Slay the Spire 2's Steam rating has fallen following the announcement of its first major balance patch. The opt-in beta update, aimed at curbing infinite card combos, has drawn backlash over specific nerfs. Mega Crit released detailed patch notes for testing on Steam's beta branch.
Mega Crit announced Beta Patch v0.100.0 for Slay the Spire 2, its first major post-launch update, on March 20, 2026. The patch is available on Steam's public-beta branch for opt-in testing before a full rollout. It features a 'huge' balance pass primarily targeting 'infinites', where players stack zero-cost cards for endless hands, along with tweaks to classes like the Regent and Necrobinder, and new Phobia Mode visuals to address phobia-triggering enemies such as Hive backgrounds and Terror Eel. Additional changes include enemy adjustments (e.g., nerfed Phantasmal Gardeners HP from 28(29)-32(33) to 26(27)-31(32)), relic modifications (e.g., Neow's Leafy Poultice max HP loss increased to 12), event tweaks, multiplayer card nerfs (e.g., Beacon of Hope can no longer stack), UI improvements like a Phobia Mode tickbox, and numerous bug fixes related to saves, crashes, and multiplayer sync issues. New art and effects, such as energy gain visuals, are also included. The game achieved 3 million sales in just over a week post-launch in early access. However, the announcement triggered review bombing on Steam, dropping the rating from Overwhelmingly Positive 97 percent to Very Positive 83 percent with about 11,000 negative reviews. Players criticized nerfs like replacing Silent's zero-cost Prepared (draw 2, discard 2) with Prepare (cost 1, discard 2, 2 energy next turn) and buffing Doormaker boss to permanently remove the tenth drawn card and gain 1 strength. Some negative reviews urge Mega Crit to reverse changes, though the developer encourages using the in-game Feedback option instead. Mega Crit has not committed to a full roadmap but plans new act variants.
