Omega (Roguelike)

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Omega
Developer(s)	Laurence Brothers
Publisher(s)	Laurence Brothers
Director(s)
Producer(s)
Designer(s)
Programmer(s)
Artist(s)
Writer(s)
Composer(s)
Series
Engine
Platform(s)
Release	Linux WW: 1988 Windows WW: 2003 Oct 1 (binary re-release. Source code released Febuary 20th 2010)
Genre(s)	Roguelike
Mode(s)	Single-player
Cabinet
Arcade system
CPU
Sound
Display

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Omega is an open-world roguelike designed and developed by a programmer Laurence Brothers while working on his thesis during 1988. It is set in the world of Omega on the land of LOCUS. The player can either roll their stats randomly or can chose to play as themselves. If they choose to play as themselves they will have to answer a series of questions ranging from the normal such as how many pounds you can lift. To the bizarre such as asking if you're Irish or if you play video games or if you believe in ghosts.

Like other old roguelikes the game uses ASCII graphics to represent characters. The dungeons are all procedurally generated dungeons. But unlike Angband or it's variants when the game generates a dungeon it does not change even if the player re-enters the dungeon from the overworld. Omega is the first roguelike game to contain a full open-world and increased the ramifications of the alignment with alignment being divided into Order and Chaos.

Although the game has been lying dormant for years a version created by David Kinder ported to Windows XP A later version that connected to the internet can be downloaded.

Story

Omega is as the title suggests set in the world of Omega more specifically set on the land of LOCUS. The world is set up as a battle between four gods divided into two subsets. Lawful and Chaotic. These Gods come from the real life pantheons such as the Greek and Norse pantheons. The gods are divided into one male combat focused deity. And one female spell focused deity. The lawful gods are Odin and Athena. While the chaotic gods are Set and Hecate. There are also the mysterious Lords of Destiny a group of powerful god like beings who act as mediators to the gods. There are also druids who embody the Balance between Law and Chaos. Nobody knows much about the Lords of Destiny and their purpose is unknown. The player after having cleared a hedge maze full of triffids meets the Oracle of Cyan Flames, Who sets them up on a series of quests. At the end they learn the truth about the Lords of Destiny.

Gameplay

Omega has the player start of in the metropolis of Rampart and his left to fend for their own in the harsh world. Gameplay has a much more heavy reliance on spells and using them to get past obstacles in tricky ways. The game is designed to be as open ended as possible with the plot being hidden past dialogue trees and puzzles. Omega uses a system of guilds in lieu of a class based system.

Guilds

When the player starts the game in the city of Rampart the player can discover many guilds. The guilds are used in lieu of a class based system and are meant to have different functions for each guild. Joining a guild can give you many perks while giving many negatives to the point where some guilds might kill the player ending their game if they change alignment or violate some other code in the guild. The guilds consist of the Mercenary's Guild which give starting players equipment and money for leveling up. The Collegum Magii. Which allow the player to participate in experiments giving more potential spells than players in the Sorcerer's Circle. The Sorcerer's Circle is a group of warlocks that specilize in the chaotic energies of magic. They give a certain amount of spells each levelup giving less spells than in the Collegum Magii but more powerful spells none the less. They will attack the player if they move from Chaotic alignment. Next there is the Thieves Guild which specialize in pick-pocketing items. If the player pays enough gold they can identify items for you. Then there is the Paladin's Guild which are lawful defenders who attack anybody they think is chaotic scum. And finally the Gladiator's guild which pay the player to fight increasingly deadly opponents for more cash.

Endings

Omega is one of the first Roguelikes to have multiple endings. The endings are each separate and have their own way of completion. The first one is "Retiring". If the player can pay 50000$ to the real estate agent the player can retire in harmony. Next if the player is experienced enough they get a quest from the leader of their guild variants include going into a dark volcano on the south of the world and defeating a demon lord. Or going onto an island killing an automaton that is eating all magic. Once the player has completed the quest the guild leader steps down and gives them the honor of becoming the next Guild leader. At this point the player has beaten the game and can either get more titles or retire. The player can also become a high priest of their alignment if they can find the correct symbol for their deity. The final ending has the player being guided by the oracle and having them face the Grim Reaper on the Astral Plane. After they complete the oracle's quests and beat the Grim Reaper the player only has to return to the Duke of Rampart who let's the player be his successor. The player then unlocks the power of the Adept from the orb. Revealing the Lords of Destiny were watching the player the entire time and choosing the player to be the next Adept.

References

This article "Omega (Roguelike)" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Omega (Roguelike). Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.

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