KATANAUT - 2D Sci-Fi Eldritch Horror Roguelike by a Forumbro

[Kriptini]

For the past couple years I've been helping a buddy of mine with his solodev project KATANAUT, a sci-fi eldritch horror 2D pixel art roguelike. Inspired by Katana Zero and Dead Cells, KATANAUT involves slashing through hordes of enemies with an arsenal of over 150 skills, perks, and offhands.

Katanaut releases on September 10th, and I'm doing a free Steam key giveaway here on RPGHQ. All you need to do is have an RPGHQ account that was created yesterday or earlier and comment in this thread. I'll pick the winner randomly from the commenters on September 9th.

There's a demo on Steam if you'd like to check it out, and adding the game to your wishlists would also help us out a lot. Thanks!

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[Oyster Sauce]

For the past couple years I've been helping a buddy of mine with his solodev project

[Kriptini]

For the past couple years I've been helping a buddy of mine with his solodev project

Lol, I don't touch any code or anything in the engine at all, really. I did a little bit of design consultation at the start of the project, some beta testing, and now I'm volunteering to do a little PR. For the actual stuff in-game, it's 100% him.

[Finarfin]

sneak in some slurs then.

[Finarfin]

Yuck. Why is there a roach name in this game? Kerem?

[DDC]

The game looks pretty good to me. Something I'd consider buying. Of course with a roguelike you can't really tell if the builds and items are good without playing though.

[Kriptini]

Release is tomorrow! I'll be drawing the raffle winner for a free copy in about 8 hours.

[rusty_shackleford]

Katanaut releases on September 10th, and I'm doing a free Steam key giveaway here on RPGHQ. All you need to do is have an RPGHQ account that was created yesterday or earlier and comment in this thread. I'll pick the winner randomly from the commenters on September 9th

@Adventurer

[Tangerine]

Random prizes are cool.

[Valter]

Sorry brother, I'm racist against pixelated graphics. Cool trailer tho, y'all have fun

[CornCake]

Metroidvania? I'll pass.

[logincrash]

Release is tomorrow!

And the prom's tomorrow!

[Kriptini]

Metroidvania? I'll pass.

It's Metroidvania-inspired, but not actually a Metroidvania. It's very solidly an action-platformer roguelite, though some levels do incorporate Metroidvania elements such as needing to unlock locked doors or finding upgrades that allow you to access secret areas. You won't be backtracking across entire levels like you would in a typical Metroidvania.

[Breathe]

Metroidvania? I'll pass.

[Tweed]

Sure, sign me up for Kokanut.

[OnTilt]

I don't play games.

[Kriptini]

The winner of the raffle is @Finarfin! Check your DMs for your Steam key!

Thanks to everyone who entered, and I hope you check out the game tomorrow!

[rusty_shackleford]

@Finarfin hq review when?

[Finarfin]

Uhhh, lemme redeem the game and play it first? I can write a review for it then.

[Tinky Winky]

Metroidvania? I'll pass.

This, Metroidvania + roguelike + eldritch aesthetic = an absolutely nope from me. Not saying it sucks (don't even bother to watch the video) but it's just not for me.

[logincrash]

Uhhh, lemme redeem the game and play it first? I can write a review for it then.

DO NOT REDEEM

[BLofbr]

This game looks nice.

Ah *******.. im late to the party.

[Kriptini]

Thank you to everyone who has bought and reviewed the game! We've managed to hit the TOP of Steam's New & Trending chart!

[ERYFKRAD]

Looks cool.

[Lich]

not a roguelike

[Kriptini]

not a roguelike

"Roguelite" is a more appropriate descriptor. There really aren't many games like Rogue. Dungeon Stone Soup, Pixel Dungeon, Nethack, Caves of Qud... those are probably the only recent ones.

[logincrash]

Caves of Qud

The Little Caves That Qud

[stormvermin]

Neat. I purchased a copy but I dunno when I'll actually sit down and play it. Gratz to your buddy.

Edit: took a peek on my secret laptop at work. Excellent music. Forgive me for saying this but I think I'm going to want to play with a controller

Screenshot 2025-09-11 164807.png

[ArcaneLurker]

For the past couple years I've been helping a buddy of mine with his solodev project KATANAUT, a sci-fi eldritch horror 2D pixel art roguelike. Inspired by Katana Zero and Dead Cells, KATANAUT involves slashing through hordes of enemies with an arsenal of over 150 skills, perks, and offhands.

Katanaut releases on September 10th, and I'm doing a free Steam key giveaway here on RPGHQ. All you need to do is have an RPGHQ account that was created yesterday or earlier and comment in this thread. I'll pick the winner randomly from the commenters on September 9th.

There's a demo on Steam if you'd like to check it out, and adding the game to your wishlists would also help us out a lot. Thanks!

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Looks really cool, thanks!

[Kriptini]