“Slay the Spire”, developed by MegaCrit and published by Humble Bundle, is one of the most successful roguelike games to date, despite being released in 2017. 

The two primary components of roguelikes are procedurally generated levels and the permanent death of a player character. “Slay the Spire” is a wonderful execution of these two components.

One of the primary aspects of “Slay the Spire” is its use of horizontal progression; progress that doesn’t make the player more powerful but instead provides the player with more options, which contrast many roguelikes that use meta progression; progress that makes the player stronger through upgrades, stat increases, skill trees and more. 

Horizontal progression is great because it allows the player to become familiar with the game’s mechanics before complex mechanics and interactions are introduced.

Most roguelike games tend to become repetitive and boring after little gameplay, despite the player not having completed the game. Horizontal progression combats this by consistently introducing new and exciting content.

“Slay the Spire” is often considered one of the best games in the roguelike genre. The influence of “Slay the Spire” can be seen in a multitude of games such as “Dicey Dungeon,” “Inscryption” and the upcoming game “Wildfrost” proving that it has set a standard for roguelikes and deck builders alike. 

The unique style, intuitive gameplay, creative mechanics and polished game design make “Slay the Spire” a must-play for anyone who enjoys roguelikes, strategy card games or deck-building games. “Slay the Spire” is an experience that cannot be achieved by any other game in quite the same way.