I don't know where the time went with this one. It started out just trying out a game that combined cards and roguelike mechanics, 2 genres I didn't have much experience in. I played for a bit on Steam, then dropped it. Eventually, I found some Youtube content on it, picked it up on the Switch to play on the couch...and then 500+ hours later I got every achievement and climbed to A20 with each character. Once I had climbed every Ascension and "beaten" the game...I made a new file and did it all over again, for FUN!

This game is the ultimate pick up and play game. The sheer variety in game play between characters, Ascension levels, and the randomness of rewards, make it almost infinitely replayable even after almost 1000 hours across multiple systems. There is nothing quite like learning to recognize what you need to make a deck pop-off, and learning how to maximize your chances of doing that. You can min-max by spending hours trying to craft the best play to get through a given fight...or just unga bunga your way through a quick 45 minute run, all while still engaging the same parts of your brain that likes to problem solve.

For me, this is the game that all roguelikes, deckbuilders, and even puzzle games will be compared to, because the satisfaction of crafting a winning strategy in this game is like a drug. I cannot recommend this game enough, especially on a handheld device like a Switch or a Steam Deck.

Steam Version Only: Special mention to the officially supported Downfall mod, an excellent expansion to the game endorsed by the original devs that adds so much high-quality content, that the game might literally be playable forever.