Japanese publisher HYPER REAL has signed Helcast, a physics-based merge-puzzle roguelite deckbuilder from Ricpau Studios, with Steam Early Access set for the first quarter of 2027.
The debut demo is playable at Gamescom this week at the Indie Arena Booth in Hall 10.2.
Odin declares war on the Underworld
The setup inverts the usual Norse framing. Odin, the All-Father, has declared war on the Underworld after the dishonourable dead escaped Hel, and the player takes Modgunn — tasked with stopping the madness on both sides rather than picking one.
Structurally that means clearing a path from Hel up to Asgard, which gives the roguelite run a literal vertical shape instead of the usual abstract floor count.
Mass and velocity, not just card draw
The interesting part is the combat. Rather than playing cards onto a board, you arc weapons into the arena and the game accounts for mass and velocity, so placement is a physics problem rather than a grid choice.
Merge-puzzle mechanics on top mean pieces combine when they land together — and if the landing is governed by throw arc and weight, then the merge you get is a consequence of how well you judged the shot. That is a meaningfully different skill from deckbuilding, and it is the thing that will decide whether Helcast reads as a puzzle game with cards or a deckbuilder with a gimmick.
Two classes in the demo
The Gamescom build covers the first realm of Hel with two playable classes. The Huntress fights at range with a magical bow, and the Shieldmaiden absorbs punishment from brutes with defensive play. Spells and Totems sit on top as the swing mechanics in divine battles.
Two classes at opposite ends of the range spectrum is a sensible demo choice — it lets players find out early whether the physics layer favours precision or absorption, which is the question a build-focused roguelite needs answered before launch.
A publisher signing as the real news
The Early Access window is over a year out, so the substance here is the HYPER REAL deal rather than the date. A publisher signing at this distance usually means funding for the run-up rather than a marketing push, and it is what turns a demo at an indie booth into a game with a release plan.
Players in New Zealand and Australia will get it through Steam at the same time as everyone else, with no regional staggering to worry about for a PC Early Access release.