On the surface, this is a fairly straightforward dungeon-crawler. Each time you start a run, you're dropped into a dungeon with a randomly generated layout. The dungeon is made up of rooms filled with enemies, and you must clear each one before you can move to the next room. The goal is the boss room where you can reach the next floor. Exits are always visible, and you can teleport between any rooms you've already cleared.
Your basic abilities include swinging your sword and dashing. The dash allows you to pass through projectiles and enemies, making it a reliable tool for dodging. It has only a short cooldown, so it can be used frequently. Also, attacking right after a dash has a chance to deal critical damage.
The game’s unique part is the card mechanic. Every run begins with the same pack of basic cards, which are drawn randomly from your deck and shown at the bottom of the screen. You can play them as long as you have enough energy, and each card displays its energy cost with orbs. You can hold up to six energy orbs at a time, and they are replenished by picking them up from defeated enemies.
Cards come in different types. Ability cards activate instantly and perform actions like throwing a dagger or unleashing an area attack. Modifier cards enhance the next ability card you play. For example, a ricochet modifier will make your next dagger bounce off walls. These modifiers can be stacked, but while they're stacked, they stay out of the draw pile until used.
Persistent cards, on the other hand, can only be used a limited number of times per run. They cost more energy, and once their uses are exhausted, they are removed from your deck entirely. The upside is that each time you use a persistent card, you gain a permanent stat boost, such as improved movement speed, attack power, or knockback.
Even though enemies don’t drop loot and destructible barrels are empty, there’s still a reason to clear rooms. Occasionally, clearing a room spawns a chest containing three random rewards. You can choose only one. These rewards might include new cards, healing, or enchantments. Enchantments offer beneficial effects, sometimes with a trade-off, like increased damage but lower maximum health.
Some rooms contain special encounters. A glowing mage may appear and must be defeated quickly before it vanishes. Taking it down gives you the same reward choices as a chest. Other rooms may include a fire pit, which allows you to destroy an unwanted card from your deck, increasing the odds of drawing better ones.
You might also find a trader who offers card swaps. The trader gives you three random cards of the same type as the one you trade, but you can only swap cards of the same category. One small issue to note is that if you teleport behind the trader’s counter and run out of energy, you will end up stuck and have to abandon the run.
Boss battles provide the best rewards. Bosses are chosen at random and aren't too difficult once you learn their limited set of attack patterns. Defeating a boss always grants you a persistent card and unlocks a new card that may appear in future runs. The card pool is relatively small, which fits the game's compact design, but you can browse all unlocked cards from the main menu. There are no permanent upgrades between runs, so your success depends entirely on your skill.
There are achievements to reward players, but at least one of them is not working (using an ability with 10 stacked modifiers).
