Dungeon Building Games

Browser Games

These games are played through a user's web browser and are typically free, as they are typically simpler than other dungeon-building games in terms of graphics and gameplay. In "Dungeon Defender," for example, the player controls a monstrous overlord whose lair is being attacked by warriors. The player must install buildings and deploy monsters to prevent the invaders reaching the dungeon's heart. The player can dig for gold to pay for these defenses.

These games tend to be relatively complex. "Dungeon Maker: Hunting Ground" for the Sony PSP places the player in the dual role of both dungeon architect and the hero who travels through her own creation. The player visits a nearby town to buy parts for her dungeon, with the aim of eventually attracting a creature called the Wandering Demon to inhabit it.

"RPG Maker," a Playstation title, allows a player to not only construct a dungeon, but to create a whole role-playing game to go along with it, including the game's plot and central characters. Players create dungeons, alongside outdoor environments such as forests, to challenge players.

Some video games feature dungeon-building software alongside other game elements, such as the primary storyline. Bioware's "Neverwinter Nights" series, for example, is a traditional swords and sorcery role-playing game, which comes with the Aurora toolset, allowing players to create their own dungeons to venture through with friends or online. These dungeons can include ancient tombs, castles and fortresses, and hundreds of monsters are available to populate these environments with.

These games are typically for multiple players. "Dungeons Lords" is designed for two to four players and is a complex title which is suggested for veteran gamers. Each player attempts to build the best dungeon by purchasing traps and monsters with which to defeat the adventurers who come to raid her lair. In "Dungeon Builder: the Card Game," players put together dungeons using rows of cards which represent traps and creatures. After the first few rounds of the game, adventurers, represented by their own cards, enter each dungeon; the game's players can then influence events to try and help or destroy their rivals.

Role-playing games are played using only a pen and paper and the imagination. The games depict the adventures of heroes out to fight evil and find treasure in a fantasy world, with dice used to determine the outcome of battles. One player runs these games; he is called the Dungeon Maste. This individual can create any dungeon he sees fit using the rules of the game. An example of these games is "Dungeons and Dragons," a world-famous game released in 1975, which in 2011, is in its fourth edition.