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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesPermadeath can mean losing one character, restarting a run, or having a save erased after a particular failure. These nine games show why the label does not describe one universal rule: some let a campaign continue after a character dies, while others make a reset part of the run or reserve the harshest penalty for an optional mode.
What permadeath means in these games
Before choosing a game, check what the death actually takes away. A lost squad member can be replaced; a failed run can send you back to its beginning while leaving unlocks intact; and a hardcore rule can erase a save. Those are materially different stakes, not interchangeable versions of the same mechanic.
| Game | What death or failure removes | Scope and carryover | Play style |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darkest Dungeon | A hero | Character permadeath; the roster can be replenished and the campaign can continue. | Turn-based RPG and roster management |
| Rogue Legacy | The current character | A successor inherits the adventure, with altered traits. | Action platforming |
| Jupiter Hell | The run | Permadeath is part of its stated game design. | Turn-based, grid-based tactics |
| Spelunky 2 | The current run | Death sends the player back to the beginning; knowledge and journal discoveries can carry between attempts. | Platforming and exploration |
| Into the Breach | The current timeline/run | A reset returns to the first day; objectives can unlock travelers, units, and upgrades. | Turn-based tactical strategy |
| Baldur’s Gate 3 | The save after a full party wipe | Save deletion is the Honour Mode consequence, not the default rule for every playthrough. | Turn-based party RPG |
| XCOM: Enemy Unknown | Failure can mean starting over largely from scratch | A 2018 American Journal of Play article gives this as an example of permadeath; it does not specify the exact roster or campaign rules. | Tactical strategy |
| FTL: Faster Than Light | not stated | not stated | not stated |
| The Binding of Isaac | not stated | not stated | not stated |
The first seven entries have game-specific support in the cited material described below. The available support for FTL: Faster Than Light and The Binding of Isaac is only a broad mention in a roguelike discussion, not a description of either game’s death rules. They are included to preserve the requested nine-title scope, but their exact mechanics are not established here.
When one character can die and the campaign continues
Darkest Dungeon
In Darkest Dungeon, heroes can die permanently, but a death does not automatically delete the whole campaign. The roster-management structure lets you recruit replacement heroes and continue. That makes the loss consequential without making every individual mistake a total restart. Red Hook Studios describes the game as a gothic roguelike, turn-based RPG, and Steam lists character permadeath; Den of Geek discusses replacing fallen heroes and carrying on.
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Rogue Legacy
Rogue Legacy ties death to succession: when a character dies, a successor takes up the adventure, and the heir can have altered traits. The 2018 American Journal of Play article uses the hereditary handoff to explain how a game can make death permanent for an individual while still giving the player another character to control. Its exact downstream campaign consequences are not specified in that discussion.
When a failed run sends you back
Spelunky 2
Spelunky 2 makes a run’s failure costly: GameSpot describes death as sending the player back to the beginning. That is a run-level reset, not necessarily a wipe of everything the player has learned. Journal discoveries and knowledge of the game can inform later attempts. GameSpot lists PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PS4, and PS5 as platforms; availability and edition details can vary by platform.
Jupiter Hell
Jupiter Hell explicitly describes itself as a turn-based, grid-based game built around permadeath, procedural levels, and tactical decisions. Its official description makes it a direct fit for players who want the possibility of losing a run to be part of the core challenge, rather than a penalty limited to an optional hardcore setting.
Into the Breach
In Into the Breach, losing units or power can trigger a time-travel reset to the first day. That resets the current attempt, but it does not mean every objective disappears: GameSpot notes that objectives can unlock travelers, units, and upgrades. This is a useful example of run-level permadeath paired with persistent progression.
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The 2018 American Journal of Play article includes XCOM: Enemy Unknown among games where death or failure can send the player back to start more or less from scratch. That supports its inclusion as an example of high-stakes failure, but does not establish the precise campaign, roster, or difficulty-setting rules. Treat the description as a broad characterization rather than a claim that every death erases the same progress.
FTL: Faster Than Light and The Binding of Isaac
Den of Geek’s broad discussion of roguelikes surfaces both titles, but the available material does not explain what a death removes in either game, whether any progression carries over, or whether a separate mode changes the consequence. A reader choosing either specifically for permadeath should check the relevant game edition and mode rules before assuming a run reset or save wipe.
When the save itself is at stake
Baldur’s Gate 3 Honour Mode
Baldur’s Gate 3 is not a save-deletion game in every mode. GameSpot describes Honour Mode as deleting the save after a full party wipe. That makes the rule both mode-specific and conditional: it is the full party’s defeat, not every character death, that carries the stated save consequence. Players who want a long campaign without that all-or-nothing risk should distinguish Honour Mode from the game’s other play options.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to choose the right kind of risk
- If you want a loss that does not end the campaign: Start with Darkest Dungeon, where a hero can be replaced, or Rogue Legacy, where a successor follows the dead character.
- If you want a reset but also some continuity: Consider Into the Breach, where objectives can unlock content across resets, or Spelunky 2, where knowledge and journal discoveries can inform future attempts.
- If you want the harshest stakes: Baldur’s Gate 3 Honour Mode is the clearly identified save-deletion option in this group, with the specific trigger being a full party wipe.
- If you want a tactical game centered on permadeath: Jupiter Hell explicitly frames its turn-based grid tactics around that rule.
- If you want to know precisely what carries forward: Check the particular game’s mode and edition. “Permadeath” by itself does not tell you whether unlocks, characters, upgrades, or a save survive.
There is no source-backed universal difficulty ranking for these games. How punishing a consequence feels depends on a player’s tolerance for restarting, attachment to a particular character, and willingness to accept a mode-specific save loss. As game designer Jim Rossignol is quoted in the 2018 American Journal of Play article, permadeath can make risk more thrilling because a player has something invested; the article attributes that quotation to Griffin (2014).
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