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Slay the Spire Reviews: What Critics Say and Whether It’s Worth Playing

Critics praise Slay the Spire’s strategic deckbuilding and replayability. Here’s what the PC review snapshot says, what to expect from failed runs, and where Mega Crit lists the game.
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Slay the Spire is a strong recommendation if you enjoy tactical card play, adapting to changing options, and learning from failed attempts. The PC critic snapshot on Metacritic is notably positive: an 89 Metascore, classified as “Generally Favorable.” That is a critic score for the PC listing—not a user rating or a score covering every platform.

What do reviews say about Slay the Spire?

Critics praise the game’s strategic depth, replayability, experimentation, and the way choices can make each attempt feel different. Metacritic’s PC page, accessed October 8, 2026, displayed an 89 Metascore and a “Generally Favorable” classification. Its aggregate showed 24 positive reviews, no mixed reviews, and no negative reviews. The page also listed 28 critic review entries; that listing count is distinct from the 24-review aggregate displayed alongside the score. See Metacritic’s PC critic page.

Individual outlets have described the appeal in similarly enthusiastic terms. Screen Rant called it “the must-play” among deck-builders in a January 2019 review; App Trigger highlighted its changing deck-building mechanics and complex challenges. Worth Playing summed up the learning curve as “simple to learn and difficult to master.” These are excerpts reproduced on Metacritic, not a substitute for reading each full review.

GameSpot’s listing identifies a 9/10 review by Chris Pereira titled “Slay The Spire Review – Trend Setter.” The listing establishes the score and title, but does not provide enough review text to attribute a more specific argument to Pereira. View GameSpot’s review listing.

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What kind of game is it, and why does the loop work?

Slay the Spire is a single-player deckbuilder that combines card play with roguelike runs. You build and adjust a deck as you progress through procedurally generated levels, trying to make tactical decisions with the options available rather than following one fixed route or build. The appeal is the interplay between planning and adaptation: a promising card, item, or encounter can change which strategy makes sense.

Mega Crit’s official factsheet describes four core characters with distinct card sets, more than 300 implemented cards, over 50 unique combat encounters, and more than 100 different items. These are developer-published feature counts. The game also includes unlockables and procedurally generated levels. Read Mega Crit’s factsheet.

Rank #2
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Slay The Spire - Xbox One
  • Dynamic Deck Building: Choose your cards wisely! Discover hundreds of cards to add to your deck with each attempt at climbing the Spire
  • An Ever-changing Spire: Whenever you embark on a journey up the Spire, the layout differs each time. Choose a risky or safe path, face different enemies, choose different cards, discover different relics, and even fight different bosses!
  • Powerful Relics to Discover: Powerful items known as relics can be found throughout the Spire
  • The effects of these relics can greatly enhance your deck through powerful interactions. But beware, obtaining a relic may cost you more than just gold

That variety supports experimentation and discovery, but it does not mean every run will be smooth or every combination will work. Defeat sends you back to begin another run. For players who enjoy testing a new approach after a loss, the reset is part of the challenge; for anyone who strongly dislikes repetition or losing progress, it is a meaningful caveat.

Is Slay the Spire hard to learn?

It is approachable to begin, but strategic mastery takes longer. The basic idea—play cards to manage combat and improve a deck over a run—is easy to grasp. The harder decisions are about how to shape a deck, respond to what a run offers, and judge risk when the outcome is uncertain. The repeated-run structure gives you room to learn through attempts, while also asking you to accept resets when a run ends.

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Rank #3
Slay The Spire (PS4)
  • Dynamic deck building: choose your cards wisely! Discover hundreds of cards to add to your deck with each attempt at climbing the Spire. Select cards that work together to efficiently dispatch foes and reach the top.
  • an ever-changing Spire: whenever you embark on a journey up the Spire, the layout differs each time. Choose a Risky or safe path, face different enemies, choose different cards, discover different relics, and even fight different bosses!
  • powerful relics to discover: powerful items known as relics can be found throughout the Spire. The effects of these relics can greatly enhance your deck through powerful interactions. But beware, obtaining a relic may cost you more than just Gold…
  • three core characters that each have their own unique set of cards.
  • 250+ fully implemented cards.150+ different items to be found.50+ unique combat encounters.50+ mysterious events that can help or harm you.Daily Climbs allow you to compare yourself with every other player in the world.Custom mode that allows mixing and matching various crazy run modifiers

The game is a better fit if you like weighing trade-offs and adapting a plan than if you want a linear campaign where progress is mainly a matter of moving steadily forward. Reviews’ recurring praise for depth and replayability reflects that distinctive loop, not a promise that every player will enjoy starting over.

What platforms is Slay the Spire on?

Mega Crit’s current FAQ lists the original Slay the Spire for Windows, Mac, and Linux through Steam, GOG, and the Microsoft Store; Nintendo Switch; Xbox and Xbox Game Pass; PlayStation; Android; and iOS and Apple Arcade. The FAQ says Balor publishes the console and mobile ports and directs support requests for those ports to Balor. Availability can depend on the storefront and region, so check the relevant store for the current listing. Check Mega Crit’s FAQ.

Choose based on the devices you already use, whether you prefer a portable system, and which controls feel comfortable to you. The available official listings establish platform availability, but do not establish differences in performance, controls, content parity, save synchronization, or price between versions.

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Is there a physical version?

Mega Crit lists a Slay the Spire Board Game by Contention Games. It is a separate tabletop adaptation—not a physical copy of the digital video game. Choose it if you specifically want a tabletop product; the digital game is the single-player deckbuilding experience reviewed above. Mega Crit’s merchandise page confirms the board game listing but does not, by itself, establish current retail stock or detailed rules and player-count information. See Mega Crit’s merchandise page.

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Quick Recap

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Slay The Spire (PS4)
Slay The Spire (PS4)
three core characters that each have their own unique set of cards.
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Who should play Slay the Spire?

  • Try it if: you like card-based tactics, meaningful choices, experimenting with builds, and replaying a challenge with a new plan.
  • Think twice if: you dislike run-based games, repeated attempts, or losing a run and returning to the beginning.
  • For a physical tabletop product: look for the separately listed board-game adaptation, and check a retailer for current availability.

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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