| DRL | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Original authors | Kornel Kisielewicz (code),Derek Yu (art) |
| Developer | ChaosForge |
| Initial release | 2005; 20 years ago (2005) |
| Stable release | |
| Repository | github |
| Written in | FreePascal |
| Platform | Windows,OS X,Linux |
| Type | Single-playerRoguelike |
| License | GPL-2.0-or-later (code),CC-BY-SA-4.0 (art) |
| Website | drl |
DRL (formerlyDoomRL), short forDoom, the Roguelike, is aroguelikevideo game developed by ChaosForge based on thefirst-person shootersDoom andDoom II. It has been in development since 2002, and was released forMicrosoft Windows,Linux andOS X. Following acease and desist notice from "Doom"trademark ownerZeniMax Media, the game's name was changed toDRL in 2016.
DRL is turn-based, offers a top-down interface formed entirely ofASCII characters, and features a character leveling system with traits. As it is based uponDoom, the game is more fast-paced and combat-oriented than usual for a roguelike, and relies heavily on ranged rather than melee combat. A limited player inventory, non-stackable items, and other design choices contrast with the often extreme intricacy of games in its genre.
As of version 0.9.9.6,Derek Yu's graphicaltileset is now the game's default, offering an alternative to the more traditionalASCII rendering.DRL includes the entireDoom soundset and music library, with optional support for high-qualityMP3s.
The game was created by programmer Kornel Kisielewicz withFree Pascal, and uses art byDerek Yu. The developers based DRL in the popularfirst-person shootersDoom andDoom II universe. Since approximately 2002 in-development with firstbeta versions, the latest stable release is from 2025.[2]
Development resumed on DRL in August 2024 by Kisielewicz with its first major release in over 11 years, paired with an announcement ofJupiter Hell Classic, ademake of DRL's spinoff game made in the DRL engine.[3]
On December 2, 2016, Kisielewicz received acease and desist notice fromZeniMax Media, concerning the use of the wordmark "Doom" present on game's website and name, which ZeniMax trademarked worldwide.[4] To exclude "Doom" from the game's name, the title was changed to simplyDRL on December 7.[5]
In addition, the game was madeopen source by Kisielewicz on December 6 the same year.[6] Kisielewicz had planned on releasingDRL as open-source prior to receiving the notice at the conclusion of an ongoingcrowdfunding campaign onKickstarter forJupiter Hell, a spiritual successor toDRL, as a thank-you to his supporters. The notice only made him push up this change to an earlier date.[7] Thesource code was made available viaGitHub underGPL 2.0 or later and the game's assets under theCC BY-SA 4.0 license.[8] Kisielewicz anticipates that the open-source community will be able to provide support and improvements to enhance bothDRL andJupiter Hell.[7] For instance, a communitysource port of DRL to theOpenPandorahandheld resulted already three days later.[9]
ChaosForge releasedJupiter Hell in August 2019 under Steam's Early Access program, with a full commercial release for the game in August 2021.Jupiter Hell is a 3Disometric view roguelike game in the same style as DRL, with original art, story, and music.Jupiter Hell Classic is a demake ofJupiter Hell built on the DRL engine, was first announced in 2024 and was released on Steam early access release in August 2025.[10]
In 2014DRL was described byPCGamer as "a brilliant mashup of two classics" and named among the "Ten top fan remade classics you can play for free right now".[11]
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