Classic turn-based roguelikes have never had the need for controller support, largely due to the fact that their gameplay is often far removed from modern action-roguelikes. Furthermore, the top-down, turn-based nature of classic roguelikes often means their controls are simple, and players always have as much time as they need to press the right button.

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However, with the roguelike genre evolving, even spawning its own sub-genre in the form of the roguelite, modern controller support is becoming almost mandatory for new releases. However, while some of these games benefit from controller support, many of them are still easier to play with a mouse and keyboard.

8 Wildfrost

A Game That Requires An Abundance Of UI Interactions

Wildfrost combines the modern roguelike deckbuilder gameplay of games like Slay The Spire with squad-based tactics games and the minion-based gameplay of games like Hearthstone. This tactical approach, facilitated by allowing players to drag and drop their cards around the battlefield, makes Wildfrost a card game with a hefty amount of management and player navigation.

Because of the high levels of player input that Wildfrost demands, and the emphasis on dragging and dropping cards (not just to play them, but to move them to and fro), playing with a mouse and keyboard provides a much smoother experience. However, for those who do want to play with a controller, Wildfrost offers full support.

7 Backpack Hero

Managing A Fiddly Inventory Is Even More Tedious With A Controller

This truly unique roguelike has players managing an inventory of interacting items in their backpack. Backpack Hero's gameplay revolves mostly around players organizing their backpack, and moving items around to make the most of adjacency bonuses.

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Because the gameplay of Backpack Hero revolves around moving items in an inventory, precise movement and fluid control of the cursor are massively important to a smooth experience. Because of this, Backpack Hero plays a lot better with a mouse, despite its full controller support.

6 Gunfire Reborn

A Mouse Makes It Much Easier To Aim In This FPS

This combination of FPS and RPG features a cartoon visual style and elemental gunplay similar to games such as Borderlands. The game features a variety of playable characters, environments, guns, and bosses, as well as online co-op and full controller support.

However, like many first-person shooters on the PC, Gunfire Reborn is better played with a mouse and keyboard. It's no secret that aiming weapons from the first-person perspective has always been easier with a mouse than with the joysticks of a controller, and it's no different here. Gunfire Reborn can be a fairly unforgiving experience, and being able to aim accurately is integral to success.

5 Into The Breach

This Turn-Based Game's UI-Heavy Design Is Easier To Navigate With A Mouse

From developers Subset Games (the team behind FTL: Faster Than Light), Into The Breach is a tactical, turn-based roguelike with a heavy focus on problem-solving. The game provides the player with all the information they need, then tasks them with finding the best way to eliminate enemies and protect objectives on a grid-based map.

This grid-based system makes playing with a controller tedious, and the game often asks the player to navigate UI elements. This means that, despite Into The Breach having perfectly capable controller support, it's a much smoother experience when played with a mouse and keyboard.

4 Roboquest

This Fast-Paced Movement Shooter Makes It Difficult To Aim With A Controller

This FPS roguelite features fast-paced, unforgiving gameplay with a focus on open arenas and intuitive player movement. Roboquest also features a diverse variety of weaponry, allowing players to pick the perfect weapon for each situation, switching on the fly.

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This fast-paced gameplay and focus on constant movement, coupled with the game's permanent death, makes Roboquest a fairly intense game in which mistakes are costly. Because of this, playing with a mouse and keyboard is arguably more intuitive, and a lot smoother to control. Furthermore, shooting accurately while moving around quickly is much easier when playing with a mouse and keyboard.

3 Enter The Gungeon

Playing With A Mouse Allows For Increased Accuracy

Conserving ammo in Enter The Gungeon is integral to player success, as the game revolves around the player's steadily increasing gun collection and how they manage the ammo for each of them. This means that missing shots and generally wasting ammunition, especially for more powerful weapons, is extremely detrimental.

While Enter The Gungeon does feature full controller support, complete with auto-aim, playing with keyboard and mouse allows the player to have more control. Furthermore, accurate players will be able to play through the game efficiently, without having to worry about auto-aim targeting the wrong enemy or throwing off a well-placed shot.

2 Risk Of Rain 2

Accurately Firing Projectiles And Aiming Abilities Is Easier With A Mouse

This massively popular third-person action-roguelite combines looter-shooter gameplay with online co-op and a plethora of powerful synergies. This blend of the original Risk Of Rain's synergy-building and 3D, third-person shooter gameplay offers a uniquely chaotic experience that's even better when played with friends.

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While there is plenty of strategy to be had in planning out a build in Risk Of Rain 2, much of a player's success in the game often comes down to how well they can aim, along with their ability to maneuver around the environment. Although some players may prefer moving around with a gamepad, aiming in 3D space is arguably much easier with a mouse, making Risk Of Rain 2 a much less frustrating experience when played with a mouse and keyboard.

1 Slay The Spire

Frequently Playing Cards Is More Intuitive With A Mouse, And Requires Little Input

This roguelike-deckbuilder popularized deckbuilding in indie games and spawned a plethora of clones attempting to ride on its coattails. Due to their nature as card games, deckbuilders can be played almost entirely with a mouse, and often require very little input outside dragging and dropping.

Slay The Spire plays very simply, and can be played with just the mouse. Because of this, there's really no need to play with a controller, despite the game having full controller support. Hovering over cards to get a closer look and playing them with the game's drag-and-drop system makes the game much more intuitive when played with a mouse and keyboard.

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