Risk of Rain was one of my favorite games back when I was in college; it's a platformer "roguelite" that actually does a fairly good job of sticking true to roguelike ideas: permadeath with relatively short runs, random generation, and a whole lot of other classic staple features. There is an unlock system, but generally the gameplay is the same on each run: you start off with a character and pick up items to upgrade them as you go through waves; the faster you go the better off you are in the end, since there is an increasing amount of difficulty as your time in the session increases.

It's hard to describe in a vacuum, but it was a 2D pixel-art game, with quite a unique art style and loads of charm and character. It was also hard as nails, which is saying something given the competition it has in the roguelike sphere for difficulty. The trailer should give you a good feel for the game:

Risk of Rain trailer, courtesy of Hopoo Games.

Yesterday, the Risk of Rain 2 early access campaign launched. It's an interesting game, in part because it has transitioned to 3D and has a whole lot of other added elements, like activated equipment. However, its greatest triumph is the way that it preserves the identity of Risk of Rain, despite the otherwise significant changes, while also creating a revitalized experience.

Risk of Rain 2 trailer, courtesy of Eurogamer Germany

Preserving Identity Despite Mechanical Alterations

Risk of Rain 2 extends on Risk of Rain, but maintains the core gameplay loop: Search a stage, collect items, find the teleporter, activate it and move to the next stage. Quicker is better, since the difficulty will ramp up over time.

This core identity, however, could be inflected on in a variety of ways.

For instance, each character in the original Risk of Rain has their own scenarios that they do better in (e.g. long range, versus short-range engagements), and Risk of Rain 2 is transitioning into 3D, which creates issues with the differences in how players experience the game.

Right now, I have to say that disruptive transitions are pretty far and few between, at least as I see them. The stages are no longer procedurally generated, as they were in the original Risk of Rain, but spawn points are still scattered about the stage in such a manner that it is still going to be a different experience each time you play. There are maybe a half-dozen or so environments right now (in Early Access, remember), and I've been through most of them three or four times; even on the fourth time I'm still finding secrets scattered about.

There's some changes; speed is a lot more important in Risk of Rain 2, for instance, since you are incentivized to scout as much territory as you can as quickly as you can to find as many items as possible without running out the clock and increasing the difficulty.

What really works so well here and gives a fantastic layer of polish to Risk of Rain 2 is the second-to-second level of detail. Much like the original game, there is large-scale time pressure but also the shorter-term time pressure of constant enemy reinforcements that encourages movement and exploration.

Moving Beyond Formula

The three-dimensional layout of Risk of Rain 2's environments adds a whole new level of exploration. While the 2D environments were highly vertical, the 3D environments pull this off in an entirely different fashion; they're broad and expansive.

This adds a whole new element to the game; exploring the levels becomes a longer, more self-involved task.

Likewise, combat is heavily expanded. While the player characters are made only marginally more complicated (the transition from 2D to 3D is quite natural for a player who is accustomed to games that use both perspectives), the enemies that are fought become increasingly different. While the first Risk of Rain placed relatively little priority on evasion simply by moving around (though like the sequel it provides a special dodge/movement ability for each character), the 3D space allows for more threats simultaneously approaching, since the dodging incoming attacks without having to resort to the special maneuvers each character gets access to is a much more feasible endeavor.

The result is that Risk of Rain 2 is more frenetic than the first, as the environments provide more opportunities for the players. There is more of an emphasis on interacting with the world: taking cover from bosses, using advantageous terrain when scouting, and checking nooks and crannies for goodies. It's a formula that feels familiar even though many of the activities, compared to the original, are entirely novel.

Risk of Rain 2 also adds a few side-mechanics, like the lunar coins, which serve as an alternative currency that lasts between runs, but these are generally non-disruptive.

Application

As a game designer, one of the things to consider is how to build a game well.

In something like a tabletop roleplaying game, you have to have players execute the rules, and even in a video game where players don't need to be the driving force behind the rules you are going to need to have some comprehensibility to the rules.

The transition that Hopoo Games attempted between Risk of Rain and Risk of Rain 2 is quite significant, but they focused on their gameplay loops.

As a result, if you're looking to expand or deepen a game, we can draw a few conclusions about what works well:

1. Stick with the gameplay loop that you know works and change as little as necessary to achieve your goals. There is something to be said for novelty, but it should be restrained and it is important to remember that novelty can come from places that seem trite to game designers heavily familiar with their own work and the direction that they want to take it.
2. If you can rely on players' inherent knowledge, that's best. Give them intuitive (in-game, not just in-UI or in-manual) guides where possible, and if not be sure to leave an opportunity for them to sort things out in a manner that befits their interests.
3. A small change can be big, and a big change can be small. The 3D environment in Risk of Rain 2, for instance, feels intuitive, but it's actually quite a big change. However, as a sequel to a game that was quite good, you don't want to break the formula that works, and that worked really well here. Adding in the lunar coins, which allow an across-run mechanic, adding difficulty levels, and adding artifacts (which aren't in the early access yet, but are supposed to alter the way a run works) might actually have a larger impact; the first gives an opportunity to go into runs with a distinct advantage (absent in the first game), while the latter two give more options to let players customize their desired experience (also absent in the original). These features may seem really small at first, but they're adding a large amount of customization of the play experience.