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Tower Tactics II Enters Steam Early Access with 190+ Cards and Custom Maps
Developer asraworks and publisher Assemble Entertainment have released their strategy sequel Tower Tactics II into Steam Early Access. Launched on October 8, 2026, the game combines roguelike deckbuilding with tower defense, challenging players to survive relentless enemy waves by building increasingly powerful decks and discovering new combinations.
Get Your Tactics Towering
The Sal’koth are back, and the universe is their target. Guided by Kaya, a new generation of tactical heroes must grow stronger, master new powers and fight through increasingly dangerous encounters. Complete quests, uncover the truth and stop the Sal’koth before they plunge the universe into darkness.
Players use their collected cards to build and upgrade defenses, attack enemies, manipulate the battlefield and create powerful combinations.
Key Features
Experiment with 190+ cards, 150 trinkets and five playable characters, alongside new enemies, decks, maps, tiles and game modes.
Shape each run with custom starting cards and trinkets, then grow stronger through the revamped Sanctuary.
Use Hero Cards, card items, status effects and powerful combinations to counter new enemy abilities.
Play with full controller support and Steam Deck compatibility.
Build maps, share them through Steam Workshop and take on challenges created by other players.
Where to Play
Tower Tactics II is available in Early Access on Steam for PC. This is the Early Access release, with development continuing beyond launch.
About the Teams
Assemble Entertainment is an independent German publisher whose catalog includes Sticky Business, Roadwarden and the Endzone franchise. asraworks is the solo development studio behind the Tower Tactics series, combining deckbuilding, roguelike progression and tower defense.
Windrose Reveals Ashlands Update for This Winter with New Missions, Factions and a Ship
Oct. 8, 2026 – Kraken Express has revealed a new teaser for Windrose’s first major content update, Ashlands, during the Triple-i Initiative showcase. The pirate survival-adventure’s update is due this winter, bringing new main and side missions, new factions, a new ship to command and a challenging new boss.
A New Destination on the Horizon
Ashlands expands the map with new locations, including a long-abandoned Spanish colony. Alongside its additional missions and factions, the update promises improvements to combat, gameplay and NPC behavior, plus further enhancements.
Kraken Express says Windrose sold more than two million copies in its first month of PC Early Access. The current version offers dozens of hours of content, with its feature set continuing to grow through community feedback.
Life on Land and at Sea
Explore, sail and plunder through the Age of Piracy, moving between your ship and a settlement on shore. Trade cannon fire, board enemy vessels, craft equipment and challenge bosses with an arsenal of weapons.
Venture into uncharted lands, fight for rare treasures, recruit NPCs for your crew and grow your base. You can build your pirate life alone or team up with friends to take on the high seas.
Where to Play
Windrose is available in Early Access on Steam and the Epic Games Store. Ashlands is scheduled for this winter; an exact release date has not been announced in this update.
Early Access is always a gamble. Sometimes you’re buying into a vision. Other times... you’re stepping into a world that’s already found its footing but still has room to grow. PIONER sits firmly in the latter category — an atmospheric, systems-driven survival shooter that feels confident in what it wants to be, even as it continues to evolve on the road to full release. Hop in and lets roll!
Set in a haunting, post-apocalyptic open world that blends Eastern European grit with sci-fi mystery, PIONER doesn’t rush to explain itself. Instead, it lets tension, exploration, and... player choice do the talking. The result is an experience that rewards patience, curiosity, and preparedness — and with recent refinements under the hood, that experience is becoming smoother, smarter, and more inviting for long-term players.
This gameplay footage was recorded before the most recent major update. While visuals, performance, and systems have since improved, this video gives you a grounded look at the core gameplay loop, tone, and early-game pacing that define the PIONER experience.
A World That Wants You to Learn It, Not Conquer It
PIONER’s strength lies in how it balances danger with discovery. Every zone feels intentional — not just as a combat space, but as an ecosystem. You’re scavenging, managing resources, navigating hostile factions, and deciding when to engage or disengage. This isn’t a run-and-gun power fantasy... even if it's tempting to do so; it’s a survival-focused experience where awareness matters just as much as firepower.
As you move through areas like the Rogue Wasteland, Mushroom Valley, and the Midlands, you’ll notice how the game subtly teaches you its rules. Enemy placement, environmental hazards, and loot distribution all push you to slow down and think. That design philosophy carries into raids, PvP encounters, and global events, making progression feel earned rather than handed out.
Depths of Tartarus: What the Update Improves (Without Breaking the Vision)
Rather than reinventing the wheel, the Depths of Tartarus update reinforces PIONER’s foundation by tightening systems that matter most during long play sessions.
🔧 Performance & Optimization
This is where the update shines. Improved RAM usage, faster world map loading, reduced draw calls, and a new data precaching system significantly reduce stuttering and performance hiccups. Cutscenes run smoother, environments load more cleanly, and traversal feels less interrupted — especially in larger zones.
Lighting and character model optimizations also make the world feel more cohesive without dramatically altering its visual identity.
New Content That Adds Variety, Not Noise
New PvP Map: “Dawn” (6v6 Brawl)
A tighter, more controlled PvP space that emphasizes positioning and teamwork.
New Raid Quest: “Crab Island”
A welcome addition for PvE-focused players looking for structured challenges with meaningful rewards.
Steam Achievements
Small addition, big motivation — especially for completionists.
These additions expand the game without overwhelming it, which is exactly what Early Access content should do.
Smarter Economy, Better Balance
The update also addresses progression pacing:
Adjusted drop rates for key materials
Improved merchant pricing logic
Increased chances of rare weapon workpieces from minibosses
Rebalanced repair costs and requirements
Combat tuning brings noticeable changes as well, particularly for assault rifles, crossbows, and throwable weapons. Nothing feels wildly overpowered, but several tools now feel more viable across different playstyles.
(And yes — Vodka stats were fixed, which somehow feels very on-brand.)
Quality-of-Life Changes That Quietly Matter
Some of the most impactful improvements aren’t flashy:
Faster and more reliable raid matchmaking
Improved climbing and collision across all maps
Better NPC navigation and quest flow
Increased resource stack limits
Headgear visibility toggles via the Skin Workbench
These are the kinds of refinements that don’t always make headlines but dramatically improve day-to-day play.
Early Access Verdict (So Far)
PIONER feels like a game that understands patience — both in how it’s played and how it’s being developed. The Depths of Tartarus update doesn’t try to sell hype; it builds trust. Performance improvements, meaningful balance tweaks, and focused content additions all point toward a team committed to long-term stability rather than short-term spikes.
If you’re the type of player who enjoys watching a world take shape — learning its systems, adapting to its dangers, and growing alongside it — PIONER is... already worth keeping on your radar.
The descent is just beginning.
To celebrate the update, PIONER is available on Steam at a 20% discount until February 16.
Become an Envoy of Death, able to unleash the incredible powers that will make you the most dangerous soul in Limbo. Upgrade your character’s abilities to become the ultimate Soulslinger and take on thrilling challenges in a bloody war against the criminal cartel of the afterlife!
Step into the rich and immersive world of Haven, filled with mysterious NPCs who hold the secrets to its dark history. Be wary of the allies and enemies you make as every encounter might shape your journey ahead. In this mesmerizing western-fantasy world, you will experience a tale of grief, loss, and one man's obsession with cheating death itself.
Forge your own destiny with every run by crafting powerful weapons and unlocking permanent upgrades in Haven. Grow stronger with every new challenge and become an incredibly deadly gunslinger. Get ready for a fast-paced rogue-lite FPS experience you won’t ever forget!
Fast-paced, story-driven roguelike FPS set in random sequences of rooms built in a unique western-fantasy world
Customize Soulslinger through a deep upgrade system
Experience a tightly written story filled with loyal allies and charismatic villains. The story adapts to what you do in the roguelike gameplay
Tons of gun fodder creeps that attack in waves, spiced up by challenging elite mobs
Secret-Society-Themed Cooperative Roguelite Shooter: ‘Riftstorm’ has a planned release for 2025!
If you're going to Pax East, you can find RIFTSTORM at booth #18105
Fight a relentless battle against cosmic horrors as an elite secret operative. Riftstorm is a Multiplayer Roguelite Shooter featuring unique weapon skills, challenging dungeons, and high replayability for solo and up to 3 players co-op.
Cosmic Horror Meets Military Occultism
Venture into the realms of the unknown filled with myths and nightmares. In this universe, the creatures and things of myth and nightmare are called mythics; and those who face them everyday are the operatives of the secretive organization known only as the: Mythic Protocol.
Riftstorm with its distinguished presentation and fast and flowing action is a Roguelite Shooter featuring unique weapon skills, challenging dungeons and high-replayability for solo and co-op. Play as an elite secret operative against the unending threat of cosmic horrors.
Starting Point
The player will go through a short tutorial on how the controls work, then, after finishing the tutorial, they will go to the operative's base and can choose which mission they want to go through solo or co-op. The player can also choose from four operatives based on their specialty and choose their weapon loadout before going through the mission.
Cosmic Horror Meets Military Occult
Explosive action and some amazing moves can be executed as you venture into the realms of the unknown filled with myths and nightmares. In this universe, the creatures and things of myth and nightmare are called Mythics; and those who face them daily are the Operatives
Intense Multiplayer Roguelite Shooter
Take control by shooting, dodging, customizing each run to your strengths and choosing your preferred playstyle. Dominate the dungeon in an intense co-op roguelite shooter, master shooting, dodging and experience different challenges through procedurally generated dungeons. Create the best builds, experiment, and adapt.
Up to 3 Players Co-op PvE
Unite with allies in a more challenging and thrilling multiplayer dungeon through co-op gameplay. Work together and survive increasingly challenging encounters to earn the best loot.
Instant Action, Long-Term Mastery
Riftstorm seamlessly blends intense action, challenging gameplay, and skill mastery, allowing you to jump in and out of the action at your own pace as you build on your skills and reflexes to master the game.
In total, this new playtest it will introduce:
3 new Threat Levels (missions of varying difficulties)
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