$14.99Heretical Die, adapt, strike back
A dark fantasy roguelite action RPG where dying is progress. Climb Sanctora Mountain, fight through a moody medieval city, and turn every failed run into new characters, skills and gear for the next one, all the way up to a merciless demigod.
Is Heretical worth it?
Heretical is worth it if…
- you want a soulslike challenge in roguelite form, where death feeds your next attempt
- you like theorycrafting builds from randomized loot, skills and perks
- you enjoy dark, moody worlds you piece together run by run
- you want short runs that turn into just one more go
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Combat that makes you earn it
Heretical wears its Soulslike DNA openly. The combat is deliberate: hold your attack to keep swinging, dodge when the moment comes, block when it comes a fraction too early and get punished for it anyway. Bosses guard the way forward, and each has its own set of skills to learn through repeated failure.
You push a hero from the Sanctuary of the Forlorn toward the gates of Sanctora Manor, and the road is long. Death sends you back to the start of the run, but nothing is wasted: skills and weapons you unlock persist for every hero that comes after. Lose the fight, learn the moveset, come back sharper. The moody, dark atmosphere gives each attempt weight, and the tension of a narrow escape is the point.
Prophecy cards
Progress here is tracked through prophecy cards: in-game feats that permanently unlock new mechanics, skills and items when you fulfil them. Kill what the prophecy names, do it the required way, and the reward stays yours across every future run.
They give each run a second purpose beyond simply surviving to the end. One run can be a straightforward push up the mountain; the next becomes a hunt for a specific unlock, with the whole build chosen around it. It is the mechanic that turns a losing run into a productive one, and it keeps giving you a reason to start again immediately after death.
The mountain of Aelyndor
Sanctora Mountain is the crown jewel of Aelyndor, cut off from the rest of the world. Its ruler Abidan rules what is left of the populace with an iron fist, guarding the Sanctorite mines, the source of all magic. A demigod waits at the top.
Below him, the city is rendered in a low-poly, stylized style with strong attention to detail: dark, gloomy and atmospheric, closer in mood to classic dark fantasy than to anything glossy. In a crumbling church stands a mysterious entity, cursed and bound, a reminder of lost faith, offering guidance to heroes who arrive looking for absolution. The world is story rich and built to be read through its corners as much as its plot.
Builds, loot and reruns
Every run is dealt a different hand. Weapons and gear drop randomized, so the build you wanted may not be the build you get, and part of the game is rewriting your plan around what actually appears. Characters differ too: each unlocked hero brings their own skills and preferred weapons, from a knight who can absorb hits to other sets entirely.
The streamlined level-up system lets you grab or upgrade a skill in seconds mid-run, then layer main stats, perks and collected items on top. The Well of Stars pushes skills and perks further once you have the resources. With countless skill combinations and loot rolls stacked on distinct heroes, no two runs up the mountain play the same, which is the whole engine of the replay value.
Can you play it with a controller?
Do you need reflexes to survive?
Not especially. The game is built to favour learning over reaction speed: the pace is on the slower side, the core actions are simple to pick up, and the real skill is reading enemy patterns and choosing when to dodge, block or commit. Bosses take many attempts, but the attempts teach you. That said, a controller is recommended, and the fighting itself is a hack and slash affair rather than careful turn-by-turn play.
How does progress work between runs?
Death costs you the current run, never your collection. Unlocked characters, skills, weapons and prophecy rewards all persist, and they are what make later runs stronger. The early hours start lean before your skill pool fills out, so expect the first few runs to feel thin before the options open up.
Is the world open to explore freely?
The progression is linear rather than open world: you climb Sanctora Mountain along a set route from the Sanctuary of the Forlorn to Sanctora Manor, and the mountain is one connected settlement rather than scattered maps. The variety comes from what changes between runs, not from where you can wander.
