What Makes a Great Roguelike
A roguelike builds its whole appeal on starting over: each run is procedurally generated, death is permanent, and progress comes from what the player learns rather than what they keep. The distinction fans argue over is roguelike versus roguelite, where a roguelite softens the reset with permanent upgrades that carry between runs. This list includes both, because on a controller the line between them rarely changes how a game feels. The 15 picks span the subgenres the form has branched into: action roguelikes like Hades and Returnal, the roguevania Dead Cells, deckbuilders like Balatro, Slay the Spire and Inscryption, the survivors-like that Vampire Survivors started, bullet-hells like Enter the Gungeon and The Binding of Isaac, the RPG attrition of Darkest Dungeon, the management hybrid Cult of the Lamb, and co-op runs in Risk of Rain 2 and Remnant II. Several, including Returnal, Dead Cells and Risk of Rain 2, have been included with PS Plus Extra.

















