Sydney, Australia, September 1, 2026 – Milestone have announced an update for Screamer, its arcade racing game that blends innovative gameplay with a deep story set in a dystopian, anime-infused world. Following last March’s worldwide launch, the Patch adds quality-of-life improvements and major bug fixes based on player feedback, providing further post-launch support.
The updates give players greater freedom from the very beginning, with Screamer now starting from the Main Menu rather than automatically launching into the Tournament story mode. This way, everyone can shape their own journey and decide how to approach the game, including practicing and exploring its gameplay systems before diving into the story. Players can also access the in-game tutorials directly from the pause menu in any game mode, making it easy to learn or revisit key gameplay mechanics whenever needed.
Character balancing has also been addressed, with adjustments to several characters currently underperforming in races. This way, players will experience fairer races while enjoying more opportunities to experiment with different characters and playstyles.
To preserve the integrity of Screamer’s competitive experience, the team is also continuing to take action against illegitimate leaderboard times obtained through cheats or other unfair methods. Following internal investigations, several times have been removed, and a warning has been sent to offenders.
The full patch notes are available below:
General
When launching the game for the first time, players will now be brought to the Main Menu instead of starting The Tournament. This change has also been applied to the demo version of the game.
The Tournament
During races, players can now see their set customisation for each car.
Characters
Aisha:
Ability now recharges after 45 seconds, granting her multiple free shields throughout a race.
Reduced the threshold to activate SGU from 268 km/h to 282.5km/h.
Frederick:
Increased passive sync generation rate.
Increased active shift generation rate.
Fermi:
Increased maximum entropy by one.
Akane:
Fixed an issue where Akane could activate Strike and the Boost gained from her Skill at the same time.
Steering Wheels
Fixed an issue on some peripherals where force feedback wasn’t working properly and couldn’t be tweaked from the options menu.
Score Challenge
Fixed an exploit that allowed players to gain very high scores using the Pause button.
Console only
Several optimisations have been made to improve responsiveness during gameplay on all consoles. Please note that these changes do not affect the PC version.
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About Milestone
Founded in Milan in 1996, Milestone is one of the leading and longest-established racing game developers and publishers in the world. The +300 people team is responsible for hit series like MotoGP™, Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame, the acclaimed Hot Wheels Unleashed™, as well as its own IP, RIDE. For more information, please visit https://milestone.it/
Compete for viewers’ votes in prime-time to avoid hard time and death row in a new game show
TOKYO — 1 September, 2026 —BUZZ or DIE, the violent sci-fi visual novel developed by Bon, ruins reputations on PC via Steam in 2026. The gruesome game show will come to life, to end inmates’ lives, through a collaboration with Japanese publisher Kodansha Game Creators’ Lab.
A handful of “lucky” prisoners get to gamble double-or-nothing with their lives in a new game show: BUZZ or DIE! Two opponents comb through their rival’s past to create the most damning video possible, with a catchy thumbnail, then screen it for the entire country. Go viral and walk out with a squeaky-clean record. Flop, and earn a grisly streamed execution. Your post is trending, or you are meeting your ending!
Dig through the opponent’s entire history in search of scandalous skeletons in their closet: read through their past conversations, and scan their memories for disgraceful deeds, treacherous thoughts, and appalling actions.
Package their horrid histories with the perfect words and images to create a killer thumbnail in the most salacious manner possible, then roll the video for the audience. Whoever pulls in the most likes earns their freedom and one wish. The loser is put to death, with their android likeness condemned to eternal labor. It’s a dig at their dignity… but it’s not like they’ll be around to see it.
Among the peculiar cast with sordid pasts handpicked for stardom (or expedited execution): a former comedian turned bomber, a genius hacker, a revolutionary, and a chef with an appetite for people. It’s a popularity contest like no other, with no consolation prizes!
“At first glance, Buzz or Die seems a bit extreme. It has an outrageous premise, and complicated characters,” says Bon, solo developer, “It’s a hard-hitting, memorable gameplay experience, and there’s a ton of depth to be discovered that I do not want to spoil.”
BUZZ or DIE arrives on PC via Steam in 2026 with language options in English, Japanese, and Simplified Chinese. For more information, follow developer Bon on X / Twitter.
About Bon
Bon is an independent game developer based in Japan, known for vividly drawn characters set against dark, thought-provoking worlds. Their previous works include EgoMixer and Twelve Angry Boyfriends.
About Kodansha Game Creator’s Lab
Established in 2021, Kodansha Game Creator’s Lab is the fourth department of the prestigious entertainment publishing company Kodansha Ltd., founded in 1909. Its motto is “Everything for the creator,” reflecting the company’s goal to support young talents and introduce indie creators to the wider public.
BORDEAUX, France – Aug. 31, 2026 – The much-anticipated closed beta for Frostrail, the brutal co-op survival FPS from Barotrauma developer FakeFish and publisher Shiro Unlimited, launches today on Steam as part of Steam’s PvE Survival Crafting Fest. To join the playtest for the top 100 wishlisted game, sign up on the FrostrailSteam page.
Brave the bitter cold of a post-apocalyptic, unending blizzard, traversing by way of locomotive. Climb aboard a train alone or in a team of up to four and set out across the wasteland. Stop to scavenge ruins, secure vital resources as well as other much-needed supplies, and survive day-by-day.
Explore the remnants of villages, rundown mining camps, and deadly underground vaults to gather food, materials, and powerful weapons before racing back to the train before the cold claims you. Remain ever-vigilant: the blizzard’s bite isn’t the only threat to manage. Ravenous creatures called Revenants stalk the wasteland, attacking unsuspecting adventurers. Repel their violent hunger with an arsenal of melee and ranged weaponry in intense FPS showdowns.
Engage with deep crafting systems aboard the locomotive, turning scavenged materials into upgraded arms, armor, and upgrades to the train itself. Create research stations, medical bays, and even new cars to turn the train into a mobile fortress while progressing deeper into the wasteland
“Throughout development, community feedback has been central to making Frostrail the best game it can be,” said Ez Jämsen, Lead Designer at FakeFish. “With the launch of today’s Closed Beta, we’re eagerly awaiting the next batch of survivors and excited to hear their feedback as we prepare for our Early Access launch later this year.”
Frostrail will launch on Steam Early Access for Windows PC in Q4 2026 with English, Spanish, French, German, Russian, Polish, Portuguese – Brazil, and Simplified Chinese language support.
Shiro Unlimited is the publishing label of Shiro Games, built on over 12 years of experience developing and publishing successful indie titles. Shiro Unlimited curates and supports projects aligned with the studio’s creative vision, while empowering developers to focus on what matters most: making the best games possible.
For more information on Shiro Unlimited, please visit the official website.
About FakeFish
FakeFish, based in Turku, Finland, was established in 2014 by 5 university friends and has since grown to an independent studio of 30 people. Their first game, the critically acclaimed Barotrauma, has sold more than 3MM units since its initial launch in 2019 and helped shape the studio’s philosophy of delivering memorable experiences and creating a transparent and open community for both developers and players alike.
For more information on Fake Fish, please visit the official website.
SEOUL, South Korea — Indie studio BANJIHAGAMES, creator of the text-based survival hit Seoul 2033, today announced Cold Case, a keyword-driven detective game about digital forensics, coming to Steam for Windows and macOS in 2027.
Overnight, a prosecutor burned to death at home — along with the old case files stored there. As an investigator in Cold Case, the unit responsible for preserving records of past crimes, you must recover eight case files pulled from the ashes and piece together what really happened.
Every photograph and document at the scene has been charred black. Your forensic toolkit can bring them back if you know what to look for. Search a damaged file for a keyword, and every fragment containing that word is restored. Each recovered line points to the next keyword, pulling you deeper into the case until the record and the truth is 100% complete. There are no multiple-choice prompts here: the deductions are yours.
Key Features:
Keyword forensics: restore charred documents by searching for the right words; every recovered fragment is a new lead
Eight standalone cold cases: each with its own crime scene, suspects, and buried truth
Real deduction, not branching choices: the game never hands you options; what you search is what you solve
Reconstruct the sequence of events: from crime-scene photos, witness statements, and recovered records
Atmospheric pixel-art crime scenes: that bring decades-old cases vividly back to life
Localized in five languages: English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese
About BANJIHAGAMES
BANJIHAGAMES is a Seoul-based indie studio that started in 2016 in a semi-basement apartment the “banjiha” of its name under the motto “better to fail with something original than succeed with a copy.” The studio is best known for Seoul 2033, a text-based post-apocalyptic adventure recognized at Google Play’s Indie Games Festival 2019, along with a string of original mobile hits.
From The Bunker puts a free demo on Steam as the PvE Survival Crafting Fest opens
[August 31, 2026] – A viral outbreak has emptied a quiet southern town. The people who survived it are packed into an abandoned bunker in the forest, and every day brings a new decision about who eats, who works, and who goes outside. From The Bunker, a survivor-management game from four-person independent studio DEM Games, releases a free demo on Steam on August 31 at 10:00 a.m. PT, timed to the opening of Steam’s PvE Survival Crafting Fest.
You play the group’s leader. Survivors arrive with their own strengths, weaknesses and needs, and their physical health, mental state and willingness to fight for the group all trace back to how you lead them. Neglect someone and they may walk out. Choose wrong and they may not survive at all. The bunker is the other half of the job: a forgotten shelter you turn into somewhere people can actually live, while the infected, hostile factions and desperate looters press in from outside.
Key features include:
Lead a group of survivors — Assign jobs, monitor morale, and balance hunger, fear and exhaustion before they tear the group apart.
Defend your last refuge — Build generators for electricity, upgrade boilers for clean water, raise barricades against infected hordes, and set traps for nighttime raids.
Venture beyond the bunker — Search ruined streets, abandoned shops and military depots for weapons, food and medicine, and weigh the risk of every expedition against what the group needs.
Every choice matters — Over 300 narrative events force hard calls that shape the group’s future, with different outcomes and endings depending on what you decide.
From The Bunker is a single-player game. The free demo goes live on Steam on August 31 at 10:00 a.m. PT as the Steam PvE Survival Crafting Fest begins. The full game is currently in development.
PREPARE FOR EXTERMINATION. Multiversal roguelite Serious Sam: Shatterversehas finally dropped its substantial load ontoPC,Xbox Series X|S, andPlayStation 5priced €19.99. Pick it up during launch week and enjoy an extra 10% discount, perfect to take advantage of the massive Serious Sam franchise sale on Steam!
Developed by Behaviour Interactive, the creators of Dead By Daylight, this fresh take on boomer shooter classic Serious Sam brings oh-so-modern cooperative and roguelite elements to the series’ trademark over-the-top FPS action. Up to five players can team up, blast through shifting universes, stack wild boons, bend the rules with run modifiers, and hunt the deadliest forces of Sam’s relentless arch-nemesis, the villainous Mental.
Mental’s maniacal machinations have fractured the walls between universes, and now Sams from multiple dimensions must learn to work together to repair the Shatterverse. You’ll travel across shifting universes to finish battles other Sams couldn’t, fighting alongside alternate versions of yourself to defeat the big bad’s five nefarious lieutenants.
Or, if you’re vehemently antisocial or just have no friends, blast through the exact same Serious Sam: Shatterverse experience offline in solo mode!
“Reviving the legendary gunplay, massive enemy hordes, and unforgettable bosses that Serious Sam is known for, while blasting into bold new roguelike territory was challenging, but extremely rewarding,” comments Behaviour Interactive’s Nic Duchesne. “We hope Shatterverse will welcome newcomers and excite longtime fans, and deliver a fun, social, and – most importantly – complete experience designed to last. Everything we did over the course of the last several years was fueled by incredible community feedback, and we can’t wait for players to assemble their squads, crush Mental’s hordes, and save the Samverse!”
FEATURES
Wield a big, loud, stupid, and frankly irresponsible arsenal of weapons, mixing classic Serious Sam guns and all-new toys plucked from the Shatterverse
High adrenaline run-and-gun FPS combat with big battlefields, non-stop pressure, a lot of backpedaling, and perfectly timed one-liners when everything’s on fire
Leans into Serious Sam’s legacy and pushes it forward with procedurally shifted runs across hand-crafted arenas set in previously unexplored worlds
Navigate unstable anomalies, hidden portals, and high-risk opportunities that can supercharge a run – or end it instantly
Push forward for greater rewards, unlock powerful modifiers, and take advantage of upgrades that permanently expand your possibilities
Face off against massive hordes of enemies including classic Serious Sam foes and fresh monsters under Mental’s control, all begging to be gibbed
Take aim at serioussam.com for more details. See you in the Shatterverse!
London, UK, 31st August 2026 – Continuing the success of its official launch in July, Stunt X Mania’s ReVR Games is thrilled to announce the first major post-launch update for the VR motocross title, arriving today, 31st August 2026. Adding fan-requested features and enhanced gameplay, the update further solidifies Stunt X Mania’s place on Meta Quest as a premium motocross experience.
As all players know, getting that bike feel is super important, and to that end, ReVR Games has ensured that Stunt X Mania features hyper-realistic controls from the outset. But for those that just want to ride and perform tricks, the new arcade control scheme is for them. Instant input and accessibility make the bike easy and fun to handle. Once that’s been mastered, full manual controls await.
Additionally, you want a bike to feel like a bike. Stunt X Mania now features advanced haptic feedback enabling players to experience every bump, jump and landing like never before. And to improve the immersion even further, new atmospheric and ambient sounds now fill the arenas. Hear the crowd come to life as you perform trick after trick.
But that’s not all! Stunt X Mania is now bigger and better than ever, with a new map to explore, new ramps to trick off of, and more bike skins to further customise your ride.
“From the streets of India to virtual tracks around the world, Stunt X Mania is putting immersive racing on a global starting grid,” says Rohan Das, Chief Game Designer & Co-founder at ReVR Games. “Thanks to our latest update, this isn’t a bike racing game you play. It’s a bike racing experience you live.”
Stunt X Mania Summer Update Key Features:
Enhanced Haptics – Feel the bike and every bump and landing like never before!
New Controls – Arcade-style controls to make your motocross experience even simpler
New Content – A new map, bike skins and ramp further expand the SXM world
Immersive Sounds – You’re not alone in the arena; hear the crowds for the first time
The Stunt X Mania Summer Update will be available to all SXM players for free from 31st August 2026. Stunt X Mania is available now for Meta Quest, priced at $9.99/£6.99.
Experience the thrill of motocross like never before in Stunt X Mania. Have you ever dreamed of performing a One-hand Heart Attack or Superman while in the comfort of your home? Pulling wheelies and 360-degree flips like a pro rider? Now you can, perfecting those riding skills for massive combo multipliers and the excitement only motocross sports can bring.
AboutReVR Games:
Pushing the boundaries of interactive entertainment, one game at a time! We are a group of passionate individuals who’ve come together to give you the best experience on VR, PC, and Consoles
[Argentina] – August 27th, 2026 – Morrigan, the goddess of death, took Alys’ husband. Alys picked up a sword and went to take him back. On September 3rd that fight reaches its first console, as SoulQuest arrives on Nintendo Switch. Developed by SoulBlade Studio and published by indie.io, the side-scrolling spectacle fighter has spent four months winning over players on Steam and now brings its story of grief, defiance, and frame-perfect violence to a new audience.
The village of Cetonia burned in a single day. Gwydre, the mightiest knight in the world, died defending it and the gods ruled the matter closed. His widow disagreed. Searching the ruins for survivors, Alys meets Abanus, a druid who tells her that souls can be pulled back from the realm of the dead, but only by someone willing to face Morrigan herself and take that power from her. Alys does not hesitate. What follows is a journey across the British Isles to confront the entire Celtic pantheon, one god at a time.
Combat is where SoulQuest makes its case. Light and heavy attacks chain into dozens of freeform combos, each animation flowing into the next without a seam, and beyond the blade sit magical abilities and screen-clearing ultimates that let every player build a style of their own. It is easy to pick up and genuinely difficult to master. Enemies arrive in relentless waves and the game grades the response on a scale from a shameful F to the coveted SSS, turning survival into performance and rewarding the players who treat a crowded arena as choreography rather than a chore.
Underneath the violence is a world built from Celtic folklore and Arthurian myth, rendered in crisp pixel art and scored with a medieval-inspired soundtrack. Every location is drawn from the real geography of the British Isles and every boss is a name someone once prayed to.
That combination has landed. SoulQuest holds a Very Positive rating on Steam, where players have singled out the depth of the combo system and the strength of Alys’ story.Ready to take up the blade and throw down the gauntlet to the goddess of death? SoulQuest arrives on Nintendo Switch on September 3rd, and is available now on Steam.
ABOUT SOULBLADE STUDIO
A small, independent studio from Argentina, SoulBlade was founded in 2023 with the goal of creating inspiring games that captivate gamers. The ambitious SoulQuest is their second title, combining lightning-fast gameplay with dazzling visuals and a riveting story!
ABOUT INDIE.IO
indie.io is home to over 100 of the world’s best independent video games and developers. Our platform was built to provide independent developers with the resources, services, and management tools needed for success. Through collaboration and passion, we strive to cultivate a diverse and vibrant gaming landscape that resonates with players and creators alike!
Sometimes a game comes along and surprises you in nearly every way. Sometimes this is because you’ve been trying to avoid trailers to experience everything for yourself firsthand without any spoilers, even the smallest ones. Other times it may be because the numerous mechanics at work flow together so well and tell such a cohesive and enthralling story; it delivers a near-perfect experience. In the case of The Blood of Dawnwalker, it just so happens to be both. Bringing with it some considerable talent, Rebel Wolves has managed to create an original IP in The Blood of Dawnwalker that few probably could see as being just as amazing as it sounds. Set in an open world during the Black Plague and cast in a dual-role life in a race against the clock, expectations were high, and thankfully Rebel Wolves has managed to clear them and then some.
Story
Set in the fourteenth century in Europe, the Black Death, better known as the Black Plague, is sweeping through the land and burning away the lives of thousands of people. No one can stop it; no one even knows where it comes from. In the isolated valley of Vale Sangora, the people struggle even further under the tyrannical rule of an oppressive king, that is, until they find themselves trading one curse for another. As Coen flees from the pursuing forces of the king’s men, following his edict to slay anyone who is infected by the plague. In a desperate attempt to save his younger sister, Coen flees to the hills even as he is overpowered by numerous men, when suddenly these well-armoured soldiers are torn to shreds and feasted upon by swift-moving beings beyond Coen’s wildest nightmares. After seeing these beings, who he soon understands are vampires, the vrakhiri, as they call themselves, are now their new lords in the valley as they have the one thing everyone desperately needs. A cure for the plague.
Upon watching his sister’s near-dead state heal completely from a few drops of vrakhiri blood, save bring his sister right back to normal, it soon becomes clear that this monster, this being known as Brencis and his clique of vampires, a trio of his boyars each with their own unique strengths, weaknesses, and twisted personalities to bring to the humble vale. After slaying the ruling king and any nobility that refuse to bend to his rule, Brencis dictates that the people of Vale Sangora must “donate” a pint of blood regularly to keep the vrakhiri fed, but things are far worse than they seem and even in the best of conditions, this has begun pushing people to the limit after a couple of years under their rule, even if they must still rely on regularly drinking bits of vrakhiri blood to stave off the plague.
With his mother vanishing into herself and the people of Laslea, who once had access to a silver mine, tired of Brencis’ weekly masses of draining blood, decide to re-open the mine and take the fight to the vrakhiri once and for all. Or at least they would have if they weren’t near instantly found, with nearly everyone being killed and Coen finding himself at the mercy of Brencis, who takes one of his teeth and embeds it directly into his heart. While this would usually mean death, in this instance that is exactly how a vrakhiri is made, and Coen eventually finds himself stumbling out of the mines to find that not only is the village of Laslea aflame, but his family and any survivors are being taken to the dungeons in Brencis’ castle for his “coronation” that will happen in thirty days. In an attempt to stop Brencis early, Coen is easily overpowered and embedded against a tree, left for the sun to finish Brencis’ job, only for him to awaken in the bed of the local healer, finding that while Coen is a vampire by night, he is human by day, making him a Dawnwalker that has only thirty days ticking away to save his family.
The Blood of Dawnwalker may seem a bit frontloaded, but there is a good reason for that. Once the prologue comes to an end and players are able to venture out into the world, the entire world is theirs to explore. It is theoretically possible to take a straight shot all the way to the castle walls and try to save your family instantly, even if doing so would end with instant death before players could even get past the first set of guards. Instead, it is up to players how they want to dictate their story to go, what missions they choose to do, what missions they skip or avoid, and who they may want to ally with. Players who feel like angering one of Brencis’ boyars can target one of their operations, such as blood transports, pillories that humiliate and punish disobedience, rebel hunters, or even disrupt the efforts to search for ancient artifacts or recruit members into the supernatural “Blood Guard.”
The key component here is that nearly every mission takes a portion of time, some as simple as one block of time to up to three blocks for even the simplest of missions, meaning that taking down a blood storage facility will change the time from dawn to noon, bringing players closer to the night. Even simple things such as restoring a broken shrine or clearing out a den of wolves can notch a block off the time of day. This doesn’t even cover more intricate missions that follow longer and more detailed events that often see massive chunks of time taken in order to fully complete them, though often the reward for doing so is suitably fitting. Not only narratively but from an equipment perspective as well. That being said, it is also worth noting that this time system is not nearly as punishing as some may see it as at first, as it is entirely possible, if players properly manage their time and avoid certain aspects or upgrading their skills, to have plenty of time to work with.
It must be said that The Blood of Dawnwalker has some of the best writing that an open world game has had in quite some time. Nearly every mission players undertake, be it destroying a convoy, distillery, or something else minor, there is usually some extra tidbit of story here, be it a note on a body, a choice involving characters that may or may not come back to bite players later on, or reward them, and more. For example, saving a group of prisoners may see them appear on the side of the road robbing and killing innocents, saying they are supporting the player’s cause by killing Brencis’ supporters, resulting in yet another choice in putting down these killers or letting them go about their way. There is no good or bad choice, no morality system; in fact, the game often likes to sit heavily in the shades of grey area. One moment players might be simply letting a gangster hack a debtor’s arm off to prove they’re just a prospective customer, only for the next moment to have him busting his head open against a wall to get what they need.
These are only the surface and side-story level missions as well; this doesn’t even cover the primary missions that see players finding allies that will potentially fight alongside them in the battle against Brencis, provide unique revelations that may weaken his forces, or even obtain permanent quest-bound bonuses that will rely on the player’s choices on whether they wish to obtain them or not along the way. The characters throughout these longer questlines feel like real people, especially in the realistic enough setting of a supernatural fourteenth-century Europe. Taking part in their storylines will make players eager to burn time, even if it may mean that something else will have to wait by the wayside as a result. It is also worth noting that there are three romanceable characters in the game and it is possible for players to be with all three characters at once, though there is no real lasting implication for the romance beyond a bit of extra dialogue and some spicy scenes.
As for Brencis, his boyars, and the environmental storytelling, The Blood of Dawnwalker takes things to the next level. Throughout the player’s journey, they will constantly come across ruins of ancient civilisations, long forgotten but hinting at far more about the vrakhiri than meets the eye, long forgotten rituals of power, betrayals, and more, giving players so many contextual clues to try and put things together for themselves without ever saying it outright. As for the Boyars, these three are unique in their own rights as they each have goals of their own, even if some are far pettier than others and even willing to beg to be saved once defeated. While we won’t spoil things here in regard to what happens when a boyar is slain, it is extremely interesting to note that anytime Coen drinks the blood of a slain vampire, players will be given the choice to “accept them.”
This will result in these characters then whispering in Coen’s ear as they make their way through the game from then on, commenting on his actions, people he is talking with, or even dangerous locations he may be venturing into. Nowhere is this hinted at, nor was it ever a potential thought that it would happen, but being able to have the echoing ghosts of numerous vampires commenting was an enriching experience that made engaging with the world more enjoyable, especially in regards to its mystical elements. Speaking of which, the mystical elements of The Blood of Dawnwalker also play a significant role in keeping things mysterious and never quite answering what players want, even in regards to Brencis and his plans, as well as Coen’s nature, just barely giving enough that players can put things together for themselves, and the revelations are outstanding once they come. None of these we will spoil here, but some of them are quite surprising and in a way incredibly grounded, making this a game that players will enjoy every bloody moment of.
Gameplay
In many ways, The Blood of Dawnwalker is as accessible as it can be when it comes to an open world RPG. Right from the beginning, the game offers a variety of difficulty modes ranging from easy to hard and even a special difficulty mode called “duelist” that removes directional signals from incoming enemy attacks, lowers Coen’s total stamina, but also makes enemies have far less health, being a double-edged sword for those who want to test their limits. These difficulties can be modified even further by having various tweaks, such as allowing players to use healing items from their inventory during battle instead of only what is available on the quick-use pad, the ability to auto-block attacks, and other modifiers to make things easier for those who simply want to enjoy the storyline and explore the world, while those who want to bear the brunt of the Knyaz’s forces.
When it comes to combat, players will be able to experience it in two forms depending on the time of day, but many of the mechanics remain the same regardless. Similar to the difficulty options, players can choose to fight using either traditional combat or directional combat, the former costing more stamina while the latter requires precise aim for blocks and parries but also rewards the player with a generous amount of buffs eventually. Either way, during the day, Coen will wield his sword and can make use of Hex magic spells that the player has uncovered and learned throughout their adventure, be it burning the blood of their enemies, summoning a flock of crows to descend on them, or even creating a barrier to reflect attacking foes’ damage back onto them. Depending on the Hex ability and whether players have upgraded their witchcraft skill tree in certain regards, the spells require HP to cast, meaning players will sacrifice health to damage their opponents, and while it is possible to eat food during combat, their healing effects are slowed drastically. On the other hand, crafted healing pastes, ointments, and other potions can instantly heal the player or provide constant regeneration, including multi-day benefits depending on the strength of the potion used.
Regardless of the time of day, Coen can make use of any swordmastery skills that he has learned, and players will start out with a simple “dirty trick” of throwing sand into an opponent’s eyes to temporarily stun them, to eventually using skills that target an enemy’s weak point and potentially instantly decapitate them. All skills, be they swordmastery, Hexes, or Vampiric, take activation charges to use, with more powerful skills requiring more charges. These charges refill by blocking properly and dealing damage to enemies. It is also worth noting that most swords of blue rarity or higher will generally have a special attack of their own that can be used on a cooldown to perform a unique attack, though some of the best swords in the game have extremely powerful unique attacks that vary whether Coen is fighting as a human or as a vampire.
Before we move on to the vampiric abilities, it is worth noting that players must use skill points earned through levelling up or completing missions to unlock every type of skill, often costing a segment of time too, but Swordmastery and Hexes also have an extra requirement of needing the player to acquire a book containing the knowledge first. This is often done either through completing activities such as purifying haunted locations or discovering places of power for Hexes or seeking out swordmasters or simply killing soldiers and looting their bodies for swordmastery books. Many can also be straight up purchased through vendors if players have enough coin, though the strongest variations are often hidden away.
On the other end of the coin, though, things are slightly different but noticeably so as well. Once night falls, Coen will not only have increased health and heal over time, but also require blood and while players can feast on animals such as sheep, deer, and even rats to restore health, they won’t often provide nearly as much as humans. Thankfully, battling against Brencis’ soldiers will often provide players with plenty of human blood vials to keep Coen’s bloodthirst sated, since there is a unique mechanic where, should Coen talk to a character while too low on health, he will literally force the player’s hand and consume them down to the last drop, even if they are an important NPC.
Travelling around as a vampire is also far different than travelling as a human. While human, Coen can use a passive ability to move incredibly quickly while running, and if it is upgraded to the max it will literally look like everything is moving in slow motion while he runs, but as a vampire Coen transforms into a wolf form which can similarly be upgraded for faster running speeds, but everything remains the same speed around him, meaning humans will run in fear and guards will notice. It is also worth noting that Coen’s vampiric form is also capable of “Planeshifting” where he can teleport short distances such as onto rooftops or even onto the side of a wall, literally allowing him to walk up a wall as long as the player has stamina, or use his claws to ride down a wall safely from a large height. Planeshift can also be used in combat to close distance on foes or jump behind them to attack from a vulnerable point.
Combat and skills as a vampire are another thing entirely from their daylight form, though they still make use of activation charges, and players can wield a sword if they prefer; but at night, Coen can also wield his vampiric claws as weapons. Similarly, drinking blood vials will instantly restore health, and a default skill can be used to drain an opponent mid-fight for a quick heal. Players can swap between fighting with their claws or their sword at a tap of a button, and even the claws can have unique attacks depending on the type of bracers the player has equipped. Similar to Hexes, using most offensive vampire skills costs a decent chunk of health, but it is also far easier to recover.
The problem here is that learning these skills not only requires a skill point, but also reaching certain levels of “corruption” from drinking enough blood, tainted creatures, and even other vrakhiri. Higher levels of corruption unlock further skills along the standard ability tree, while offensive skills are another thing entirely. These skills require players to do exactly what was just mentioned: drain the lifeblood of a powerful vrakhiri, unlocking their unique abilities at the same time. These can include skills that restore the player’s health upon a perfect block automatically as a passive bonus, creating a blood surge in an opponent and making them literally explode, mind controlling them, and more. Powerful skills come with a powerful price, and that is just the case here.
As one would expect, some people react far differently depending on how Coen looks when they talk with him, whether he be in human form or a vampire. Once they learn his true nature, it is often handwaved away, but initially quite a few confrontations with potential allies can be dangerous should the player show up as a vampire first. In fact, one of the first major losses of “time” came when trying to meet with a rebel leader only to find myself ambushed and bound to a tree with silver chains, left to burn in the sun while they watched, only to witness the human transformation, instead only burning half a night’s worth of time.
The time management system within the game is one that may seem like a burden at first but truly doesn’t feel like one once players realise what takes time and what doesn’t. Simple exploration, fighting standard enemies and the like, and interacting with the world will keep time as it is, while anything that will pass time will show an hourglass dictating how many segments will pass to partake in a mission or “wait” until a mission starts. For example, a mission that can only start at noon will display a double-digit time expenditure if it is already in the afternoon, meaning it is best pushed to the next day. It is also worth noting that missions that have a time limit are also given a clock icon to show they are on a timer and something bad may happen if players don’t prioritise it.
Audio & Visuals
The Blood of Dawnwalker is an incredibly impressive-looking title with quite a lot of detail when it comes to both the world design and the character designs. Various locales throughout the valley will have different types of terrain, such as the swamplands or mountainous regions mirroring what one would realistically expect, minus the monsters of course, and there is a decent amount of enemy variety too, especially since some of the opponents players come across are entirely unique and feature their own attack set. It is a little disappointing that sometimes a questline’s final boss is simply a stronger version of a spectre, though. The real highlights tend to involve anything beneath the surface as the hidden and forgotten parts of Vale Sangora are where the lore and the game’s environmental storytelling really shine.
As for the character models, it is nice to note that all of the NPCs players can have actual conversations with are unique, though the generic townsfolk walking around only have roughly twenty or so outfits between them. Monster designs and the terrifying locations players travel through are wonderful, and it also must be said that combat is both impactful and visceral. Perfectly blocking an incoming attack only to flow into a guaranteed critical hit feels wonderful, especially when an enemy is at low health, as Coen will generally perform an execution of sorts, be it a standard finishing blow, slicing an arm or a leg off, or straight up decapitating an enemy. Speaking of gore, as mentioned earlier, there is literally a vampire ability that detonates a target into an explosion of blood that literally splatters everywhere, and even sliced-off limbs will bleed extensively so prepare for a fairly brutal experience when taking on a squad of guards.
The Blood of Dawnwalker features a wide range of voice actors for the many characters that players will interact with from all age ranges, so it is rather surprising how well they perform, especially when it comes to dealing with the whispering of kobolds, eerie voices of the fae, or voices speaking inside Coen’s own head from other vampires he’s slain and taken into himself. It is something of an issue, however, that the human guards only have so many lines they can bark at Coen in combat, so players will often hear the same phrases repeated fairly often in battles with soldiers. The background music for the game is fitting and subtle when it needs to be and eerie all the same when players are traversing ruins or haunted locations.
Overall
There are few games that come around and can enthral a player like The Blood of Dawnwalker can. Rather than worrying about managing their time in the game, players will be finding themselves managing their real-world time to sink countless hours into Vale Sangora to try and find out every possible secret they can with the time allotted, all while enjoying the dual nature of the fine-tuned human/hex combat and vampire sides of combat and traversal. Even then, this can barely be scratching the surface, as there are entire sequences that players can approach in completely different ways depending on their actions, meaning that it is certainly worth trying more than once even if the game lacks a New Game+ of any kind. Combine that with multiple ending approaches and a story that is so detailed and layered, and is already primed to continue in the future, and The Blood of Dawnwalker is a shining example of what developers can do when they have the freedom to embrace something new.
Capsule Computers review guidelines can be found here.
North Beach Games details the first look at the next evolution of its survival sandbox, introducing an endless river world, dynamic environments, mobile bases, a living ecosystem and more
San Rafael, California and Prague, Czech Republic – August 31, 2026. North Beach Games today revealed the first teaser trailer for Stranded Deep 2, giving players their first look at the next evolution of the survival sandbox experience. The game’s Steam page is now live alongside the Steam PvE Survival Crafting Fest, giving players the opportunity to wishlist the game and discover the new frontier that awaits.
Developed and published by North Beach Games, with Stranded Deep co-creator Sam Edwards heading up the team as Creative Director, Stranded Deep 2 expands the survival sandbox experience into an unforgiving desert wilderness. Rather than being stranded in the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean, players must now survive within a harsh landscape shaped by scorching heat, winding rivers, towering canyons and deadly wildlife, with a whole new world of biomes to explore and resources to discover.
But the desert is only the beginning.
Stranded Deep 2 is a frontier exploration survival game. Players start as survivors, grow into explorers, and gradually discover that there is far more to the world than simply staying alive. At the heart of the experience is an endless river world, carving through canyons, dunes and valleys and providing a lifeline into a vast wilderness filled with danger and discovery.
Players can navigate the river by kayak or raft, with every journey offering new locations and experiences. The world is built around a growing library of handcrafted content, meaning the endless landscape isn’t simply an infinite loop of procedurally generated repetition. New biomes, locations, wildlife, crafting and other content can be added over time, allowing the world to become richer as the game evolves.
A World to Explore, Shape and Make Your Own
The world of Stranded Deep 2 reacts to the player, with dynamic water and terrain creating new ways to interact with the environment. Players can dig into the landscape, reshape terrain and redirect the river, while rapids and treacherous waters add new challenges to exploration.
Survival remains at the heart of the experience, with players managing health, hunger, thirst and exposure while learning to recognise the dangers around them.
For those looking to establish a home, mobile bases allow players to build floating homes and take them along the river. Pack up and move to the next stretch of wilderness, or settle on the banks and build a more permanent base.
The wilderness itself is a living ecosystem, with animals roaming, hunting and following a real food chain. Players are part of that ecosystem, and they’re not necessarily at the top.
Crafting has also been expanded through a more physical approach to customisation. Players choose the materials used to build their tools and structures, allowing equipment and creations to reflect the resources found during their journey.
The returning Cartographer has been revamped as Cartographer 2.0, giving players the tools to create their own locations and experiences and share them with friends across platforms.
Built to Grow
Built on a decade of community feedback, Stranded Deep 2 has been designed from the outset to grow through regular content updates.
Its modular foundation allows North Beach Games to expand the world with new biomes, locations, wildlife, crafting and Cartographer content, creating a world that gets richer over time and giving players more reasons to keep exploring.
Co-op is also being developed as a first-class feature, giving players new ways to explore the frontier together.
Stranded Deep 2 takes everything players loved about the original and expands it into a larger, more dynamic frontier, one where survival is just the beginning.
How Far Will You Go?
WishlistStranded Deep 2Now
The Steam page for Stranded Deep 2 is live now, giving fans their first opportunity to wishlist the game and follow its development.
About North Beach Games
North Beach Games is a global independent game company that publishes PC and console games with a focus on the survival crafting and role-playing categories. Its mission is to partner with and empower the world’s best independent developers and studios. Headquartered in San Rafael, CA, North Beach Games is comprised of industry veterans with a wide range of experience in publishing, marketing and game development. The company opened a new internal development studio in 2024 in Prague to expand its global footprint as a premier expert of survival crafting and RPG experiences. Most recently, North Beach Games launched the Durin’s Folk expansion for The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria™ with developer Free Range Games, available on the Epic Games Store, Steam, Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation®5.
AboutStranded Deep 2
Stranded Deep 2 is an expanded survival sandbox experience developed and published by North Beach Games, with Stranded Deep co-creator Sam Edwards returning as Creative Director.
Stranded in a scorching desert, players must follow an endless river through canyons and dunes, gathering resources, crafting, building and surviving against the elements and deadly wildlife. With expanded building systems, mobile raft bases, dynamic water interaction, diverse biomes and a new world to explore, Stranded Deep 2 takes the survival experience in an entirely new direction.
