Hi All, Chess Survivors is now officially in released into Early Access! This is my first game and I'm so excited to keep working on it over the coming months. This post is going to cover why I decided to release into early access and what the general roadmap will be. Cheers, Aarimous

Why Early Access?

Chess Survivors is my debut game as both a developer, designer, and publisher. As such, there is almost a guarantee that many of the systems will need to be reworks or improved upon. I am a solo developer which is where you come in. I'm hoping you can help me brainstorm ideas for how to improve my game.

Early Access Roadmap

This list is semi-ordered, but will change based on player feedback and what I want to work on next.

QOL Improvements, Bugs Fixes and Balance:

This will be ongoing based on player feedback. But one of the big things I want to do right away is to rework the gamepad controls.

Challenge Levels

This will allow the player to push more difficult content with me having to make the base game harder. I'll be taking inspiration for Ascension levels in Slay the Spire.

More Abilities, Relics, and Character

I've designed these three systems to be easily extendable and as such will be adding a ton more of each. I have plenty of ideas, but I'd love to hear yours as well.

End of Act Boss Fights and Map Diversity

Right now the acts just end, I think it could be fun to have some sort of random act boss appear that challenges you. I'd also like to add in some map diversity so each playthrough feels unique.

Mod Support and other Steam Features

I'm not sure how to add mod support, but this is a good learning opportunity. Let me know if you have any tips or tricks.

Miscellaneous and Scope Creep

I'm not afraid to further invest my time into this game. I think there is plenty of room in the design space to make all the systems incredibly deep and enjoyable.