TL;DR
Get the latest gadgets delivered free with Prime
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
- Member-only deals all year
Retro Game Coders’ 11th installment adds five levels to its Commodore 64 BASIC dungeon crawler, with players collecting every chalice on a level before using stairs to continue. Characters retain their equipment and stats between levels and gain hit points and an attribute point, while completing level five ends the game in victory.
Retro Game Coders has added five generated levels, locked progression stairs and character upgrades to its Commodore 64 BASIC dungeon crawler in Part 11 of the tutorial series. Players must collect every chalice on each level before descending, with the character’s surviving hit points, stats, gold, keys and magic carried into the next map.
The new version uses the map generator introduced in Part 10 to build each level, while adding rules for placing objects and stairs. The number of chalices depends on the level: one on levels 1 and 2, two on levels 3 and 4, and three on level 5. Each chalice remains worth 10 gold. Once all placed chalices have been collected, the game message directs the player to find the stairs.
The stairs appear in a randomly selected corner room, while the player begins in the centre room. They cannot be used while chalices remain: trying to descend returns the player with a “CHALICES LEFT” message and the count. The creator says the existing map rules make every room reachable. At level five, using the stairs wins the game; the end screen reports the level reached and gold acquired.
Characters now persist across level generation instead of being re-created with every map. Each new level adds hit points equal to half the character’s constitution, rounded down, and raises one other attribute by one point: strength on even-numbered levels and dexterity on odd-numbered ones. The tutorial says this upgrade pattern is an example for now, with its usefulness left for a later polishing stage.
How Progress Changes the Game
The update changes the project from a single-map game into a short dungeon run with a defined sequence of goals. Collecting the chalices, finding stairs and retaining a character’s resources gives players a reason to continue beyond completing one map, while the escalating chalice count adds a simple increase in the work required on later levels.
For readers following the coding series, the change also shows a practical distinction between starting a new game and building a new level. Player initialization runs once, while level construction runs again after descent. That separation lets the map change without erasing character progress, and gives the tutorial a concrete way to demonstrate state carried between generated maps.
Products Worth Considering
Bose SoundLink Flex Bluetooth Speaker (2nd Gen), Waterproof, Dustproof, USB‑C, Up to 12 hr Battery, Black
DJI Osmo Mobile 8 Gimbal with Mic Mini Transmitter, Infinity Black
Logitech MX Mechanical Wireless Illuminated Keyboard, Tactile Quiet, Graphite
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
From One Map to Five
In the preceding installment, the crawler had a playable map and ended when the player found a chalice. Starting again created a new character and map, so there was no continuing character progression. Part 11 builds on that map generator rather than introducing a new one, adding level-specific placement rules and a stairway exit.
The source describes the project as editable through the Online Retro IDE, which it says requires no downloads or configuration and is free to use. The latest installment is a programming tutorial update, not a report of a commercial game release or a broader Commodore 64 platform announcement.
“Your character now persists while they are still alive, keeping your hit points, stats, gold, keys and magic.”
— Retro Game Coders, Part 11
Open Questions on Level Design
The source does not give a publication date or report independent testing of the new version. It also does not describe enemy difficulty changes between levels, despite identifying difficulty ramping as a goal for the project. The stated progression increases the number of chalices at set points, but the source does not specify other level-by-level changes to threats or map difficulty.
There is also a stated placement limitation: the routine that places a chalice stops after 200 failed attempts to find empty floor. A chalice may therefore fail to appear on a crowded map. The code counts only chalices successfully placed, allowing the level to remain completable, but the source does not report how often this situation occurs.
Further Balancing and Development
The article frames the current stat rewards as a demonstration and says their practical benefit can be considered during a later polishing phase. It does not provide a date or a confirmed plan for the next installment. For now, the documented endpoint is a win after descending from the fifth level, with the game showing the player’s gold total and level reached.
Key Questions
What changed in Part 11 of the C64 dungeon crawler?
The update adds five levels, chalice collection, stairs between levels and character upgrades. It also separates one-time character setup from the process that builds each map.
How many chalices must players collect?
The game calls for one chalice on levels 1 and 2, two on levels 3 and 4, and three on level 5. Players must collect all chalices placed on a level before using its stairs.
What carries over when the player descends?
While the character is alive, hit points, stats, gold, keys and magic persist as the next level is built. The character also receives a hit-point increase and a strength or dexterity point.
What happens after the fifth level?
Using the stairs on level five ends the game in victory. The end panel shows the gold total and the level reached.
Source: retrogamecoders.com
