 - Slay the Spire - The Heart

1:43:28 - Hades - The King and the Bull

1:48:26 - Listener emails (Not liking games)

1:52:13 - Listener emails (Star of Providence updates)

1:55:06 - Listener emails (Roguelike RNG)

2:00:35 - Listener emails (How long do YOU like your gameplay?)

Next episode: DoomRL / Jupiter Hell

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

OwO it’s VTuber time! This week we grab out pet aligators and wrap them in a trench coat to investigate the wild world of Holocure - Save the Fans! We’re talking jazzy beats, explosions of color, shrimp simps, skeletons with baseball bats, and (you guessed it!) six-legged monsterific horrors that would be well at home in any HR Geiger film. To navigate this deep sector of internet a-pog-rypha, we’re joined by VTuber and friend of the show Daniru17! We’ll need all the help we can get unraveling the mysteries of the Shubangelion and where exactly that character upgrade tab in the shop is.

Here’s where you can find Daniru17 on the interwebz!

Twitch: daniru17

Youtube: daniru17

X/Twitter: Dani_daniru

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2:02 - game stats

3:07 - one sentence description

4:47 - What is the V-tuber world explanation

8:22 - Character selection and V-tuber identification discussion

13:30 - Fan project nature and free game monetization

16:10 - Danny’s introduction to HoloCure and publicity

19:42 - Gameplay differences from Vampire Survivors

25:05 - Story segment and narrative setup

29:23 - Enemy types and mascot character explanations

32:06 - Boss battles and specific character references

37:58 - Meta progression and upgrade systems discussion

44:16 - Character builds and gameplay strategies

48:49 - Future content plans and dungeon crawling

56:26 - Trumpet stamp and cosmetic upgrades discussion

1:07:20 - rankings and final thoughts

1:15:09 - similar games

Next episode: Summer Music Fest and listener emails!

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Emmet Cohen Trio ft. Patrick Bartley - After You’ve Gone

Outro music: eufrik - Suspect

Adoro l’aglio! The time has come to suck the blood out one of the most popular roguelikes of all time: Vampire Survivors! A wild tale of a 5-dollar indie game that created its own sub-genre of bullet-heaven one-stick shooters, Vampire Survivors is nothing short of the gamedev dream. We celebrate bizarre Italian nomenclature with returning guest Woody and try to suss out what could possibly be the plot of a Vampire Survivors tv show. Grab some Tirajisú for dessert and strap in for a tasty treat of a game, but just keep an eye out for a gigantic Katamari of skeletons looking to run you over.

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2:42 - game stats

7:25 - one sentence description

13:36 - TV show adaptation announcement and story elements

17:37 - Game pricing history and mobile monetization features

21:16 - Basic gameplay loop and 30-minute timer mechanic

25:28 - End game content and killing Death character

29:01 - Genre terminology debate (bullet heaven vs survivor-like)

31:37 - Progression system and relic collection mechanics

41:01 - Meta progression criticism and character stat upgrades

48:52 - Level design comparison with Brotato arena gameplay

54:04 - Soundtrack quality and sound effects discussion

1:02:08 - Best character recommendations and tier lists

1:06:35 - rankings and final thoughts

1:14:25 - similar games

Next episode: Holocure: Save the Fans!

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Giorgio Gaslini - Conservatorismo Puro

Outro music: William Davies‎‎ - The Beginning, Filippo Vicarelli - It’s Raining Minotaurs

Okay, 3…2…1… Let’s Jam! This week we are blasting off across the galaxy in pursuit of scum and villainy to collect some bounties for the space sheriff in Lonestar! With a unique spin on the roguelike deckbuilding genre, we debate over what is red versus orange as we power up our lasers in an epic showdown. Well, when we’re not using our vacation days of course! Build up your outlaw-hunting ship with tons of parts and upgrade those energy points to deal massive damage, or spend those points to defuse the spider mine the enemy has planted on you! Sit down in a space saloon for a nice relaxing card game, but be on the lookout for someone’s pet cat wearing a scouter level eyepiece!

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1:36 - game stats

2:43 - one sentence description

4:07 - Will’s challenge and players’ surprising victory rates

10:08 - Game terminology and localization issues discussion

17:13 - Soundtrack appreciation and space western aesthetic

19:43 - Game lore and event description experiences

29:10 - Narrative elements and story generation in roguelikes

34:32 - Three-lane combat system and unique mechanics

42:12 - Learning curve and frequent gameplay revelations

48:00 - Energy draw system and deck building mechanics

53:11 - Character variety and pilot abilities discussion

1:00:07 - Difficulty curve and ascension level balancing

1:03:19 - Proposed mechanics to improve the game

1:08:06 - Retreat mechanic and infinite retries discussion

1:14:23 - rankings and final thoughts

1:22:00 - similar games

Next episode: Vampire Survivors

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Sonny Rollins - Way Out West

Outro music: Lonestar - Main Menu Theme

Chip chap chipchipchap! For our listener-requested episode this week, we are dungeon diving through Barony: the voxelized roguelike with split-screen co-op! Listen to our encounters with horrible gnomes, armies of human villagers, and Pac-Man ghost scouts. There’s a lot to unpack from a game with just one axis of movement, be it spellcrafting, hunger management, commanding your army of the Zap Brigade against the minotaur, and navigating halls of rolling boulders. Lucky for you there’s a robust tutorial system…if you survive! Drop in and listen or we’ll drop you into The Underworld!

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1:09 - game stats

3:00 - one sentence description

4:17 - Story introduction criticism and scrolling text complaints

8:23 - No meta progression and first biome experience

16:58 - Combat system discussion and melee problems

25:09 - Magic system and wizard class advantages

30:20 - Identification system and item appraisal mechanics

34:51 - Tutorial system criticism and death penalties

42:30 - Multiplayer experience and split-screen chaos

45:53 - Emergent gameplay moments and ZAP brigade

52:57 - Comparison with Shattered Pixel Dungeon mechanics

59:17 - Level design issues and lack of complexity

1:03:39 - DLC content and monster race characters

1:04:38 - Music discussion and audio cue importance

1:07:48 - rankings and final thoughts

1:15:18 - similar games

1:16:36 - listener email from the Wildermyth developers!

Next episode: Lonestar

Contact us at [email protected]!

https://grogpod.zone

Intro music: Billy Cobham - Red Baron

Outro music: Barony - Merchant’s Theme