Into The Labyrinth

Genre: Top-Down 2D Action • Procedural Dungeon Escape 

Playtime: 3–5 minutes per run • Quick & replayable runs

Devloped for a class project, Into the Labyrinth is a compact, room-based, semi-procedural action game inspired by the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. You play as Theseus: learn basic combat in a short tutorial, then push through a  handcrafted dungeon room with randomized layouts, objects & spawns. Each door is locked, you must find and pull a randomly placed lever to unlock the exit and advance. Watch out for Orc variants on your way to the Minotaur...

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Key Features

• Room-Based Progression: Handcrafted room prefabs are reused and varied by randomly placed objects and enemies to keep each run fresh.
• Interactive Puzzle/Combat Loop: Find the lever to unlock the door, defeat enemies, and proceed upward toward the final chamber.
• Enemy Variety: Face three types of orcs, each spawn is randomized per room for dynamic encounters.
• Smart Minions: Lesser orcs utilize grid-based A* pathfinding to navigate room geometry and pursue the player "intelligently".
• Boss Encounter: The Minotaur also utilizes A* in parallel with a set of different attacks to dodge. Listen for a heart beat, you might be close...
• Animated, Atmospheric Props: Torche, pits, doors, levers & soon traps, are placed in probabilty for variety.
• Quick, Replayable Runs: Designed to fit a short-play assignment window while still rewarding learning and mastery.

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Gameplay & Mechanics

Core Loop

1. Enter a room.
2. Locate and pull the randomly placed lever.
3. Exit door unlocks,  approach & interact to open it, interact again to go through.
4. Fight lesser enemies, advance through randomized rooms.
5. Defeat the Minotaur & escape through the final exit.

Combat & AI

Combat is intentionally trivial, designed around DST: hit, dodge, and use room geometry to your advantage. Lesser orcs are designed to be engaging practice for the boss, they use A* grid pathfinding so they can route around walls and obstacles, flank the player, and punish poor movement. The Minotaur uses A* pathfinding paired with multiple attack types to create a boss encounter that rewards timing and spatial awareness.

Environment

Rooms include decorative and functional elements: animated torches and light sources, pits, crates,  barrels, vases etc. High walls and overlay tiles create depth, players & enemies can walk behind certain walls.

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Controls

• 'WASD'  - Movement in four cardinal directions
• 'Space'  - Attack
• 'E' - Interact (pull levers, open/enter doors)
• 'L-Click' - Button Prompt

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Art

• Dungeon Tiles - Free Top-Down Pixel Dungeon Level Game Assets by Free Game Assets (GUI, Sprite, Tilesets)
• Player Model - Free Swordsman 1–3 Level Pixel Top-Down Sprite Character - CraftPix.net
• Orc Variants - Free Top-Down Orc Game Character Pixel Art - CraftPix.net
• Minotaur Model - 2D Pixel Art Minotaur Sprites by Elthen's Pixel Art Shop
• End Game Sprites - Pixel Art Top Down - Basic by Cainos