Triangle Wizard, much like any rogue-like game, has an entirely throwaway story. In this case, you are a magic-user plumbing the depths of Castle Everdoom in your search for treasure and adventure. You can not be anybody except a magic-user, so those looking for big buff manly men may be disappointed. Where the game really shines, though, is not in the story, but in the concept and execution. We're amazed nobody has taken things quite this far! So just ignore the story you are given and craft your own through the engrossing gameplay.

The basis of Triangle Wizard revolves around your character having a set repertoire of spells. When you start the game, you have a bunch of spells relating to your class, and as you progress through the dungeon, you find (or purchase) new spells and enhancements to current known spells. In a fashion, the spells are your inventory, so you must pay very close attention to them. Each spell, beyond the name, hotkey, and description, has four stats that can be increased through pick-ups (except spell circle, which is constant). These are:

• Circle and Spell Level: The circle that the spell belongs to. The higher the circle, the more powerful the spell. For example, Magic Missile is a First Circle spell, so is relatively weak. However, Tempest is a Fourth Circle spell and is incredibly strong. Higher circle spells have longer timeout times and default regeneration on average, but make up for it with devastating power. Spell level is an indication of the power of the spell compared to lower levels. Understandably, a level 5 Chain Lightning is much more damaging than a level 1 Chain Lightning. Higher level spells also normally have shorter timeout times compared to lower levels.
  
• Incantation Number and Storage: The amount of casts you have of a particular spell. For example, if you pick up something that increases your Magic Missile count by 5, then you may store 5 more Magic Missile casts. You generally want to have a high storage so that you can cast spells without worrying about them not regenerating in time. In the HUD, the current amount of incantations you have is displayed next to the equipped spell, and you can view your maximum in the spellbook screen,
  
• Casting Timeout: The amount of delay you have until you can cast any spell, whether it is the same one or a different one. All spells share the same timer, so you will want to manage it effectively. This timer is represented by the blue bar on your screen. More powerful spells generally have much higher timers, although high spell levels can alleviate this.
• Incantation Regeneration: The rate at which you gain new incantations in a particular spell. Funnily enough, if this value is zero, the spell is considered "Empowered", raising its effective casting level dramatically. The problem with all this, though, is that you now have a limited amount of this empowered spell to cast. Gaining regeneration automatically removes empowerment. Regeneration is per second, and is denoted by the white bar alongside the blue bar on your HUD.

The spells are not the entirety of the game, however. The monsters you fight are just as important as the spells you cast. Each monster is unique, and one Orc may have different resistances than his buddy, even though they are a part of the same group. Along with this are rare and unique monsters. These are designated by a gold glow, and normally much tougher than a regular monster, and carry much more gold and guard important areas.

The full gameplay experience of Triangle Wizard is very reminiscient of Diablo. You run around and kill enemies in real time while you loot all the things you can that are nearby. The action is frantic and pulse-pounding, with enemies chasing you across maps while your fireballs explode nearby. Any fan of retro arena-shooters is bound to find some enjoyment in Triangle Wizard, especially since the spell system gives it an added complexity that games like, say, Geometry Wars, lack. There is also the standard rogue-like design elements of perma-death (optional!) and random maps (not optional).

The graphics are highly-stylized vector graphics with letters representing the different enemies you can encounter. The letters are rather ornate, though, and you can instantly recognize an enemy by their letter. The effects, especially explosions and fire, are suitably impressive, and the overall effect is one of slick retro-stylized action. The one major complaint with graphics is that they tend to get overly cluttered, and in the heat of the moment, it can be hard to tell just what exactly is going on. There is no sound, unfortunately, but a suitable soundtrack is sure to be had be its players!

There's a lot to Triangle Wizards that just can't be covered, but rather discovered. Things like the procedural generation of power-ups, the stores where spells can be purchased, shrines that give benificial or harmful effects (often both), and the unique dungeon levels are elements that you really need to encounter to appreciate. This game, despite its limited theoretical scope, sits there with the best of the hack-'n-slash and rogue-like genres with its innovation of mechanics and stunning graphics. You can download Triangle Wizard from the official website. Sorry Mac and Linux folks, it's Windows only! You'll have to run an emulator (such as Wine).

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