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Angband (video game)

From Alfawiki
Angband
Company typeOpen-source software
IndustryVideo games
PredecessorUmoria
Founded1990
FounderAlex Cutler, Andy Astrand
FateOngoing development and maintenance
Area served
Multiple platforms (Unix, Windows, Mac OS X, Android)
Key people
Geoff Hill, Sean Marsh, Charles Swiger, Ben Harrison, Robert Rühlmann, Julian Lighton, Andi Sidwell, Nick McConnell
ProductsAngband (video game)
OwnerCommunity-driven open source project
Websiterephial.org

Angband is a roguelike video game that evolved from Umoria and draws inspiration from the works of J. R. R. Tolkien. The game is set within the fortress of Angband. It is accessible on various platforms such as Unix, Windows, Mac OS X, and Android. Industry expert John Harris has identified Angband as a significant title within the roguelike genre. The game is distributed freely under the GNU GPLv2 or the angband license, embracing an open-source model.

Gameplay

In Angband, players aim to conquer 100 procedurally generated dungeon levels in order to defeat the dark lord Morgoth. Renowned for its challenging gameplay, participants begin their journey in a town where they can acquire equipment before venturing into the complex fortress labyrinth teeming with traps, monsters, and secret passages.

Players improve their offensive and defensive capabilities by discovering items and applying enchantments while encountering various characters and artifacts drawn from Tolkien’s mythology. The gameplay emphasizes tactical combat and careful resource allocation, featuring limited health points and permadeath—meaning that once a player dies, they must start over without continuing from a saved state. This mechanic guarantees that each playthrough offers a distinct experience, solidifying its reputation among roguelikes.

Development

The initial release of Angband was developed in 1990 by Alex Cutler and Andy Astrand at the University of Warwick as an expansion of Umoria, incorporating additional monsters, items, and gameplay elements. Following their work, Geoff Hill and Sean Marsh took over code maintenance at Warwick, publicly launching version "2.4.frog_knows" on 11 April 1993. Originally limited to Warwick’s environment, the game was subsequently enhanced and ported to multiple platforms beyond Unix.

Subsequent influential contributors included Charles Swiger, Ben Harrison, and Robert Rühlmann. Harrison spearheaded the "Great Code Cleanup," which modularized the codebase and improved readability, enabling numerous variants and ports to emerge. In 2000, he transferred maintainership responsibilities to Rühlmann.

Under Rühlmann’s leadership, version 3.0 was released with extensive updates to monsters and objects contributed by Jonathan Ellis. He also integrated Lua scripting to streamline development; however, this feature was largely rejected by the community due to its complexity and was eventually removed.

Initially, the Moria/Angband license restricted distribution to educational or non-commercial use only, limiting its inclusion in many Linux distributions or commercial products. Additionally, it lacked explicit permission for code modification, although this was typically overlooked by users. To resolve these limitations, Rühlmann launched the Angband Open Source Initiative in 2000 with the goal of relicensing under the GPL. This transition was finalized on 9 January 2009, officially designating Angband as open source.

Rühlmann resigned as maintainer in October 2005, leading to a brief period without clear leadership. Julian Lighton was appointed maintainer in March 2006 but did not publish new versions. In December 2007, Andi Sidwell took over with backing from the community, guiding substantial improvements in gameplay and code quality. Since the release of version 4.0.0 in 2015, Nick McConnell has held the maintainer role.

Community

The primary venues for Angband discussions include the Usenet newsgroup rec.games.roguelike.angband, the Angband Forum, as well as the IRC channels #angband on WorldIRC and #angband-dev on Freenode. The game enjoys a loyal community, with some participants remaining active for many years.

Derivative works

Angband has given rise to a variety of spin-offs, including MAngband (1997), which offers a multiplayer experience; Zangband (1994), incorporating themes from Roger Zelazny's The Chronicles of Amber series; and Tales of Middle Earth (1998), a Tolkien-inspired adaptation derived from the ZAngband codebase. Following a complete overhaul of its source code and storyline, Tales of Middle Earth transformed into Tales of Maj'Eyal (2012).

Legacy

David Brevik acknowledged that the randomized levels and item generation in Angband significantly influenced the design principles behind Diablo, shaping its fundamental gameplay mechanics. Furthermore, Ernest Cline's novel Ready Player Two incorporates the Angband dungeon and the artifact known as "Morgoth's crown" as central plot devices.

See also

Notes

References

External links

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