Hoplite: A Mini Dungeon Turn-Based Strategy Game for iPhone and iPad

Each step feels more perilous than the last. As you dash over a pool of lava, you lunge to slay a demon archer, cornered and unprepared for the daring attack. Looking ahead it seems all but impossible to make the last jump, as demon footmen move to block the exit. Throwing your spear, you impale the dark beast, only to be greeted by a bomb that lands behind your feet. You bash away the bomb with your shield, taking out another demon as it explodes at a distance. Leaping across the last chasm, a lapse in judgement leaves you directly in the crosshairs of a second archer, who fires an arrow directly into your exposed side as you land.

And thus ends the quest for the Fleece.

This is Hoplite, where a pair of sandals, a trusty spear, sturdy shield, and three hearts are all that protect you from hordes of demons in the Underworld. Your quest is to recover the Fleece and make it out alive, but the journey is treacherous.

Hoplite is a turn-based dungeon crawler that takes place on procedurally generated hexagonal grids. Your goal is to reach the exit of each floor without dying, while slaying and avoiding an ever growing amount of demons. The game is challenging, but not punishing. You have only yourself to blame for any missteps along the way.

Despite being turn-based, the game moves at a quick pace. You move. All of the enemies make their move. It’s perfectly adapted to a mobile device like iPhone. All things considered, the name of the game is brilliant.

If you die on a floor, you have to start over. There’s an element of Dark Souls, since enemies can kill you relatively quickly, with each requiring their own strategy to avoid or take down. And like Dark Souls, there are shrines that are reminiscent of bonfires. Each floor offers a shrine where you can pray to recover hearts lost, add a heart container, or upgrade one of your abilities (such as how far you can throw your spear). Do you heal up, or take another ability?

It’s a game of strategy, cunning, and various achievements which unlock even more abilities. $1.99 nabs you both the iPhone and iPad versions when you download Hoplite from the App Store.

(Hat tip @BigZaphod)