Rogue-like games usually have many keyboard commands to remember. A new player might want to print a list, or at least have one open in another window. Some games use more generic commands to reduce the amount of memorization. Other games add all of the commands to a menu structure. Angband and Sil are examples of games with a built-in menu. Even those have different keys to remember. In Angband the main menu is accessed by pressing Enter, where in Sil it is accessed by pressing m.

This post is a plug for Rogue Class Linux. One thing that sets RCL apart is its key mapper. This maps USB gamepad controls to keyboard sequences. It is based on code taken from the GP2X port of Angband. In RCL, both the Angband and Sil main menu can be opened by pressing R+A on the gamepad. Save and quit is another common command, accessed by pressing R+Start. For the uncommon commands, there is the virtual keyboard, which can be accessed and dismissed by pressing L.

Having consistent core controls is a step in the right direction because it lowers the learning curve for trying a new rogue-like game. It also helps map a large number of commands to a small number of controls.