Slay the Spire adopts the core mechanics of "Roguelike and Cards," which flawlessly integrates both of their advantages while naturally removing each one's disadvantages. When combined with the innovative design of the map and intention system, the result is a game with playability.

Its map is the first thing that impresses us. The game now contains three large, randomly generated areas, each with a boss at the end. Players must initially select their birth point to enter the large globe. From there, they can proceed to the next grid by following the line that corresponds to their turn's prior position. On the large map, every time a player takes a turn, something will happen, such as encountering enemies, finding treasure, passing campfires, talking to merchants, discovering undiscovered events, etc.

It is important to note two things.

The first is how transparent the map is. Players can count, grid by grid, which and how many special events they will encounter from the moment they first enter this area, including how many elite monsters, how frequently they will have the chance to respond to the campfire, and how frequently they will have the chance to meet the merchant. Is it preferable to fight as many monsters as you can in order to acquire more coins, cards, and artifacts? Continually planning your route in accordance with the current situation becomes one of the necessary things to think about in order to pass the level, whether you want to avoid the battle and remain in the best shape possible to meet the boss, or whether you want to seek excitement and step into the arbitration of unknown events repeatedly.

Its randomness is the second factor. You never know what random occurrences, treasures, or monsters you'll run into in the game because to the map's randomness. This gives it a distinct roguelike feel. In actuality, the events are not haphazardly scattered around the same map at random. While the number of elite monsters typically changes by one-half on different routes, the number of treasure chests is always the same. More distinctions can be seen in the choice of common monsters, mysterious occurrences, and campfires.