SlotRogue

This is a prototype / WIP.  All feedback is appreciated, I want to work on this in the future. Personally I think the game is too hard at the moment and I'm not fully convinced you can beat it, but what do you think? How to improve? 

 .... *ahem* Just tried this once again, and found yet another bug. If you die, you need to reset your game / stats via ESC -> main menu -> new game. The "new game" from death menu will apparently not reset your stats which will lead you to be able to play with negative health. Propably the same with when you run out of gold or spins. But worry not: 

ESC -> Main Menu -> Start      WILL RESET YOUR STATS.  But if you want to play as a zombie knight, sure, go ahead. First you need to die, and then you just need to continue with 'new game'. 

*Ahem2* Don’t waste your gold on AP refresh—when you return from the merchant, your only option is to spin. That AP refresh? It's wasted. Sorry.

*Little ahem3* You can refresh the board around you by pressing esc and coming back. It's related to *Ahem2*, I believe. 

This is spaghetti and these issues will be fixed later. Thank you for your patience <3

The game is mouse controlled, except for ESC-button which should lead to a menu.

You can move your 'character' (middle slot) by moving the reels. Shifting reels left or right moves all the reels, but nudging a reel up or down moves only that particular reel. 

Moving spends ActionPoints (AP). 

If you lock any of the reels you cannot shift any of them left or right anymore, but you can nudge other reels up / down as you wish. When you spin, the locked reel will not spin. 

There is no sound at the moment, as that's apparently quite another can of worms I need to open, and I just wanted this out for feedback. If you want to work on the sounds, well, it sounds good! <3

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Long story short, I present to you: 

SlotRogue – a roguelike played like a slot machine game 🎰

Inspired by the recent 7DRL challenge 2025, I decided to experiment with GameMaker Studio 2 and create SlotRogue, where the map / field of vision is a 5x5 slot machine grid.

So far, so good!

Current version would be the result on day 9 of my self-imposed 7DRL -challenge. I'm pretty proud of the outcome as I opened GameMaker Studio 2 for the first time ever just 9 days ago. I wouldn't let you look under the hood tho. It's a mess of a spaghetti there. (edit: could be it's actually day 10 or day 11 by now. Sorry! But i'm still darn proud of it :)

Once again, ChatGPT helped out with the code, while the graphics are mostly from Midjourney—though I worked some Photoshop magics on the icons.

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What's it about?

Sir Spintalon, the not-so-legendary knight, has found himself in a financial catastrophe—again. This time, however, the stakes are higher than ever. A fearsome dragon has captured a princess, and the kingdom has promised half its lands and full debt forgiveness to whoever rescues her.

The only problem? The dragon doesn’t accept heroics as payment. It demands 10,000 gold in cold, hard cash. And Sir Spintalon? He has exactly 10 gold to his name.

With nothing but his last few coins, a rusted sword, and an addiction to high-risk bets, our hapless knight embarks on the ultimate gamble: to spin, strategize, and scheme his way to fortune before time runs out.

🃏 Every spin costs gold—will you risk it all for riches, or play it safe and lose the chance of a lifetime?
🎰 Every shift and nudge of the slot machine counts—position yourself wisely, plan your movements, and let luck (or sheer cunning) guide your fate.
💰 Stack up treasure, dodge tax-collecting bandits, and strike deals with shady merchants.
⚔️ Face wandering duelists (not yet implemented), rampaging ogres (not yet implemented), and worse—because the road to fortune is never fair.
🐉 Can you turn 10 gold into 10,000 before the dragon loses its patience?

A gambler’s greatest weapon isn’t luck—it’s knowing when to push it.

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A WORD OF CAUTION BEFORE YOU BEGIN !

This game is heavily inspired by slot machines and luck-based mechanics. While there are no real stakes here, it is important to recognize that games like these can mimic real gambling.

If you have ever struggled with gambling or feel that playing might lead you towards real-money games, please consider stopping now.

Take care of yourself first.