Hey there, friends, and welcome back to another entry into our long-running series of roguelike release round-ups. It is going to be a busy month in July, that’s for sure, but things do start quite slowly because there’s a Steam sale running until July 9th.
As per usual, I’m avoiding stuff made with gen-AI, anything too derivative, and generally, I’m trying to keep the quality level as high as possible, while also trying to avoid letting something good slip under the ol’ radar. It’s a tough one to balance, but as always, I shall do my best to highlight some interesting new releases, starting with…
Hyperwired | SIDRALGAMES | July 2 | PC (Win), PS, Switch, Xbox
The idea of flying a spaceship around in tight corridors like the ones in Hyperwired really does fill me with dread, but at least I’ll have a trusty grapple to help me navigate these futuristic battlegrounds! Actually, come to think of it, that actually sounds more dangerous….
Not just notable because of a fun-sounding gameplay hook, pun intended, Hyperwired is heading out to multiple platforms on the same day and date. As someone who struggles to keep the kitchen tidy, that level of organisation is hugely impressive to me.
Flaregate Network | Keycard Studio | July 9 | PC (Win)
It doesn’t tag itself as an auto-battler, but based on its store description, Flaregate Network certainly sounds like one. This fusion of deckbuilding and combat has you preparing your fleet for epic battles, pausing to play cards, and then letting the action commence. The listing also mentions there being both a narrative campaign and a roguelike mode, so you can follow the game’s self-proclaimed space opera story, or you can go rogue if you prefer.
Insanio | bitru | June 10 | PC (Lin, Win)
It might look a bit stripped down, but if it allows the utterly massive battles that the screenshots and trailers suggest, Insanio could be quite the unique proposition for fans of the burgeoning auto-battler sub-genre.
Read More: Strategy Roguelikes: tactical turn-based triumphs and roguish RTS royalty
Ascend to Zero | Flyway Games | June 13 | PC (Win), Xbox
When Kieran previewed Ascend to Zero recently, he was impressed by the demo of this time-manipulating action-roguelite, so I’m going to defer to his esteemed opinion for the next bit:
“Its time-bending mechanic adds a satisfying layer of tension to combat, forcing you to carefully time your strikes and think strategically about when to engage. There’s also a wealth of meta-progression options that allow you to shape your build over time and gradually adjust the difficulty as you fight to save humanity.”
Runix: Pinball Roguelike | Meteor Forge | July 13 | PC (Win)
When I was a young ‘un, pinball games were the absolute best-looking games around. The relatively static design of the tables meant that developers could really pack in the detail. That’s got NOTHING to do with Runix: Pinball Roguelike, other than it provides context to my excitement, having played a bunch of pinball on the family PC when I was growing up in the ’90s. A good pinball game with roguelite replayability has the potential to be dangerously addictive, I think, and Runix does look like it could be a good pinball game.
MineGeon: Renegades | Kickstone Studio | July 14 | PC (Win)
While we’re on the subject of looking good, the pixels look really lovely in this next co-op action-roguelite. MineGeon: Renegades is a sci-fi shooter with bullet hell elements, resource gathering, and RPG levelling waiting for you in its darkest depths. It’s set on a scavenger-riddled planet called Paimo, and thereon you’ll be tempted to dive deeper and deeper for ever-greater rewards.
Dead Weight | Klukva Games | July 16 | PC (Win)
Flying pirates, Saturday cartoon vibes, and turn-based tactics inspired by Into the Breach – all of these things combine to form the premise of Dead Weight, which exits Early Access on PC this month.
In this colourful battle against ye olde ancient gods, you must fly your ship about the place, explore a roguelite steampunk world, and take part in turn-based battles against enemies both aboard your ship and on a variety of fantasy locations.
Hell Maiden | AstralShift | July 16 | PC (Win)
Billed as a horde survival deckbuilder inspired by Dante’s Divine Comedy, Hell Maiden is certainly an interesting proposition on paper, even if the delivery of its theme isn’t my cup of tea. The launch build of this hybrid game includes two stages based on different Circles of Hell, with more to follow during Early Access.
Pathogenic | Aberrant Labs | July 16 | PC (Lin, Mac, Win)
I’ve been tracking the progress of Pathogenic since last year, and I was instantly drawn to the game’s aesthetic. The demo I played last November was great fun, and I could really feel the game’s potential even then. While the demo has been evolving steadily ever since, I’ve been staying away and waiting for it to be deemed ready for launch before diving back in. That’ll be on July 16th, and I’m ready to go.
Read More: You can read my first impression of Pathogenic here.
Cheat Death | GG Studio | July 16 | PC (Win)
This tactile-looking deckbuilder clearly owes a debt to Inscryption, but if you’re going to borrow, I say: borrow from the best. In that spirit, Cheat Death looks like it could be an atmospheric deckbuilder where you roll dice in a game of chance with the Grim Reaper.
I’m really enjoying these more physical roguelite games. I like that they try to create a sense of place, and then crank up the tension by connecting your fate to the physicality of your actions. Cheat Death looks to have captured an interesting atmosphere, so let’s hope the game underneath is able to impress.
Fogpiercer | Mad Cookies Studio | July 17 | PC (Lin, Mac, Win)
This combination of deckbuilding and post-apocalyptic train-based combat has been on my radar ever since Hooded Horse announced that it was handling the publishing side of things.
My excitement is because Fogpiercer mixes up its vehicle-to-train combat with a fun deckbuilder twist. I think this fusion adds a really interesting dynamic to the theory crafting because your unit positioning will be vital.
A lot of Hooded Horse titles speak to me thematically, but also sit just outside the wheelhouse I’ve built here. This time, though, Fogpiercer looks like exactly the kind of game that I want to cover. Choo choo, all aboard!
Soulforge Lost Path | Ziyue | July 20 | PC (Win)
I’m giving Soulforge Lost Path the benefit of the doubt because I really like the theme, so it gets a mention even though there are several survivors-likes out this month.
The pixel art is certainly nice-looking; however, I reckon the main point of difference that makes this one potentially worth watching is the inventory management systems. Games like God of Weapons and Dead Days: Roadtrip have shown that the formula can work very well.
RentPoly | SunPeak Games | July 20 | PC (Win)
I’m not gonna lie, the parallels with Monopoly make this a firm “no” for me personally, but I’m also aware that a huge number of people really do enjoy the game and its many variants. You do you, I say! That being so, I thought a roguelike deckbuilder crossed with the spirit of the world’s most popular board game might be of interest to a few of you!
Dominion of the Forgotten | FoolishNova Games | July 20 | PC (Win)
This action-roguelike is all about the theorycrafting, according to the Steam page. It also offers online co-op, which makes sense because, based on the screenshots, I’m getting strong MOBA vibes here.
Dominion of the Forgotten also boasts an extraction element, as you’ll be sent into the eponymous dominion in search of relics and other treasures. I couldn’t tell you much more about it, other than it looks pretty polished based on my first impressions.
Pit Panic | Flying Rat Studio | July 21 | PC (Win)
Visually, Pit Panic looks really good, with its chonky 2.5D visuals and curious Aztec setting. The fact that the Aztec temple you’re exploring is sinking makes things altogether less friendly. Instead of heading down, you’re trying to escape up, and in this reverse-Spelunky, you’ll have to battle with a bunch of strange creatures along the way.
Annihilated | Death Kumiai | July 21 | PC (Win)
You don’t often find roguelites that blend graphic novel elements and story-driven RPG themes, but that’s what we’re getting in Annihilated. I can’t claim to know much about this one, but the interesting fusion of ideas made it stand out when doing my research for this feature. I realise that’s not a ringing endorsement, but I am intrigued by the concept, and some of you fine folks might be, too?!
Dominocalypse | Barely Cohesive Games | July 21 | PC (Lin, Mac, Win)
Mixing roguelike deckbuilding elements with the game of dominoes has been done before, but Dominocalypse certainly caught my eye with its pleasantly chunky pixel-art visuals and synergy-chasing setup. The Balatro inspiration is clear, but if the developer can capture a similarly exciting gameplay loop, this could be a bunch of fun.
Tears of Metal | Paper Cult | July 22 | PC (Win)
Tears of Metal not only looks great thanks to a well-implemented aesthetic and smooth animations, but it’s full of interesting design decisions that I think separate it from the crowd.
First of all, there’s the Scottish setting, which is injected with some fantasy elements, and that adds an interesting spin to a rarely explored period of history. Then there’s the combat system, which has got a bit of Musou spirit to go with its hack-and-slash mechanics. This all sounds very interesting, don’t you think?!
Hand of Fate: Hordes | Spitfire Interactive | July 22 | PC (Lin, Mac, Win)
I wrote a short article about the demo of Hand of Fate: Hordes quite recently, and I found it to be a very engaging experience. As expected, it retains Spitfire’s quality presentation, but the action is a bit of a departure for the studio, with its shift to bullet heaven gameplay. Here’s a snippet of what I wrote the other week:
“The camera is a bit closer and more personal than you’ll find in most titles like this, but it’s worth it to get a better look at the pleasingly chonky 3D visuals. Much like Hand of Fate is a visually impressive deckbuilder, Horde stands up well against its fellow auto-shooters.”
Reap and Rush | Beijing Pacifier Technology | July 22 | PC (Win)
If I were trying to describe Reap and Rush as broadly as possible, I’d say it was a mixture of action-roguelite and survivors-like gameplay, with a visual style that borrows a little bit from Don’t Starve and a little bit from Cult of the Lamb.
I’d not come across Reap and Rush before writing this up, but it does look like it could have something about it. The art looks nice and crisp, the combat seems frantic, and there appears to be a bunch of depth via its inventory management and theory-crafting systems. Consider me intrigued.
Pass the Fear | PlayMud Studio | July 22 | PC (Win)
Co-op-loving rogues out there are well-catered for at the moment, and beat ’em up fans in particular are being well-served. The next contender to enter from screen-left is Pass the Fear, which looks really promising thanks to its comic-style visuals. Not only that, but I like the premise, which has you and your buddies trying to survive waves of enemies for 12 hours in the face of the Storm Wall, which will block your escape (and presumably force a restart).
Empire in Decay | Siesta Games | July 23 | PC (Win)
Empire in Decay is the latest title to bring chess and roguelike elements together, but rarely do we get games in this space that look as polished as this one. Naturally, the combat is turn-based, but there’s also an interesting deckbuilding element. As someone who grew up playing the original Battle Chess, I find myself almost nostalgic about the setup here.
Luminas: Parasite Reign | SOTO Game Studio | July 23 | PC (Win)
This month, the younger rogues among us might well be tempted to check out Luminas: Parasite Reign, which has a distinctly Pokémon-like vibe to it. When it comes to the gameplay, you’ll be able to control three different creatures at once to help you deal with waves of voxel-based monsters, in what looks like Vampire Survivors meets Pokémon meets Minecraft Dungeon. If it’s as good as any of those games, we’ll be onto a winner.
Kinny and the Cosmic Cauldron | Kinnymoms | July 27 | PC (Mac, Win)
Serve up your dinner with a side portion of whimsy in Kinny and the Cosmic Cauldron, a roguelike deckbuilder about cooking ingredients that “crash, merge, and react” for the customers of Stewpendous Spoons, your witchy cafe.
The gameplay has a merging mechanic that sounds super chill, and generally speaking, I’m into the light-hearted atmosphere and change of pace that this cosy deckbuilder is bringing to the proverbial table.
Sir, We Have an Orc Problem | Mumpitz Games | July 28 | PC (Lin, Win)
I love it when a game zooms out a bit and gives you a bigger perspective on the battlefield. They Are Billions sticks in my mind as a game that did it very well, and Starship Troopers: Terran Command is another game that I’ve got in my collection that ups the scale somewhat.
Next on the horizon, we have Sir, We Have an Orc Problem, which may or may not be a riff on a quote from Starship Troopers. Even if not, the title perfectly sets the scene for this large-scale strategy roguelite about fighting a problematic army of orcs. As you can see from the screenshot, you’ll be dealing with an enormous number of on-screen enemies. It might not look pretty, but it sure does sound clever.
Mark My Words | Liurnity | July 29 | PC (Win)
As I was getting the first iteration of my roguelike word games article up and running last month, I came across Mark My Words, which looks like my cup of tea thanks to its focus on word-building and high score-chasing. It’s always going to be difficult for a new game to stand out in this increasingly congested niche, but the stickers and pop-art feel might be enough to help it find an audience.
Archon Soul | PolyGryph | July 29 | PC (Win)
I was pleased to see developer PolyGryph use the word “dice-builder” in their marketing for Archon Soul, which looks great thanks to its Darkest Dungeon-inspired art. That said, I’m mostly excited to see how the gameplay works, as we’re promised a system that lets us mix and match “faces, runes, and bodies with unique effects” to create synergy-building dice. I’ve played quite a few good dice-focused games lately, and this looks like it could be another one.
How Many Dudes? | Butterscotch Shenanigans | July 30 | PC (Win)
If this month, you’d like to play something altogether more unique, then how about a game that poses the most difficult questions?
How Many Dudes? asks how many men it would take to fight a gorilla. And that’s just the tip of the proverbial iceberg, as you’ll need to recruit a bunch of dudes and then see how they get on in preposterous automated battles against all manner of weird and wonderful enemies. It sounds utterly bonkers, but I also kinda love it, and I’m eager to give it a go if time allows.
Waterpunk | R_Games | July 30 | PC (Win)
I’m not sure I remember the movie Waterworld particularly fondly, but the idea was super cool even back then. With the ever-diminishing likelihood that Kevin Costner’s movie will soon turn into a prophetic documentary, Waterpunk sounds like it might be a nice way to warm up for a water-logged apocalypse where people all live on floating shantytowns and try to kill each other with harpoons for funsies.
Zoominoes | Starlight Games | July 31 | PC (Win)
Zoominoes is the next number-go-up strategy roguelite to cross my path, but the theme and its colourful presentation help it stand out, and potentially, I think that could help it appeal more broadly.
Lootbound | ArtDock | July 31 | PC (Lin, Mac, Win)
Landing at the end of the month is Lootbound, which looks like a good old-fashioned dungeon crawl, but one with some really interesting ideas thrown into the mix.
You’ll be recruiting your party en route, and then managing your collective inventory as you tackle fantasy creatures as a team.
Not only does it sound like the gameplay considerations will be interesting, but I’m also a fan of the art style, which is delivered via elegantly arranged pixels and a carefully considered colour palette.
And that’s it for now, but I’ll be sure to return and add any standout games that get release dates in the days ahead.
Finally, if that’s not enough new roguelikes and roguelites for you, check out June’s release update, which has a similar number of new releases for you to read about.
