Game Pass offers a plethora of games with dungeon-crawler elements. However, not all of them are worth the time and effort that players must invest in them. The recipe for a perfect dungeon crawler is complex, making the quest for genre gems quite challenging. Nowadays, many titles tend to veer toward the “annoying roguelike” category, while others fail to introduce anything innovative. Bearing this in mind, we’ve crawled through Game Pass titles — pun intended — to unearth the best dungeon crawler games. These are the games that players won’t regret spending hours trying to conquer.

Before we delve into the list, it’s worth noting that not all games featured here are strictly dungeon crawlers. Some are hybrid titles that blend multiple genres, such as roguelikes and RPGs, with dungeon-crawling elements.

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7 Loot River

Metacritic Rating: 72

What if dungeons could move? That’s the premise of Loot River, a top-down roguelike infused with significant dungeon-crawling elements. In this game, the player assumes the role of a nameless deceased warrior resurrected by a goddess to aid in the salvation of lost souls. This divine mission entails confronting demons, dragons, and even the devil himself.

Loot River has faced criticism, primarily due to its repetitive mechanics and lackluster progression system. Nevertheless, it secures a spot on this list due to its innovative sliding-platform mechanics. In Loot River, players can manipulate parts of dungeons to forge new paths or evade specific adversaries. This unique feature creates the sensation of being both the warrior and the dungeon master simultaneously.

6 Minecraft Dungeons

Metacritic Rating: 74

Minecraft Dungeons, bearing the mantle of a world-renowned franchise, successfully steps out of Minecraft’s shadow. It delivers a relatively fresh experience by blending Diablo-inspired mechanics with the beloved pixel-block art style.

The storyline is simple: conquer the dungeons and kill the big bad boss. The gameplay? Not so much. Utilizing an enchantment system, players upgrade their weapons, with each added ability influencing the overall combat experience.

Minecraft Dungeons’ primary drawback is repetition. While this is a common challenge for dungeon crawlers, Mojang Studios’ title struggles to overcome it. Nevertheless, the game’s brisk combat pace and appealing Minecraft-inspired aesthetics prove sufficient to gratify most fans.

5 Dicey Dungeons

Metacritic Rating: 88

• Release Year: 2019
• Developed By: Terry Cavanagh

At first glance, Dicey Dungeons may not appear to be an A-tier dungeon crawler. Gamers play as a die in a fictional TV show, striving to survive the challenges of each episode. It's an unconventional plot, to say the least. However, the game’s designer, Terry Cavanagh, is renowned for his love for intricate, interconnected gameplay mechanics, as demonstrated in his iconic 2010 title VVVVVV.

In Dicey Dungeons, the task is to combat monsters using, well, dice. Numbers, combos, and spells constitute the player's arsenal. However, the way they're used, along with the classes players select, significantly influences the outcome of each dice roll.

The game introduces numerous fascinating manipulators that, after a certain point, cause players to forget that they're a die warrior battling demons with numerical combinations. Instead, they feel like a mastermind deciphering or generating complex codes.

4 Ghostlore

Metacritic Rating: 80

• Release Year: 2022
• Developed By: Adam & Andrew Teo

Ghostlore stands out as one of the finest indie games on Game Pass, blending action role-playing game (ARPG) elements with dungeon-crawler mechanics. Set in a world inspired by South Asian folklore, the story immerses players in a realm overrun by ghosts and monsters encroaching upon the lands of the living. The player takes on the role of a warrior tasked with purging the planet of these invaders while striving to seal the gates of hell shut.

In terms of gameplay, Ghostlore offers six distinct classes: Adept, Exorcist, Geomancer, Hashashin, Feral, and Sentinel. It also features a plethora of weapon combinations and intricate character progression systems. What sets it apart is the ability to craft an ideal hybrid class by amalgamating the abilities of multiple classes, allowing for a truly personalized gaming experience.

3 Death’s Door

Metacritic Rating: 87

Imagine this: A souls-like isometric dungeon crawler. Death’s Door attains this ambitious feat by joining the best aspects of both genres. Gamers play as an anthropomorphic crow tasked with navigating alternate realities and addressing matters concerning “old souls.” While the premise may sound charming, the battles are intense.

Death’s Door has garnered acclaim for its art style, gameplay, and narrative — the three cornerstones of any exceptional game. The visuals are exquisite and captivating, the gameplay offers replayability and ingenuity, and the storyline unfolds with multilayered depth. It's a seamless fusion of elements that results in an outstanding game.

2 Darkest Dungeon

Metacritic Rating: 84

While Darkest Dungeon 2 may be slightly more renowned among dungeon-crawler enthusiasts, the first installment of the franchise has proven itself timeless. It blends randomized dungeons with a plethora of modifiers and conditions that impact outcomes. With 14 classes, numerous enemy variants, complex weakness-strength mechanics, and strategic team formations, players must carefully weigh their options before delving into a vault.

What sets Darkest Dungeon apart and makes it an excellent addition to Game Pass is its challenging combat systems. There’s a lot to learn, but once players grasp the intricacies and manipulations, they’ll feel virtually invincible — a sensation cherished by many dungeon-crawler aficionados.

1 Dead Cells

Metacritic Rating: 91

Dead Cells isn’t just one of the best dungeon crawlers available on Game Pass. It has earned its place among the best titles of recent years. This 2D, movement-driven, action-packed game features procedurally generated biomes, ensuring endless replayability. Yet, its appeal extends further. The choices that players make in enhancing their character and the paths they traverse shape the unfolding events, granting the player full control over the narrative.

Dead Cells is the best dungeon crawler on Game Pass for several reasons. First, it incentivizes exploration, enticing players to uncover every hidden corner. Second, its replayability factor ensures that no two playthroughs feel the same. Third, it maintains a perfect balance of challenge, never allowing gameplay to become too easy. Moreover, the developers have integrated Metroidvania elements, ensuring there’s always something tantalizing waiting in seemingly “unreachable” areas.

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