The characters are monks, each inspired by a different element, and their element is reflected in their attacks, stats, and special ability. Every special ability has a cooldown, with examples including a dash, slowing enemies, and other unique effects. At the beginning, only one monk is available, but the rest unlock naturally as you play and win rounds. Some require a little extra effort, and the requirements are revealed when you hover over the locked monk. In the end, your choice of character is more about personal preference than power because success depends much more on your skill than on who you pick.
Each round is wave based. Your goal is to move the monk along the bottom of the screen and eliminate every enemy before the wave ends, or simply survive until the timer reaches zero. Defeating enemies is always the better option because every kill rewards you with coins, although surviving a wave without clearing it still earns a smaller payout.
Enemies bounce around the arena and don’t target you, so observing their movement patterns is important. Since your monk attacks depending on its weapon, you need to position yourself accordingly. Some shoot straight ahead, some throw a boomerang, and some have a rotating sword around them that only lets you kill an enemy when it comes close. If you prefer, you can enable auto fire. Some enemies are defeated with a single hit, while others split into smaller enemies, gain shields, heal themselves, or have other unique behaviors. Naturally, how quickly you defeat them depends on your damage and their health. Once a wave is over, you enter the shop.
The shop presents three random upgrades that can be purchased with coins. You can buy as many as you can afford, and if you have extra coins or dislike the current selection, you can reroll for a new set of offers, but this can be costly. Most perks come with both an advantage and a drawback, although a few are purely beneficial. For example, you might increase your dodge chance at the cost of some defense, or gain a chance to inflict fire damage or ricochet your attacks. The same perk can appear multiple times at higher levels. While stronger versions provide bigger bonuses, they also become more expensive.
A full round lasts around 15 waves. Most waves are followed by a shop, but some are marked differently and come with additional rewards. The first reward is an upgrade or replacement for your special ability. As with the shop, you are offered three random choices and still need to spend coins to unlock one. You cannot reroll these offers, but you are free to skip them if you cannot afford them or simply do not like the options.
That is not the only reward, though. You also get to choose one blessing from another random set of three. These blessings are always positive, so there is no reason to skip them. They provide significant boosts to stats such as critical chance, health regeneration, and more. After collecting your rewards, you end with a visit to the shop.
Your first run should be fairly manageable, ending with a boss fight. Whether you win or lose, you will likely unlock several new features, including additional monks and new perks that can appear in future shops. Every unlockable can be viewed in the Challenges menu, where you can also see the requirements and your current progress. Some unlocks take a bit more dedication because they require you to deal damage with specific perks or weapons, take damage, heal yourself, and complete other objectives. If you manage to complete a round, you will also unlock the next difficulty level, each with its own unique modifiers.
