The goal is to work through several levels of a spire, each level having a number of potential encounters distributed in a branching structure with a boss character at the end of the level. At the start of a playthrough the player selects one of four predetermined characters, which sets a starting amount of health, gold, a starting relic that provides a unique ability for that character, and an initial deck of cards with basic attack and defense cards as well what potential color-coded cards tailored to that character they will see through the run.

Slay the Spire is a combination of roguelike-inspired progression and the gameplay of a deck-building card game. It was nominated for several accolades in 2019, and is considered the game that launched a number of roguelike deck-building games. Slay the Spire has been very well received. Combat takes place through a collectible card game-based system, with the player gaining new cards as rewards from combat and other means, requiring the player to use strategies of deck-building games to construct an effective deck to complete the climb.

In Slay the Spire, the player, through one of four characters, attempts to ascend a spire of multiple floors, created through procedural generation, battling through enemies and bosses. An iOS version was released in June 2020, with an Android version released in February 2021. It was released for PlayStation 4 in May 2019, for Nintendo Switch in June 2019 and for Xbox One in August 2019. The game was first released in early access for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux in late 2017, with an official release in January 2019. Slay the Spire is a roguelike deck-building video game developed by American studio Mega Crit and published by Humble Bundle.

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