Explore. Die. Repeat.

Explore. Die. Repeat.

As I near the end of “Shadow of the Erdtree,” the expansion for Elden Ring, I find myself reflecting on the various forms games can take. Elden Ring is a “Souls-like” game—a genre that fully emerged with “Demon’s Souls,” featuring high difficulty and the intentional, repeated death of the character. This mechanic encourages players to gain more knowledge and mastery of the game world.

Similar mechanics can also be found in board games, with “T.I.M.E. Stories” being a prime example. In this game, the objective is to explore as much as possible before "failing," then restart the game with more knowledge to reach the end before running out of time ("lives").

In the film industry, movies like Groundhog Day and Edge of Tomorrow use the same concept: characters are trapped in a loop, and the solution is to gather enough knowledge to escape it.

T.I.M.E.: Space Cowboys
T.I.M.E.: Space Cowboys
Shadow of the Erdtree: Bandai Namco
Shadow of the Erdtree: Bandai Namco
Edge of Tomorrow: Warner Bros. Pictures
Edge of Tomorrow: Warner Bros. Pictures

In tabletop RPGs, I know of only one instance where such a mechanic is used: our own scenario “Svalbard” from 2021. Here, players are trapped in a deadly loop, restarting the adventure each time someone dies. However, they can use the accumulated knowledge from their previous lives to avoid known dangers, aiming for a “perfect” run where they overcome the challenge (in this case, stopping mad scientists from unleashing Azathoth into the world through a failed experiment).

I hope more creators will adopt this idea of a “rogue-like/souls-like/loop-like” mechanic in RPGs. One of the things that makes games like Elden Ring so compelling is the exploration of environments with potentially deadly outcomes, where gained knowledge allows you to master and avoid those outcomes, progressing further in the game. I would love to play more tabletop RPGs with this concept.

An obvious “problem” with such a game is the very low replay value. Once you finish “Svalbard,” it can’t be played again with the same group because they know all the “answers” and there are no surprises left. However, considering a group of five players and the time spent during an entire game night, perhaps seven dollars isn’t too bad after all? Among the more “traditional” adventures I experience in tabletop RPGs, I want to try others that explore this very niche “genre.” I hope someone takes up the challenge!

- Jarle Haktorson

 

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