Everyone talking about this update..... I’m still getting runs in like a mofo.... probably cuz this is the only platform I have to play it on, but still. I can’t help but be addicted to this game. It’s SO. GOOD. Warts and all. I’d definitely suggest buying it on any other platform if at all possible, but if mobile is all you have, I still feel it’s the best Deck Building Rogue-like there is. It’s so perfectly balanced, and I don’t know that any title has elicited the dopamine rush that occurs when you finally experience you first infinite synergy, or are so over powered as the defect that your lightning orbs are busting down 20+ damage a piece with full orb slots. I hope this update comes someday tho, cuz man does this game deserve the effort to have a solid port....
I hear you. StS is definitely my favourite game on mobile. Warts and all. I use the iOS zoom function sometimes for when I don’t want to squint at new card choices, but even without, the text size is juuuuust good enough. I’ll take the warts if it means having this great game in my pocket. What I’m really loving about it also, is how quick it loads up. You can be back in your game in under 9 seconds (menu in 6) if you tap through the Megacrit and humble loading screens. That’s brilliant for mobile play. I know that some games need it (for legit loading the game), but I’m pretty sure other games get loading screens slapped on just for advertising. The new Dungeon of the Endless release has around 25 seconds of loading screens for all the publisher and devs etc. The old version plonked you on the title screen in 5 seconds flat. Such a shame the new version went backwards like that. Sorry for that rant, but it highlights just how suited to mobile StS is, warts and all.
completely agree. And as a fellow mobile gamer that is (as you’ve seen, I’ve not been silent in that thread lol) really disappointed with the janky port job playdigious did on DotE: Apogee, I can’t help but feel like some of StS bugs really aren’t that bad when you compare it to the state of DotE’s port.... still, the lack of iCloud and the interface issues can be a real bother......... anyhow, TIME FOR ANOTHER RUN UP THE SPIRE, BRB.
I agree it sucks there have been no updates for this somewhat rocky port, but I wanted to offer a "devil's advocate" perspective. MegaCrit is just two people (and a handful of freelance contractors) who originally made StS. That's a very tiny team. Humble is simply the publisher, it's not clear if they have any direct involvement in the actual development of the game on any platform it's on. Leading up to the release of the mobile port, all PR stuff very heavily hinted towards there being an outside 3rd party that was doing the actual mobile port development. VERY often in these types of situations where an established game on other platforms is brought to mobile, a completely separate 3rd party handles all the actual development work, as opposed to the original creators or publisher. There are actually entire development companies whose sole purpose is contract work like this. Because it's a contractual thing, it's also likely the parties involved aren't able to be as open when discussing specific details about the development, for legal reasons. It's also very possible the company contracted for a mobile port has several other contracts lined up and hence will need to wait for those obligations to be over to return to a previous project for new work. For example, the original contract could have been to create a mobile StS port and get it released, plus any immediate bug fixing. Then that company moves on to their next project they have lined up, while in the meantime players of the StS port are coming up with new bugs and/or feature requests. Humble takes note of all this, but the porting company might not be available again until their other contracts are completed, which could be who knows when. And it's not like you can just hire some new company to come in and take over, as there could be contractual conflicts with that but also it's not practical since the original team you've hired is the one with the mobile code base, so you'd essentially be hiring a new company to come in and port the entire game all over again. I'm not saying this is the case here or anything but it's a scenario I've seen happen quite a few times over the years, specifically with bigger name ports. TWEWY and other Squeenix games come to mind, as they're often broken for long stretches due to the use of 3rd party contractors doing their mobile work. Anyway, Humble has always been a decent company in my dealings with them, and MegaCrit doesn't seem like the "cash grab" types who would just toss their precious baby onto a platform in subpar fashion and be OK with it. So it's very possible that when Humble responds that they're planning on doing updates and adding features that really is the case, but they just can't be more specific about timing or other details for a number of reasons. Of course all this could be said of Binding of Isaac as well, and we all know how that's going. So who knows!
Wow. I am headed to the DotE thread next. Highly anticipated, although the old iPad version still works (with workarounds). The sad thing is that I decided not to preorder DotE because of a general lack of faith in mobile development as of late. And to get a bad port from devs who have proven reliable accelerates my downward spiral. They'll likely work to resolve the issues, but it still continues the slow erosion of my confidence in mobile. There are exceptions, but something like a Switch seems more and more appealing as time progresses. Not as convenient, but I seldom get full immersion on mobile unless I'm at home. Connecting to TVs is a nonessential positive. The reason I haven't is native Bluetooth support. It's a strange omission. Latest news is that NVIDIA will be supplying special chips for the next version. I might take the dive if it actually arrives this fall. Significantly curtailed mobile spending some time ago, which might make switching the next logical step for me.
I can see both sides here and find your perspective informed and compelling. I am not upset at MC, personally (or even specifically), and don't see them as bad actors. Disheartened is more accurate, and for me it's more of a general sense at this point. That slow, steady erosion of confidence in the App Store's viability as a legit platform. For me, mobile had the potential to replace all other forms of gaming. (Aside: This was before I learned about the PCMR.) In fact, it actually did for many years and was the sole reason that I eventually grabbed another console after about 15 years without one. Learning more about Apple and its products led to a strong interest in tech and gaming. What sites like Ars and Anand did to satisfy my growing interest in the former, TA and Pocket Tactics did for the latter. Many iOS games, eg FF series, were ports of console titles I knew about but had never played. Others, eg, Panzer Corps, were ports of PC games about which I previously had been unaware. All of that to say that the first few years - before FTP and endless subs - seemed very promising. Then FTP and subs became the norm. Devs flocked to the store (some with the rights to valuable IP) in droves. Some were neither interested in nor suited to the task. Continued support became the exception. Devs who put out solid titles had their work undermined by iOS updates or transitions (remember App-ocalypse?) that rendered them unplayable. What if Tesla sold a number of their vehicles through a distributor that could brick them with updates to that distributor's operations? What if a different distributor was free from such eventualities? Would you be interested in buying one from first even if their price points were typically lower or their locations closer? I wouldn't.
Still no news... and Humble Bundle released an update for another one of their published game Crying Suns and added cross platform saving. I can see that game is highly anticipated but i am not going to buy it, i’m not going to support Humble Bundle any longer, they lost my trust.
I don't blame you, tbqh, but let's just take that Crying Suns update as a sign that there may still be hope in saving StS. I hate to admit that it's long been deleted from my device, but I'll literally check it in my Purchased list almost every day for a hopeful update.
Honest opinion for newbie... I have never played STS and truly can’t wait to play it but I am concerned about the comments on the Apple store with many saying it can be hard to read the cards and that can be problematic for new players. I’ve been vocal here about the UI already and I agree that the issue might be likely that it is a port unlike a few other card games that was made for mobile... So I’m over complaining but now really what to know if I would enjoy it with the challenge of maybe not being able to read everything due to size of text or UI of cards. I use an iPhone 8+.
On a larger size phone it’s basically ok. So I think you’ll be fine. I play on an Xs Max which is nearly the same size and though text is smallish, it’s still perfectly legible. For me, this is the best game on the AppStore (more or less), so it’s totally worth it.
Ehhh, go for it. While reading your post, for some reason, I really started missing the game. Fresh install, progress reset to zero and all that jazz. It's perfect on a small screen (XS in my case...but that isn't an issue for you) and you having a physical-home-button'd device means you'll likely have less issues picking up, looking at and returning cards (even though I still stand by the fact that it needs to be handled a little more intuitively/gracefully). Really, the only real, REAL thing this needs is iCloud support and everything else is manageable.
I don't know if you've been following the thread, but iCloud's supposedly in the pipeline. We're all just frustrated that we have no idea when it's supposed to come. Regardless, unless you're an idiot like I myself am, you won't delete this. Probably ever. So yeah, I wouldn't factor that into your decision.
I'll offer a differing opinion and say that it's not worth it. If you've played a bunch of iOS games, the UI and ease of use can easily make or break a game. There are some amazing games that have terrible UI that I only played a bit before putting down, this being one. Though if you think you can look past the UI and if you haven't played a card app with a better UI, you might not notice. It really depends on how you game. If you don't care about the UI then go for it. And if they said they were going to give iCloud 7+ months ago and it's still not here, I don't think I'd want to give my money to them tbh. I don't care about iCloud personally, I want UI fixes, but it kind of shows how much they care about this port.
I just beat it for the first time and unlocked that 4th class. Man I wish there was like 10 classes, I absolutely love this game. I put so many hours into it and only just now beat it.
You know there’s 20 Ascension difficulty’s to best per character. There’s also daily runs and custom mode. There’s also the heart kill to go for with each character. IDE sure love more characters but just checking you’re aware. The Ascension selection is found on the character page before starting a new run.
Beating a dead horse at this point, but it’s so frustrating that the lack of a couple of features and smallest fixes stop this from being the best damn game in the history of the App Store. MegaCrit and Humble gave us Slay the Spire. Not Slay the Spire akin to the ports of Dead Cells or Bloodstained, which are lacking in terms of content parity to other versions. We have the EXACT same Slay the Spire that’s available on other platforms. For as much bullshit we give them (*looks at update history and sees it’s been 10 months since the last update, and tries not to suicide*), that’s gotta amount to something!
