Difference between revisions of "Character display"

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A '''character display''' is an output format that relies in characters to represent information; character display was the main output format for all software in the 80's, where using extended [[ASCII]] it was possible to create simple menus and graphic user interfaces, even using the mouse.
#REDIRECT [[user interface features]]
 
The character display in roguelikes is however different; instead of representing words or graphical components of a graphic user interface, each character has a meaning on its own. This is one of the [[Definition|basic characteristics]] of roguelikes, although it is not a deciding one as the developer may not feel comfortable with it and would instead go with a [[graphical display]]. There are some adventure and role-playing games that have a character display similar to the one roguelikes use, but it doesn't qualify them as roguelikes, as they are missing other most important features.
 
== Display ==
 
A typical roguelike ASCII display is the following :
 
            ######      # A wall
######      #....###    . The floor
#....#  ####.@..+..    + A closed door
#.<..#####.....g.###    / An opened door
#..../.....#######      < Stairs to the previous level
#.?..#######           
######                  @ The hero
                          g A monster
                          ? A magical item
 
Some ASCII characters have the same meaning in nearly every roguelikes. <code>.</code> is used for floors, lit areas, or somewhere the player can walk on and doesn't have anything special. In [[dungeon]]s, <code><</code> and <code>></code> are stairs to the previous and next level. <code>@</code> usually is the hero and letters from <code>a</code> to <code>z</code> (lower case and capital letters) the monsters. <code>?</code> is common for scrolls, <code>!</code> for potions.
 
[[Category:Concepts]]
[[Category:User Interface Features]]

Latest revision as of 03:28, 21 September 2006

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