Die in a dungeon in Into Ruins

Into Ruins is a free retro-styled roguelike that features simple controls and an 8-bit visual style. Dropped into a dark landscape full of monsters, you must probe ever deeper, relying on your trusty torch to help you find your way. Along the way, you’ll find various magical items that might be the key to staying alive in the underground labyrinth.

Into Ruins presents a very different version of the action gameplay found in roguelike games such as Dungeon Souls. Your character explores the dungeon by moving from space to space on a hex-based map. The system is turn-based, as in games like Sea of Stars, giving you time to plan your actions.

Every time you play Into Ruins, the map is generated anew, like other roguelikes. But it isn’t just the map since the items are also randomized. On your first run, a red orb might be a valuable Orb of Life, but it might be a less valuable Orb of Gravity on the second. You won’t know until you test it.

Graphically, Into Ruins is simple, with a basic soundtrack to accompany it. It befits a vintage-inspired game. The color palette is pleasing, and the enemy and equipment designs are usually easy to recognize. The landscape isn’t always so easily readable, and it can sometimes take a few tries to see where the level exits are.

A retro treat for fans of dungeon-crawling games

With its appealing retro aesthetic and simple but surprisingly deep gameplay, Into Ruins is a fun and challenging indie game. Because runs can often be quite short, it becomes too easy to try just one more before shutting it down. It isn’t without one or two flaws, but it’s definitely worth investigating for fans of roguelike and strategy games.