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Once a Pawn a King
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Chess is broken. Gather the Black Army, build a party of chess pieces, and battle through fractured boards in this asymmetric turn-based roguelike. Empower your army, adapt your strategy each run, and unravel the mystery behind a world trapped in an endless match.

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Early Access Game

Get instant access and start playing; get involved with this game as it develops.

Note: Games in Early Access are not complete and may or may not change further. If you are not excited to play this game in its current state, then you should wait to see if the game progresses further in development. Learn more

What the developers have to say:

Why Early Access?

“We are a small Indie dev team that took a chance making our first Steam release.

Part of entering Early access is checking if players enjoy what we have to offer in an earlier stage of the production. We're hoping community feedbak mid-development will help us deliver a better, more polished product.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“Once a Pawn a King is planned to stay in Early Access for about 6 months.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“In the full release of the game we plan on adding 2 more floors and bosses in a run, actively doubling the content of the Early access release.
Additionally, we will expand the pool of existent power-ups, consumables, challanges and more.

We are also planing to implement the full narrative and dialogue for a more complete and satisfying experience.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“This version of Once a Pawn a King offers an Early Access roguelike experience with around 30 different power-ups (Blessings & Curses), 16 consumable potions, 13 meta-upgrades (Figures), 2 complete floors, 2 bosses, and 2 minibosses.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“The price may gradually increase as the game grows in content and features.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“We are planning to actively communicate with players and gather their feedback and bug reports as we continue improving Once a Pawn a King.

Our Discord server is linked in the main menu of the game. We're looking forward to hear from you!”
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About This Game

Once a Pawn a King is a roguelike, turn-based strategy game with party-building mechanics, where chess meets chaos. Venture into the ever-shifting castle of the evil White King on a quest to rescue the beloved Black King, who was recently taken by the tyrant.

The board is shattered. The rules are twisted. And the king is gone.

Once A Pawn A King is an asymmetric turn based roguelike where you gather a party of chess pieces, empower them with magical abilities, and fight through a fractured world built from the ruins of a timeless chess match.

Classic chess strategy collides with roguelike unpredictability. Every run challenges you to adapt, experiment, and outthink a game that no longer follows its own rules.

Assemble your forces from classic chess pieces including pawns, knights, bishops, rooks, and more. Each piece brings unique movement, abilities, and strategic possibilities.

Recruit allies, strengthen your army with powerful upgrades, and reshape your strategy as your party grows.

Every piece matters. Losing the wrong unit can change the entire course of a run.

You do not need to know chess openings or memorize theory.

Once a Pawn a King takes the core ideas of chess tactics and transforms them into a more accessible strategic experience where experimentation, positioning, and decision making matter more than memorization.

Learn by playing, adapt to unexpected situations, and discover new strategies with every run.

No two runs unfold the same way.

Randomized boards, randomized upgrades, and unpredictable encounters ensure that every attempt offers new challenges and opportunities.

Each run asks you to rethink your approach, refine your strategy, and push deeper into the fractured chess world.

Failure is part of the journey. Every defeat teaches you something that will help you on the next run.

In a decaying world sustained by an eternal chess match, the black and white armies battle endlessly. They fight, they die, and the cycle resets.

Command the Black Army as it searches for its lost king, uncover the truth behind the White King's growing madness, and confront a new rebellion rising from the board.

The cycle is breaking. The board is changing. And the truth behind the endless match is waiting to be discovered.

System Requirements

    Minimum:
    • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
    • OS: Windows 10\11
    • Processor: AMD Athlon X4 \ Intel Core i5 4460
    • Memory: 4 GB RAM
    • Graphics: Nvidia GTX 950 \ AMD R7 370
    • DirectX: Version 10
    • Storage: 2 GB available space
    Recommended:
    • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
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What Curators Say

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