When comparing Cataclysm Dark Days Ahead vs Random Adventure Roguelike, the Slant community recommends Cataclysm Dark Days Ahead for most people. In the question“What are the best roguelikes on Android?” Cataclysm Dark Days Ahead is ranked 9th while Random Adventure Roguelike is ranked 13th. The most important reason people chose Cataclysm Dark Days Ahead is:
Get taken back to when games were completely made of ascii letters and your imagination. Venture forth as an @ and survive the wild. With the classic ascii art, it is hard to ignore that this is not a graphical powerhouse, but of course that is part of the fun, allowing your imagination to fill in this void.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Classic computer gameplay that offers a lot of nostalgia
Get taken back to when games were completely made of ascii letters and your imagination. Venture forth as an @ and survive the wild. With the classic ascii art, it is hard to ignore that this is not a graphical powerhouse, but of course that is part of the fun, allowing your imagination to fill in this void.
Pro Open source and very moddable, making for a game that anyone can change to their liking
The mod community is pretty active on this game, and you can create some really cool things with the tools they already provide. This way anyone can change their game to how they like.
Pro Super involved gameplay that allows the user to dive deep into the mechanics of the game
Everything from weather to crafting to martial arts are accounted for in Cataclysm. You can spend hours mastering the depths of this games systems that allow you to play however you want.
Pro Being in constant active developed allows the game to constantly grow
Experimental releases exit a few times in a single day. Many people are working on finding bugs, and developers are quickly fixing them and adding new features. This makes for a situation where the game is constantly growing and improving.
Pro Free for anyone to download and try, which leave no one out
The game is free of cost as well as open-source, meaning that anyone can download the game, install it and play it.
Pro Graphics can be used instead of ASCII, for those that would enjoy something more visual
Not supported on every version of the game, but you can have a graphical experience if you want by using a graphical tileset for the game. This will need to be done manually.
Pro Fun mix of sandbox and roguelike gameplay, where you decide where you want to go and what you want to do
The game sets you in an open world with random quests. You can go wherever you want, kill monsters, help people by taking quests, craft items, improve your equipment, or even sail to another island. This makes for a game that can be played as the player wants, exploring and adventuring as they please.
Pro Retro but modern look and feel makes for a game that gives some nostalgia while also keeping up with its contemporaries
The game has no graphics (apart from the icons for the items and menus) but has a nice layout design and colorful text. It just feels like an old-school game made today.
Pro Enormous amount of content that allows for tons of customization, allowing each game to feel unique
There is a huge number of skills and ways you can improve your character, with a cool leveling system. The sheer amount of customizations included in this content makes for a way to have unique playthroughs, when making different choices.
Pro The turn based gameplay lends itself well to those that enjoy taking their time with thought out moves
Like an true roguelike the game is turn-based, meaning every turn the player takes, the rest of the board takes on turn. This way you can easily labor over what you would like to do next, as nothing happens in the game until you move.
Pro Completely free, meaning anyone can try the game
The game is currently completely free, with an option for donations so the developer feels more motivated to continue developing the game. There are no ads, and there's no bonus if you donate. It's just an altruistic option.
Pro Intuitive interface where it is pretty easy to figure out how to navigate the game
Being based on text graphics the game controls are pretty intuitive being that what there is to do is displayed in text on the screen.
Cons
Con Lacking hardcore survival feel
The game gets to be rather easy once you spend a little time with it. Basements full of everything one needs to survive in every other house, and stores that look like they were left as seem out of place since in a disaster scenario most items would probably have been taken already.
You can tweak the options to suit a more hardcore experience if you so desire. The options allow for a wide variety of difficulty and playstyles.
Con Difficult to learn at first
This could be a pro for some but for many this will turn them away from the game.
Con Very small overland screen/map
While there is a huge amount of customization and crafting, the dungeon and overland map/screen seems added as an afterthought. The result is that it's easy to lose track of where you are, and it often feels like you aren't "going" anywhere.
Con Buggy
Crafting weapons seems to not allow any weapon higher than a 1/1. The game may crash when trying to save and exit or just crash while playing. Making for a frustrating experience.