Pocket Rogues: Ultimate

Review by eFreeware

If you like the idea of a dungeon crawler that never hands you the same map twice, Pocket Rogues: Ultimate is built for that appetite. It is a paid edition of EtherGaming's action-RPG roguelike, priced at $5.99, and it comes without ads. The pitch is straightforward: descend, fight, die, rebuild, and try a different layout next time.

What you get is a 2D game that mixes role-playing progression with the punishing structure of a roguelike. You pick a hero class, take it into procedurally generated dungeons, and develop it over repeated runs. Between expeditions you invest in a Guild Fortress that opens up new classes and improves how your characters perform.

The install base sits above 100,000, and the average rating is 4.6 from more than 17,600 ratings, which suggests the formula has held a loyal audience since its 2017 release. That is not a guarantee of quality, but it is a reasonable signal that the core loop works for the people who stick with it.

This review looks at what the Ultimate edition includes, how the main systems fit together, and who is likely to get the most out of it. This one concentrates on real-time movement and combat, so it suits players who want to act quickly rather than plan each turn.

Real-time combat, not turn-based tactics

The defining choice here is that nothing pauses. You move, dodge and attack in real time, and the developer frames your own skill as the deciding factor in whether a run continues. That shifts the feel away from menu-driven planning and toward positioning, timing and knowing when to retreat.

In practice, that means a fight can turn on a single mistimed dodge rather than a bad stat allocation. Traps, enemies and interactive objects sit in the same space you are navigating, so exploration and combat are not separate modes. You are always exposed while you are moving.

For players raised on turn-based roguelikes, this is the biggest adjustment. The compensation is that the game rewards reflexes and familiarity with enemy patterns, which is a different kind of mastery than optimizing a build sheet.

Procedural dungeons and why runs differ

Every dungeon is randomly generated, so the layout, the placement of threats and the objects you find change from one attempt to the next. The developer leans on this as the source of replay value, and it is the reason a run can feel fresh even after you have learned the general rhythm of the game.

The dungeons themselves are described as varied locations, with traps, distinct enemy types and things you can interact with rather than just corridors to clear. That variety matters more in a real-time game, where a familiar room still plays differently depending on what is standing in it.

Random generation cuts both ways. It keeps the game from becoming a memorized route, but it also means the quality of any individual run varies. The trade-off is deliberate: you give up hand-tuned pacing in exchange for not knowing what is around the next corner.

Heroes, classes and long-term progression

Classes differ in abilities, progression and gear. That gives you several distinct ways to approach the same dungeons rather than one character you simply upgrade.

Progression is not confined to a single run. The Guild Fortress is where you build and upgrade structures, and those structures unlock new classes, improve abilities and change how the game's systems work. It functions as the persistent layer underneath the disposable runs.

The Ultimate edition also lets you pick up premium heroes such as the Berserk and the Necromancer using gold rather than gems, which changes how accessible those characters are over time. That is one of the clearer differences between this version and the free one.

What the paid edition changes

The Ultimate version is sold as a $5.99 purchase with no ads, and it carries in-app purchases as well. The developer describes it as the premium edition, with features intended to make collecting crystals and reaching advanced content easier.

The concrete differences are worth listing plainly. You earn 50% more gems from monsters, bosses and quests; you can save your progress in any dungeon, or rely on auto-save when you minimize the game; and you can start from cleared floors at 5, 10, 25 or 50 instead of working up from the bottom every time.

All normal dungeons are available without restrictions in this edition, and the multiplayer side is expanded, with advanced dungeons reserved for Ultimate players. If you have already played the free version, the developer provides a cloud save route: create an in-game account there, save to the cloud, then load that save inside the Ultimate version and restart.

The floor shortcuts are the feature I would weigh most carefully. They let you skip ahead to content you have already cleared, which is convenient if you are chasing specific goals, but it also means you can bypass the early-game difficulty curve that teaches you how to survive.

Playing with other people

Up to three players can explore dungeons together in co-op. In a game built on real-time combat, that changes the texture of a run considerably, since coordination and role coverage start to matter alongside individual skill.

The Ultimate edition expands this side of the game and opens advanced dungeons that are exclusive to this version.

I would treat co-op as a meaningful addition rather than the main draw. The dungeon crawling, class progression and fortress building all work as a solo pursuit; playing with others is an option layered on top of that foundation.

Who this edition is for

This is best suited to people who already know they enjoy real-time roguelikes and want the fuller version of this one. The extra gem income, the ability to save mid-dungeon and the floor shortcuts all reduce friction for someone who intends to play seriously over a long stretch.

It also makes sense for anyone who has put time into the free version and wants to carry that progress forward. The developer's cloud transfer process exists precisely for that situation, and the Ultimate edition is where the expanded multiplayer and premium heroes live.

Players who prefer turn-based strategy, or who want a story-driven role-playing game rather than a repeatable challenge, will find the emphasis here is elsewhere. The game is built around runs, deaths and rebuilding, and the content is designed to be replayed rather than completed once.

A considered purchase for dedicated crawlers

Pocket Rogues: Ultimate has been receiving updates, with the most recent adding a Goblin Larder sub-location, a champion called Rottail, an Altar of the Elements, a batch of new weapons across swords, daggers, axes and bows, additional armor and headgear, and a new category of dungeon find called Treasures. That kind of ongoing content support is a point in its favor for a game you pay for once.

My recommendation is that this edition suits players who want the complete version of a real-time roguelike and are comfortable with a $5.99 upfront cost plus optional in-app purchases. The extra gems, saving flexibility and floor shortcuts are the practical reasons to choose it over the free release, and the expanded multiplayer gives it a social dimension.

If you are new to the genre, the real-time combat is the thing to consider first, because it demands attention in a way turn-based games do not. If you already enjoy that style and want a dungeon crawler you can return to repeatedly, this one has the structure and the update history to justify the price.

What's new in version 1.38.3

- Added a new single-room sub-location - Goblin Larder - Added a new monster champion - Rottail - Added the Altar of the Elements - Added 7 new swords, 7 new daggers, 3 new axes, and 7 new bows - Added 13 new armor types and 7 new pieces of headgear - Added a new type of item that can be found in the dungeon - Treasures