Mega Crit's Slay the Spire 2 entered Steam Early Access on March 5, 2026, achieving peak concurrent players of over 430,000 and topping sales charts ahead of Bungie's Marathon. The indie roguelike sequel has garnered a 97 percent positive review rating from thousands of users. Developer Casey Yano apologized for a launch-day social media post joking about the competition with Marathon.
Slay the Spire 2 launched into Steam Early Access on March 5, 2026, at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, marking a global simultaneous release. Developed by Mega Crit, the sequel to the 2017 Early Access title—fully released in 2019—introduces returning and new playable characters, an expanded card collection, and a new four-player co-op mode, shifting from the original's solo focus.
The launch coincided with Bungie's extraction shooter Marathon, sparking lighthearted rivalry. Mega Crit's X account posted: "Congratulations to the Marathon team on their launch! Don't let small indie passion projects like this pass you by just because Slay the Spire 2 is out." Slay the Spire 2 reached a peak of 430,456 concurrent players on launch day, surpassing Marathon's 88,337, despite the latter's availability on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. It became Steam's top seller, outranking Marathon and Resident Evil Requiem.
Co-founder Casey Yano later reflected on the post via social media: "This seems a bit meaner than it was intended.... To be fair I didn't think we'd actually pass Marathon in concurrent users." The game's success builds on the original's cult following, with enhanced visuals, deeper storytelling, and more complex scenarios while retaining core deckbuilding roguelike mechanics.
Reception has been strong, with 97 percent positive Steam reviews from over 4,387 English-language users as of March 6. One reviewer noted: "A lot is the same, but StS is already good. I don’t want them to reinvent the wheel. I just want more of what makes the first one so good." Mega Crit credits community support for enabling the sequel, planning ongoing updates during Early Access.
Originally slated for late 2025 but delayed, the PC-exclusive launch highlights indie resilience in a competitive market.
