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Slay the Spire, a roguelike deck-builder from Mega Crit Games that released earlier this year is one of our absolutely favourite games. It's also getting even better and a beta is now up.

While the gameplay in Slay the Spire is ridiculously engrossing, the release did come with one issue on Linux. Not a major problem but Fullscreen Mode just didn't work for me, plenty of others had the issue too and a quick Steam forum search shows a number of posts on it. You would just get a big game window, instead of glorious Fullscreen gaming. For some it was worse, with a mouse cursor locked to the window even when ALT+TAB and more.

That's about to change, with a new opt-in Beta available on Steam. Mega Crit Games have updated the build of LibGDX they use from 1.9.2 to 1.9.9 which brings with it "multi-monitor support, DPI scaling fixes, improved performance, updated controller support, and allows screenshake to perform correctly in 16:10 aspect ratios".

Testing it out myself, Fullscreen mode now works exactly as expected. Making the experience just that bit more satisfying. Borderless Fullscreen (at least for me), still has an issue on KDE where it doesn't cover the panel but not such a big issue now at least one of the modes works as expected. You can try it out yourself too, just opt into the LibGDX Beta branch on Steam, do so by right clicking on the game -> Properties -> Beta tab and select it from the drop-down.

Good news for another reason, it means anyone using Steam Link with Linux as the host to play it on their phone, tablet or anything else should also now get a much nicer experience since it will actually take up the whole screen. This is going to be terrible for my free time…

That's not all though, Slay the Spire is getting a fourth character. This will drop in the form of another Beta, which will go live on September 9th. I will be taking a look at the new character when it's up!

Find the full details of the Beta and upcoming new character here.

You can pick up Slay the Spire on Humble Store, GOG and Steam.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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12 comments
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bidinou Aug 30, 2019
I have a controller issue with this game, the "RB" (or RT I don't remember) used to save & quit the game doesn't work, and apparently I'm not the only one. Any idea ? Using an XBox gamepad (works in other games). (Steam version)

Maybe the new beta does fix it !


Last edited by bidinou on 30 August 2019 at 10:23 am UTC
Liam Dawe Aug 30, 2019
Quoting: bidinouI have a controller issue with this game, the "RB" (or RT I don't remember) used to save & quit the game doesn't work, and apparently I'm not the only one. Any idea ? Using an XBox gamepad (works in other games). (Steam version)

Maybe the new beta does fix it !
With the Steam Controller on the beta it's still a little funky, can't scroll the items on the main menu for example. However, right trigger to quite and save seems to work fine.
Rooster Aug 30, 2019
So I played this game once, beat it on my first playthrough and it was.. good, but not good enough that it would make me want to do a second playthrough with different character.

Do you think I'm missing out? Does the second character (the one you unlock after first time beating it) make it better? I know he makes it harder and you have to go for a different deck, but that alone doesn't sound so tempting to me.
BTRE Aug 30, 2019
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Quoting: RoosterSo I played this game once, beat it on my first playthrough and it was.. good, but not good enough that it would make me want to do a second playthrough with different character.

Do you think I'm missing out? Does the second character (the one you unlock after first time beating it) make it better? I know he makes it harder and you have to go for a different deck, but that alone doesn't sound so tempting to me.

I think so, yes. You can't really beat the game with a single character anyhow. The actual ending requires beating it with all three characters and a final section. The different characters aren't harder or easier, just different. Each have several play styles, especially as you unlock more cards and relics. Half of the fun for me is having different strategies with different types of cards and relics. Obviously your mileage may vary but I think that it's the sort of game that becomes more entertaining the more you become familiar with the various mechanics and possibilities.
rkfg Aug 30, 2019
TIL Slay the Spire is written in Java. Mind=blown. I genuinely believed it's Unity because Java games usually don't look as good and/or work as smooth!

Great that they still update it, the game is a lot of fun and is very replayable because of many different items and cards that affect the gameplay. My best playthrough was using the green hero and a lot of poison cards. Poison is seriously overpowered because it gets through any armor and shields and hits the health bar directly and continuously. Some people might be annoyed by randomness of the cards and relics but that's part of the fun. If you want to carefully build your decks and pick cards by yourself try SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech, also a deckbuilder/card-brawler but with a story, smaller decks and almost no randomness.


Last edited by rkfg on 30 August 2019 at 12:28 pm UTC
Samsai Aug 30, 2019
Quoting: RoosterSo I played this game once, beat it on my first playthrough and it was.. good, but not good enough that it would make me want to do a second playthrough with different character.

Do you think I'm missing out? Does the second character (the one you unlock after first time beating it) make it better? I know he makes it harder and you have to go for a different deck, but that alone doesn't sound so tempting to me.
A large part of the fun for me was specifically going through the game on various characters and decks and seeing what happens. The best part was coming up with a themed deck that could combo really well, even if it was only barely practical.

Also, IMO Ironclad is a fairly mediocre character and many of the cards seem kinda boring to me. The first and second characters have many cards that aren't necessarily strong alone but combo really nicely with each other and allow for all sorts of weird and fun builds.
Liam Dawe Aug 30, 2019
To add to what others are saying, it's all about how you play. For me, it's the fun of building up Relics and unleashing some ridiculous combinations.

Also, the modding support is awesome. Some pretty game-changing stuff to be found and extra characters to add in too.
Kercus Aug 30, 2019
I'll try it in 1 minute. Fixing the fullscreen mode is the most important thing this game really needs.

I have never played this game with the steam controller, I think I tried it once when it came out it didn't work well and I forgot it, I will try it again.



Quoting: RoosterSo I played this game once, beat it on my first playthrough and it was.. good, but not good enough that it would make me want to do a second playthrough with different character.

Do you think I'm missing out? Does the second character (the one you unlock after first time beating it) make it better? I know he makes it harder and you have to go for a different deck, but that alone doesn't sound so tempting to me.

the first time I played it didn't seem so good either.
I've been playing for 210 hours now, most of them with the third character.
Defect for the Win!
I would recommend that you at least try the Defect.
Rooster Aug 30, 2019
Thanks for the inputs, I'll give it another try.
morbius Aug 30, 2019
Problems that I've run into have been screen flickering and trigger buttons on my joypad not working. Oh, and the artefact that was supposed to return me to life with 50% health didn't activate during the last boss fight, that was annoying.

I too wasn't overly impressed with the game in the beginning, but it has a way of getting you addicted. Which is perfectly ok, since it doesn't do micro-transactions and other nefarious stuff.


Last edited by morbius on 30 August 2019 at 5:28 pm UTC
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