What makes this game worth $40 more than any other roguelike?

[ibol]

I will respond. (With a lot of words, apparently.)
Also please keep in mind I'm not trying to be an @$$ either, just talking.

Approaching Infinity is a game, first and foremost.
Regardless of its genre. It is a deep, long, detailed game that is a lot of fun.

It is very well supported. My comments on this forum are a testament to that. That support will continue. Every (reasonable) request I have ever gotten from a player has been considered (though not necessarily implemented).

I have heard this comment about *roguelikes* before, and I have a few things to say on that subject as well:

Roguelikes have been coming into the spotlight quite a lot over the past few years. The genre is evolving. It is also becoming more watered down. So, while there are actually quite a lot of commercial roguelikes on steam and such for $10-$15 , they're not true roguelikes; they are 'lites' or 'like-likes'. AI is RL, to its core. I come from roguelikes, not the recent wave of popularity.

Does any other genre of pc game have a built in price limit? RTS, FPS, 4X ?
Why then should roguelikes, the genre that we love so much, whose core principles are argued over heatedly from fierce believers on every side?
Why a built in price limit?

One key design principle is "ease of use". That does not mean it's an easy game, it means that you can learn to play it in 10 minutes. There are not 75 different esoteric commands. The challenge lies in the choices, not in trying to figure out what to do, or how to do it.

Personally, my game-buying budget is limited. I buy a few games every year, and that's it. But I play the hell out of those games. For me, replay value is king. And AI delivers that like crazy.

I strongly recommend you play the demo. Then consider that I have had reports from people in sector 350, still finding challenge and strange new things.

Bob

[DakaSha]

Originally Posted by ibol

I have heard this comment about *roguelikes* before, and I have a few things to say on that subject as well:

Roguelikes have been coming into the spotlight quite a lot over the past few years. The genre is evolving. It is also becoming more watered down. So, while there are actually quite a lot of commercial roguelikes on steam and such for $10-$15 , they're not true roguelikes; they are 'lites' or 'like-likes'. AI is RL, to its core. I come from roguelikes, not the recent wave of popularity.

I'm not sure what gave you the impression that I come form this new generation of roguelite players. I'm incredibly well versed in both the old, the new, and even roguelike development.

Does any other genre of pc game have a built in price limit? RTS, FPS, 4X ?
Why then should roguelikes, the genre that we love so much, whose core principles are argued over heatedly from fierce believers on every side?
Why a built in price limit?

It's not about a price limit per se. It's about the genre already being host to a myriad of amazing titles that are not only cheap but free. I don't actually 'believe' in free games and would be more than willing to pay even for the ascii titles out there, but the point is that games that are (very likely) just as'deep' go for much less, or are even free. Seeing that shrapnel overcharges for virtually every game, I'm guessing that the $40 price tag is more due to them than the actual game designer, but that doesn't change my decision making as a consumer. Again, my original question is what makes this game stand out so much that it deserves my $40, when I can just as easily go and download something else for free, that is (up this point) seemingly on par, if not better.

One key design principle is "ease of use". That does not mean it's an easy game, it means that you can learn to play it in 10 minutes. There are not 75 different esoteric commands. The challenge lies in the choices, not in trying to figure out what to do, or how to do it.

Nothing new, and unimportant (to me of course only) in any case.

I'll try the demo. Maybe the game really is worth it.



edit:

Gruff instigator says: "Hey, you! Wanna fight?"