Although I usually avoid App Store games because of the gross In-App-Purchase parasites, I liked the predecessor to this game (Mage Gauntlet) enough to give this a shot. It's amazing. For $4.99 I've got a pocket hybrid of Dark Souls and Spelunky with touch controls that actually work. And the developer has promised that no IAPs will ever be offered, and that the game will only go up in price as new content is released.

I think it misses the speed and kinetic feel of Spelunky and the randomness is kind of antithetical to the sort of muscle memory that repeated runs of Dark Souls has. While I do appreciate the "no IAPs" stance I think your premise is a bit flawed.

Wow, there's very few reviews of this it seems (Metro?) but it looks like what you're saying might be true. I'll have to check it out.

PS: Downloading it now.

I really do not see the Dark Souls or Spelunkey comparison.

The game is great and all, but it is essentially Rogue Legacy with a top down view.

It's pretty cool. Definitely more Rogue Legacy than Spelunky. It's also quite tricky.

I just downloaded it and didn't even notice the hour or so that passed.

Cool little game.

I can nearly see the Dark Souls-ness of it. But only in the sense that its kinda hard and it feels like the fights matter.

So, this was featured on the latest Unprofessional Fridays.

Also, apparently Brad looks at the forums. Thought he just hung around on neogaf :P

It's the only game that has come close to that Spelunky feel in the app store. That's probably where the comparisons lie. It's hard, random. I would say it's almost a shame that there is some persistence after death.

What sets it apart, from really a lot of app store games, is the little special touches that really add to the atmosphere.

Some people with some good sensibilities made this.

#BoughtItBeforeUPFHipster

Game looked pretty cool on UPF. I was about to get it, but i dislike the virtual controls so much, so decided to pass. Need to grab this later, because the devs have said that the Vita version is in the works.

I thought Rogue Legacy already filled this gap...