Do You Like Rogue-Likes? (part 3)

A roguelike is a little different from the brutally difficult and unforgiving video games of the 80's. You do have to start all over from the beginning if you die (and you only have 1 life, not 3), but, roguelikes let some of your progress accumulate. There is still a way to “level up” your character, and often the skills you earn/unlock become abilities you can access again upon restarting, though often for a price. For instance, if your character makes it to level 2 and finds a rocket-launcher but then dies horribly, when you restart, the game might present you with the option to purchase the rocket launcher with the money you've earned so far—usually money stays around after you die in a roguelike, so you can continually accrue wealth. Now, your wimpy level 1 character isn't so wimpy—he has a rocket-launcher, after all! Progressing forward becomes a little easier with each death, and each time, you earn better stuff. This is the idea behind a roguelike: Keep trying, keep dying, but eventually, you'll be overpowered and breezing through levels better and better with each attempt.