In some version of the myth they actually put an exit back to the living world up there. Sisyphus in life tried to cheat death (even succeeded for a bit) which is part of why he wound up in Tartarus. He could stop pushing the rock any time he wanted, but it would mean giving up on escape.
This is a pretty good detail. Makes the story a lot more interesting, and deep.
A roguelite with metaprogression?
I’m in
There actually is a Sisyphus game that has this. You push a boulder up a hill filled with obstacles and can unlock new skins for the boulder.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2904890/The_Game_of_Sisyphus/
number
number go up
The secret trick is that each sticker makes it slightly bigger and heavier.
Gamer Sisyphus keeps grinding without being tempted to pay $20 for a ligher boulder with RGB.
The thing is, though that there’s no successful pushes, so the numbers stays at zero, taunting him more
i get an infinite supply of stickers at work. they lose their luster in about a minute
Not if you work hard for each
Dude needs 11 pieces of flair on his rock.
It’s fun to let the rock roll down each time a little different!