Hi, and welcome to the blog.

This is where we’ll post patch notes, dev diaries, feature announcements, and occasional deep-dives into AI Apocalypse’s systems. If you want the fastest path to updates, follow us on Discord — long-form writing lives here, real-time chatter lives there.

What is AI Apocalypse?

AI Apocalypse is a cyberpunk roguelike deckbuilder. You pick one of three weapon classes — Vibro Blade (melee), Arc Staff (caster), Rail Rifle (sniper) — and fight through three procedurally-generated acts against an adaptive AI enemy that’s taken over the world’s infrastructure.

The core combat loop is card-based turn-based, but with twists:

  • Stance system: Front / Mid / Back stances change how every card behaves
  • Distance combat: enemies at Close range deal 2× damage; manage pushback and advance to control tempo
  • Armor + Shield dual defense: armor persists, shield refreshes each turn and absorbs debuffs
  • Nine build paths: three per class, each playing radically differently — Armor Stackers, Bleed Frenzy, Shield Casters, Burn Mages, Poison Snipers, Multi-hit Volleys, and more

What does Early Access mean?

AI Apocalypse launches into Early Access on May 19, 2026. That’s not code for “unfinished” — the game is complete and polished. What Early Access means for us specifically:

  • The full three-act campaign is playable with all 3 classes at launch
  • ~120 cards and ~50 gear pieces at launch
  • Full controller + Steam Deck support at launch

But we want community input on:

  • Balance — which cards are over/underpowered once real players get their hands on runs
  • New content — which build paths to expand, which enemies to add, which features rise to the top of the roadmap
  • Accessibility — what we haven’t thought of

We plan to stay in Early Access for approximately 6-9 months, with weekly patches and bi-monthly larger content updates. We’ll publish a detailed roadmap closer to launch.

What’s next on the blog?

Over the next few weeks leading to launch, expect posts on:

  1. The three build-path philosophies — how we design archetype identity
  2. Why we built our own card framework instead of using existing tools
  3. The UX evolution — how combat feedback went from “static” to “juicy”
  4. Launch-day patch notes — every bug we fixed in the final sprint
  5. Weekly dev diaries once the game is live

One ask before launch

Wishlists are the single biggest factor in Steam’s launch-day algorithm. If AI Apocalypse interests you, wishlist it here — it takes three seconds and directly helps the game get in front of more players on May 19.

See you in the wasteland.

— Scuffed Studios