Skul: The Hero Slayeris about the titular Skul who wakes up on the battlefield after the underworld is raided by humans. They have captured the great Demon King and now it seems like Skul, his littlest soldier, has to get rid of the humane scourge once and for all. That’s the basic premise of the game and the story doesn’t go much beyond that.
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This is the first major title from Southpaw Games, which isan indie developerbased in South Korea. It’s one of many roguelikes out there but the big question is does it manage to stand out amongst the roguelike crowd? Let’s setup up how Skul: The Hero Slayeractually works along with dealing out a few tips to help beginners out.
7What’s Rookie Mode?
As a roguelike,Skul: The Hero Slayercan be challenging. Beginners in the genre need not worry because there is sort of an easy feature in the options menu. Rookie Mode will reduce all damage taken by half.Skul: The Hero Slayeris one of many indie games from 2021 that included an option like this. It’s a trend that will hopefully continue into 2022 and beyond in order to make games more accessible to all types of gamers. Players can tell when the mode has been activated because of the logo at the bottom of the screen showcasing a skull with a pacifier in its mouth.
6Understanding Doors
There are primarily three types of random doors players should be aware of inSkul: The Hero Slayer. This doesn’t count shop or boss doors, for example. Those are always set. Gilded doors stacked with treasure usually pay out big cash rewards at the exit. Sometimes there will be chests instead with rare items. Green doors engulfed with flames will reward players with skulls at the end.
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Skulls are power-ups that change the titular Skul into new forms kind oflike the abilitiesin theMariofranchise. Using the normal-looking gateways will give players a more balanced stage but offer fewer amazing rewards. Unless players are really hurting for HP, always use one of the two rarer doors.
Each Skull form change comes with several different properties. The look is one. The weapon is another. The assigned ability is third. Most importantly, there are secret skills to some classes as well. After acquiring a skull and transforming, players should jump into the menu and read up.
For example, the Living Armor form builds up energy in a separate meter whenever Skul takes or deals damage. Once filled, using any ability will result in an extra burst of fire damage. Knowing what a skull’s class is capable of is half the battle.
4Dark Quartz Upgrades
Most roguelike games havesome sort of currencyin them that can help boost a character’s stats permanently. InSkul: The Hero Slayerthey are called Dark Quartz. These can be brought to the witch in the castle to unlock Traits. There are some useful but ordinary Traits such as being able to deal more damage or gain more HP. Those may look tempting early on but wait for it. Players should instead invest 3,000 Dark Quartz into getting Reassemble. This Trait resurrects Skul with 30% HP one time on a run. It’ll take time to unlock but it will be worth the wait.
3What To Buy In Subspace
Players will also collect gold during runs. This currency is only temporary and all gold will be lost upon death such is the casewith many roguelikes. It can be used in a subspace shop area that appears in-between every few stages in a world. There are items that can grant perks, food to restore HP, a vendor that will gift players a skull in exchange for another, and a blacksmith that has abilities.
Unless players have some sort of boon equipped that heals HP, the food should be the first stop. After visiting the blacksmith for an extra ability. Anything else after that is fair game. Just don’t buy anything from the Dark Quartz trader who appears randomly. That’s a waste of precious cargo.
2Take Out Spellcasters First
Most enemies will attack Skul with melee attacks. Those foes are technically stronger but they should be ignored if there is a spellcaster among the crowd. Early enemies players will encounter include tree monsters that can summon vines to appear beneath them.
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This will be indicated by a red box, allowing players an ample amount of time to dodge out of the way. It’s also a good indicator that there is an ability user in the vicinity. Long-ranged opponents, such as bowmen, should also take top priority. This is a basic strategy that can be applied to manyaction RPG gamesof this nature but it still bears repeating forSkul: The Hero Slayer.
1What Saves After Quitting?
There is no way to save progress in the middle of a run. If players make it a few rooms into a dungeon and then decide to quit, they will be transported back to the castle upon their next startup. This is typical for roguelikes. However, that doesn’t mean data will be completely erased.
Dark Quartz, for example, will carry over. The only thing lost then is progress in the world. Before starting a run players should ensure they have enough time to put in what could be a long session. There is always the suspend function on the various consoles as well. The best system to do this withis the Switch. That system fits the roguelike genre rather well for pick-up and play runs.
Skul: The Hero Slayerwas first released on July 18, 2025 forPC. It was re-released on July 15, 2025 forPS4,Switch, andXbox One.
