Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era vs Slay the Spire 2
Choose between a deep, bug-prone strategy throwback and a refined roguelike deckbuilder with co-op additions.
Olden Era nails the hex-grid tactics and faction progression that die-hard fans crave — skip if you hated the originals.
Still the best deckbuilder roguelite — Mega Crit's sequel deepens the relics and events without breaking the original's perfect 30-min run-shape, on co-op now too.
Steam popularity
Shared scale — sparklines are directly comparable across both games.
Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era
May 2026 peak CCU 60,562
Slay the Spire 2
May 2026 peak CCU 230,185 ↓ 36% MoM
All-time peak 574,638
Key differences
Core loop
Olden Era offers grand campaign map exploration and army management against AI opponents.
Slay the Spire 2 focuses on intense, repeatable 30-minute deckbuilding runs with emergent strategy.
Pacing and length
Olden Era campaigns are long, single-session affairs that demand strategic foresight over hours.
Slay the Spire 2's runs are bite-sized, perfect for quick sessions or extended plays with co-op.
State of polish
Olden Era is in early access, expecting bugs and questionable AI decisions.
Slay the Spire 2 is a polished sequel that refines its predecessor's celebrated design.
Which one is for you?
Pick Heroes of Might & Magic: Olden Era if
- You loved Heroes of Might and Magic III's core gameplay
- You enjoy deep strategy with complex unit upgrades
- You can tolerate early access issues and flawed AI
Pick Slay the Spire 2 if
- You want a tightly designed, repeatable roguelike experience
- You appreciate robust deckbuilding with varied relic synergies
- You want to play short runs or engage in asynchronous co-op
Bottom line
For fans of classic strategy demanding patience with polish, Olden Era is the spiritual successor. For a proven, refined deckbuilding challenge with new co-op options, Slay the Spire 2 is the clear choice.