After a 13-year wait from its initial reveal, Edmund McMillen’s much-anticipated cat-powered rogue, Mewgenics, is finally just one month away from release.
Best known for his work on The Binding of Isaac and Super Meat Boy, McMillen has teamed up with Tyler Glaiel (Closure, The End Is Nigh) on what is shaping up to be 2026’s most intriguing wildcard roguelite.
With our excitement building and Mewgenics already earning a spot in our Most Anticipated round-up article, we’ve pulled together everything we know about the game so far, all in one handy feature.
What is Mewgenics, then?
In McMillen’s own words, Mewgenics is a procedurally generated, turn-based RPG “where there’s cats.”
Unlike his previous work, it’s a cat-breeding sim built around sending your puss-cats on procedurally-generated adventures, customising them in absurd depth, and watching strange synergies emerge. Or, as he puts it more simply: it’s The Binding of Isaac, but turn-based, more in-depth, and with cats.
First teased on YouTube with the trailer above, the project has been in development for the past six years, and it originated from McMillen’s wife’s love of rare cat breeds. These cats often come with their own health issues, which are side effects of being inbred.
How does Mewgenics play?
On each run, you control a team of four cats, clawing your way through proc-gen encounters to collect food, money and other treasures. Each cat can be fitted with a class-specific collar, such as Fighter, Tank, Mage and more, and learns new abilities as it levels up.
According to the game’s Steam page, players will have access to over 1,000 unique abilities, around 75 per class, and 900 items to help take down more than 200 enemies and bosses.
Cats that survive your runs retire and can be used to breed the next generation of whiskered warriors in your home base, known as Boon County. Each night, there is a chance that two cats will mate, passing on both positive and negative traits to their offspring. Your base can be upgraded, and certain items can be purchased to increase the likelihood of successful breeding.
Some of the abilities that can be passed down to your kittens include real-life conditions such as ADHD, autism, and dyslexia. Autism, for example, grants enhanced spellcasting, while Dyslexia swaps numbers in damage calculations and ability costs. Experimenting with different combinations is key to discovering the formula for an ultimate feline warrior.
Mewgenics gameplay preview
Without regurgitating loads of second-hand info, based on what we’ve learned so far, Mewgenics gradually reveals deeper layers of strategy as you play.
Early runs introduce the basics of combat and breeding, but as you progress, you’ll find yourself optimising bloodlines, experimenting with unusual ability combinations, and making tough choices about which kittens to keep or assign to house upgrades. The game seemingly offers a path to tactical mastery while embracing chaotic, emergent gameplay.
Something else worth highlighting is that it will supposedly take an eye-watering 200+ hours to beat the main campaign. According to a recent Reddit AMA, it took one of the game’s testers 500 hours to reach 100% completion, which is essentially three whole weeks!
Creator Edmund McMillen has also been streaming the game ahead of launch and has uploaded four extended gameplay videos on his YouTube channel (the first one is embedded above, to get you started). These are all well worth checking out if you want to get a proper look at the gameplay loop in action, as well as taking a deeper dive into the game’s overall mechanics.
Mewgenics: Release Date, Platforms, and DLC
Mewgenics is set to launch on PC (Windows) on February 10, 2026, though pricing has yet to be confirmed at the time of writing.
During a Reddit AMA on December 10, McMillen was asked about a console release and responded with a definitive “yes, 100%”, while noting that it probably wouldn’t happen until late 2026. He also revealed that he had no idea which consoles, but the Switch seemed “the most viable.”
In the same AMA, he was also asked about post-launch content. He responded by noting that, “we will be watching and fixing as we go. This game will get support like Isaac. I see at least two DLCs.”
Keep your eyes peeled for more on Mewgenics as the launch draws closer, as we here at Rogueliker plan to take a closer look at the gameplay mechanics that define this quirky roguelite strategy – once we’ve had a look for ourselves, of course!
