Slay the Spire is one of those rare gems that I simply cannot put down. While far from terrible it’s a mediocre blemish in an otherwise fantastically polished game. Simplistic in its approach some of the game’s enemies come off a little uninspired. If there’s one area where the game does stumble a little, it’s in the visual design. Of course, it’s the touch controls that are the real winner here making the entire process even more fluid for the player. Within minutes I was able to flick between cards, attack enemies and generally fly through battles at pace. The game feels tailor-made for Switch with the traditional control scheme proving a slick and effective way of playing. Combine all this with the fact the spire itself is randomly generated and you have the perfect recipe for a game you could – and I already have – sink hours upon hours into. The cast of enemies too is big enough while the cards themselves offer a whole host of ways to take on the enemy. Outside the three character types that you can select – Ironclad, Silent and Defect, each of whom have their own selection of cards to master – you’ll also have the chance to pick up aforementioned relics that will often aid you in a range of subtle and immediately noticeable ways. In fact the options you have at your disposal keep the combat feeling fresh and interesting. It wasn’t until reaching some of the game’s more heavily armored enemies that I started to realize this wasn’t necessarily the case and changed my approach to only picking up cards that involved poison – perfect for accumulating massive damage that ignores any armour the enemy may have. Early playthroughs, for example, I focused on accumulating as many cards for my deck as possible thinking this was the best way to gain power. What really stood out when playing Slay the Spire is not only how much the game would continue to surprise but also how often I would change up my own strategy.

In fact, the game does a great job of displaying its large amounts of information on both you and your opponents without it ever feeling overwhelming. So for example, if you see none of the enemies plan to attack during their next turn then that might be a good time to focus purely on sheer force rather than defending. Do you spend more using fewer attacks that will also inflict a negative status like poison or do you spread your energy out on smaller more focused strikes that deal more damage up front?įortunately, the game telegraphs what the enemies will do on their next turn throughout battle making it less a game about guessing what might be the best move for you and more about adapting using the information given. Playing these cards will use up energy points – of which you start off with three per turn – forcing you to really think about what best to play especially since different cards have different energy values. Every turn you’ll draw five cards from your customized deck (by default unless other perks come into play) each of which can perform an action be it an offensive, defensive or a skill-based one. The real meat of the game though is in the monster battles, the action unfolding through turn-based card attacks. Like most roguelikes, if at any point you should lose all your health then its game over and back to the beginning for you. All of this culminates in a tough boss battle that will truly put your card battling skills to the test. Split into three separate maps, you’ll gradually battle your way through each, navigating their branching paths whilst every stop along the way taking part in some sort of location-based activity. Every attempted run will see you slowly building your deck of cards with fresh additions as you climb up a randomly generated spire filled with enemies, treasures and unpredictable situations aplenty. Slay the Spire is a turn-based card game with a roguelike twist. Sure I might recognize the eerie worlds I’m exploring or the nasty enemies trying so desperately to cut my journey short but it’s the evolving combat and unpredictable twists and turns that mean no two attempts at taking on the towering spire will ever be the same. There’s something special about Slay the Spire where even my fiftieth playthrough feels just as fresh, tense and exciting as the very first.

Slay the spire switch review