What would an OSR videogame look like?

I participated in a game jam recently (I’ve always wanted to learn how to code games) and it was a lot of fun. The process of making my game got me thinking about what a videogame based on Old-school rpg principles might look like. RPGs like 5e have lots of videogame counter parts with high-powered characters with lots of cool abilities, but its hard to find games with that old school vibe.

If you had to design a videogame that used OSR principles what features would you implement? What do you gain with the videogame medium and how could you leverage that? I ask this out of curiosity, and also for selfish reasons because I’m looking for some game dev inspiration.

Of the top of my head:

  • Detailed resource management (Torches, rations, etc)
  • Extensive travel procedures. You could make some really complicated dungeon turns because the computer can handle it.
  • Morale rules for monsters. Barely any games give you the option to talk with monsters or have monsters that don’t fight to the death.
  • Retainers and henchmen.
  • I’d really like to see some sort of interesting mechanics for traps. Not sure what that might look like…
5 Likes

I think roguelike games could fit at least part of the bill (in fact, you could have a roguelike with henchmen and morale rules and it would encompass most of the characteristics of OSR games).

I think another important aspect is to keep the RPG rules down to a minimum: not that many stats, limited weapons and spells…

This looks to me as the hardest part to put into code. Interesting traps involve player ingenuity, which requires a flexible system. Those are very hard to code (and mostly not coded very well). Maybe a random trap generator, which combines different elements (also visual elements) might make traps more interesting without being too much difficult to code.

5 Likes

I reckon a fantasy version of Jagged Alliance 2 would work very well. It doesn’t have options to talk to ‘combat’ enemies, but they do run from a fight. It ticks most of the other boxes, especially when you take into account the community mod “Jagged Alliance 2 v1.13”. Probably a bit too weapon-heavy as things stand, but you’ve got to properly plan your forays into enemy territory or your little bands of online shop-ordered mercenaries - each with their own strong character, and relationships & enmities with other mercs - are toast. It’s even got a grid-based map and mini dungeons.

2 Likes

There are lots of old school video games. The original Rogue, Ultima, and the Infinity Engine games are great examples.

Similar to how we look to the past to find inspiration for our tabletop games, I’d recommend the same with video games - a lot of this foundation has already been laid.

3 Likes

There are a few good ideas to pick from the Dark Souls series:

  • For real time combat, no matter how high your level is, it still requires an incredible amount of caution to survive.
  • Dark souls 2 had a simple use of torchlight giving dungeon delving quite an edge.
  • No quest logs, no maps and cryptic background, you unravel the story based on your observation of the environment and items description.
2 Likes

Ghosts 'n Goblins (arcade version)!

1 Like

I think an OSR game could be along the lines of Darksouls.

2 Likes

I get a lot of OSR kicks from Dark Souls and Rogue.

Like mentioned in previous posts, Dark Souls has meticulous dungeon exploration, deadly combat requiring caution, sometimes running away, rationing of resources, great clever but avoidable traps. Wonderfully “jaquayed” dungeons with loops and all that goodness. Plus some special qualities that only Dark Souls (and its derivatives) has:

Rogue is just pure dungeon crawling Basic D&D, stripped down to a solo experience, but no town, no classes. Most encounters can be avoided, but you do get xp from combat (and not gold), so you need to make wise choices. Running away is always an option, but escape is far from guaranteed. Darkness is terrifying, because you might run into a monster you’re not ready to handle. Magic is scary, because you need to, at first, identify spells and potions by trying them out, many are harmful. But you can’t afford to put off using magic for too long, because the dungeon gets deadlier by the level.

I’ve not played Nethack, but that one seems to have the complexity of simulation for more creative play. Then again, it also appears, from the outside, to be a game of character builds and mastering mechanics, but I could be wrong.

I’d like to someday make my own rogue clone, but I’m not really sure what I’d change. The balance of game elements, simplicity, depth seems pretty much spot on.

1 Like

For the style I play, survival games like Subnautica and No Man’s Sky are basically what I want out of OSR- emergent gameplay, exploration and item-based problem solving. What they lack for me is tactical infinity and more social/faction aspects but other than that the scratch the itch.

2 Likes

I like Conan Exiles a lot, but I play solo and always get bored a couple hours in. It makes me want to play a wilderness survival TTRPG. It would make a nice mini-domain game with the players working around their camp, managing food, wood, getting resources, hunting.

1 Like

I am imagining something very specific here: imagine the gameplay of an entire series of SSI Gold Box games (or Forgotten Realms Unilimted Adventures), the character creation (without cheating), the exploration and the combat. More modern graphics, of course.

The Overworld Map is procedurally generated with 2-3 towns out of 5-6 different styles (video/audio, encounter tables, types of NPC and vendor) and 4-5 different dungeons out of 11-12 different styles (again A/V, encounter tables, types of trap and loot). From the jump, you can choose to go straight into the dungeon, explore the wilderness, or try to find an adventure hook in town. Basically, no matter which of these you go with, it will eventually lead to several suggestions/opportunities to go do something else.

And then it’d have a version of the quest system from Pirates of Realmspace (but, y’know, good) that take the form of NPCs promising you some reward to go do the thing and then come back. And completing the quests builds up hidden stats that unlock different quests that build up to multiple possible endgame scenarios.

… and that’s all I’ve got, though I like what other people are saying. I feel like everything after this basic premise is polishing up and diversifying the core crawling and questing mechanics to make it feel closer to an authentic old-school sandbox game.

1 Like

I’m skimming through this thread, and maybe I’m missing something, but has nobody suggested games like Minecraft and Terraria? They’re open-ended, little to no overt storytelling but lots of environmental storytelling, you have RPG elements as well as resource management, dungeon crawling, etc., gear and loot, domain play. Really the only thing you don’t have are NPCs, but those kinds of interactive social systems are the ones that would arguably be most difficult to translate to a videogame anyway (imo it is not currently possible to do, it would require an AI GM of a level of functionality that does not currently exist afaik…)

4 Likes

Occidental Heroes has very OSR vibes imo.

1 Like

I’ve always wanted an RPG crafting system that gives me the same feeling as modded Minecraft - mixing tech items with magic items.

I’ve also wanted a video game that lets me overcome challenges through cleverness rather than following a defined procedure, but that tech isn’t available yet.

2 Likes

To expand upon what @quantum_metaphysics said previously, I think Minecraft does a great job of allowing players to be clever instead of defining avenues of ‘victory’. Albeit unrealistic, the sandbox engine allows players to exploit the environment and construct situations that the game-world has to respond to. That is to say it’s not just a matter of the game having resource management etc.: more than any other game I can think of, Minecraft’s open systems allow the player to act dynamically and creatively.

4 Likes

You might want to check:

Stoneshard

Monomyth

1 Like

Roadwarden

Honestly, I really think that Breath of the Wild fits what an OSR game could look like as a Fighter.

You start with low hit points, you can use every weapon, and you increase your power by adding magical equipment and hit points. Plus there is the absolute freedom of being able to do anything and go (basically) anywhere.

The game encourages emergent play using your gear. Too cold out? Get warm armor, carry a torch, eat spicy food, build a fire, or carry your magically enhanced fire sword to stay warm. Are there too many enemies in the camp? Wait till they sleep and set their weapons on fire to lower the difficulty.

There, for a newer player, there are massive difficulty spikes where the game doesn’t hold your hand (Guardians with laser beams, etc).

I was really impressed with how that game felt in terms of play.

4 Likes

Look up Caves of Qud. It’s science fantasy, and the most OSR media I’ve consumed other than actual ttrpg books.

Exploration in a dangerous unknown world. Rougelike lethality. Simulationist systems that encourage creative problem solving and open-ended challenges to spring up. WEIRD ATMOSPHERE. Recovering powerful old relics from dungeons (high tech civilizations mostly forgotten), and with significant resource management. Mutations/spells/tech systems. Competing factions.

It’s all there except detailed role play or evolving custom questlines.

6 Likes

Kenshi by Lo-Fi games gives me the OSR feel in a post-apoc alien wasteland. The world has a deep rich history that you can uncover by exploring but also the world is generally uncaring for your characters. You can play a single character or over time build a warband of sorts and if you die, you can continue as one of your allies. There’s dismemberment, mechanical prosthetics, base building, factions, etc.

I believe my only content warning would be that it also deals with slavery as one of the factions commonly enslaves those it deems unworthy but if it happens to you, you can escape through tricky means.

3 Likes