Nethack
There is an unofficial saying about Nethack: "the Dev Team thinks of everything". It is so true. Nethack is a randomly-generated RPG dungeon crawler. it is incredibly in-depth, despite the simple graphics may lead you to believe. It is based on Hack, which itself is based on Rogue, the mother of all roguelikes (obviously).
For example, a neat thing you can do in Nethack is to polymorph into a Cockatrice, lay some eggs if your character is a female, put on gloves, grab the eggs and throw them at someone to turn them to stone. Then SMASH the statue :P
There are several classes and races. I like to play a lawful human samurai. They start off with some pretty fine weapons and armors, including two swords, a bow, and enchanted armor. If they get a longsword (which are quite common), become level five, and dip it in a fountain, they can recieve excalibur, which is an awesome artifact sword.
I never even got close to beating this game, although to be fair there are many people who played since its creation in the 1980's and never beat it either!
For example, a neat thing you can do in Nethack is to polymorph into a Cockatrice, lay some eggs if your character is a female, put on gloves, grab the eggs and throw them at someone to turn them to stone. Then SMASH the statue :P
There are several classes and races. I like to play a lawful human samurai. They start off with some pretty fine weapons and armors, including two swords, a bow, and enchanted armor. If they get a longsword (which are quite common), become level five, and dip it in a fountain, they can recieve excalibur, which is an awesome artifact sword.
I never even got close to beating this game, although to be fair there are many people who played since its creation in the 1980's and never beat it either!
Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup
Dungeon Crawl is a really interesting game. It has many, many species to choose from for your character, and the species of your character is much more important than the class, unlike most games. For example, the Naga race can use its tale to squeeze the life out of its enemies, as well as spit poison. Trolls have "built-in" weapons in the form of claws. Vampires can turn into bats and create blood potions. You can also choose from a god early on in the dungeons.