Shadowlight

Shadowlight is a stealth-focused traditional ASCII roguelike. You play as a thief who enters a dungeon for gold, where survival depends on using light and shadow rather than winning fair fights. The world appears in letters, numbers and symbols, leaving you to imagine its dark corridors, ancient dungeons and monsters.

Stealth and combat

The game uses turn-based, grid-based movement. Each move takes one turn, followed by the monsters’ moves; moving into an occupied tile makes you attack. You can move in nine directions, wait for darkness to reach you or close a door to block torchlight.

You are invisible in shadow and exposed in light. Backstabs deal triple damage when your target has not seen you coming, while stepping into light draws every monster that can see you. Monsters and wall torches cast light that fades with distance, making light both a threat and something you can use. You can close doors, snuff torch-bearers or shout to draw guards into darkness or light.

Dungeons and the manor

Procedurally generated runs take you through dungeons, a green-lit temple, a torchlit manor and deep crystal caves. Each has its own palette, monsters and rules for light.

At the manor on the hill, you avoid guards carrying torches along patrol routes, steal a locked box and try to escape unseen. If you are spotted, you flee empty-handed.

Abilities and crafting

You can use Shadowmeld to vanish in shadow, Shadowsight to see through monster stealth, and Shout to draw enemies—and their light—toward a sound. Riposte lets you take a parry stance, turn aside the next blow and respond with a strike that deals double damage. Shadelings can melt into shadow, while the High Priest can paralyze you; learning to read their tells is key to surviving their attacks.

Every 50 kills yields materials for crafting healing potions, smoke bombs and trap kits at a workbench, provided no enemy is watching. The ASCII presentation uses filled-tile walls, a scrolling camera and a banded warm palette.