The Hellforged playtest on Steam marks a refreshing evolution in the crowded bullet heaven genre by successfully marrying the dopamine-heavy chaos of survivors-likes with the high-stakes tension of an extraction shooter. Developed by Moonpyre and published by Grindstone, this title feels like a deliberate step forward for players who love Vampire Survivors but crave a more meaningful sense of progression and consequence.
Developer: Moonpyre
Publisher: Gridstone
Release Date: 2026
CPU:Â Intel Core i5 / AMD Equivalent
GPU:Â Geforce GTX 1060 / AMD Equivalent
RAM:Â 8 GB
HDD:Â 5 GB
Review Code Provided
The Gameplay Loop: Risk vs. Reward
The core of Hellforged revolves around a tense loot heist structure. Unlike traditional survivor games where you simply survive until a timer hits zero, Hellforged forces you to make active tactical decisions about when to leave. You enter demon-infested maps to capture rifts, unlock chests, and complete quests, but your loot isn’t yours until you extract.
This Extraction Bullet Heaven hybrid solves the biggest issue in the genre: the feeling that a run is wasted if you don’t reach the final boss. In Hellforged, you can snag an epic piece of gear mid-battle and decide to cash out early to bolster your character, or push your luck for endgame resources at the risk of losing it all.
Customization and Build Theory
Where the playtest truly shines is in the Arsenal and the Eternal Tree.
- The Arsenal: This system allows you to “pre-build” your deck. Instead of being entirely at the mercy of RNG, you handpick which abilities and upgrades can drop during your run. This adds a layer of strategy that rewards players for understanding synergies before they even set foot in the arena.
- Impactful Synergies: The elemental interactions are satisfyingly explosive. Combining a lightning ability with an enemy you’ve already set ablaze triggers screen-clearing explosions. It feels rewarding to discover these “broken” combinations that shift your strategy on the fly.
Graphics and Performance
Visually, the game leans into a dark, gothic aesthetic—think Diablo meets Hades. Even in this playtest phase, the performance remains impressively stable given the sheer volume of enemies and particle effects on screen. The system requirements are modest, making it accessible to players without high-end rigs, though the developers note these are subject to change.
Areas for Improvement
As with any playtest, there are rough edges. The developers have transparently disclosed the use of AI-generated voiceovers as temporary placeholders and some AI-generated icons. While the gameplay loop is rock solid, the narrative elements and UI polish are clearly still in development. Some players may find the loot-driven nature a bit grindy if the drop rates aren’t perfectly tuned by the final 2026 release, but the online leaderboards already provide a healthy competitive nudge to keep going.
Final Thoughts
Hellforged is more than just another clone; it’s a smart iteration that adds stakes to a genre that often lacks them. By giving players control over their deck and the choice of when to retreat, it creates a gameplay loop that is genuinely difficult to put down. If the developers can replace the placeholder assets with high-quality bespoke work and continue to balance the Eternal Tree talent paths, this is poised to be a heavy hitter in the 2026 indie scene.
