Effulgence RPG on Steam

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Effulgence RPG

Effulgence RPG is a party-based RPG set in a unique character-based world where enemies are more than just obstacles - they ARE the resource. 💀 Destroy them to forge better gear!

All Reviews:

Very Positive (52) - 90% of the 52 user reviews for this game are positive.

Release Date:

Dec 2, 2025

Developer:

Andrei Fomin

Publisher:

Andrei Fomin

	Interface	Full Audio	Subtitles
English	✔
Russian	✔
Ukrainian	✔
French	✔
Italian	✔
German	✔
Spanish - Spain	✔
Japanese	✔
Korean	✔
Portuguese - Brazil	✔
Simplified Chinese	✔
Traditional Chinese	✔
Polish	✔

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?

“I'm releasing Effulgence RPG in Early Access because I want to improve the game with player feedback. As a solo developer, this helps me refine the combat, controls, and accessibility step by step. The main parts of the game are already in place: ASCII 3D visuals, globe exploration, and the core loop of turning enemies into resources. Early Access lets me keep building the game openly and focus on what players actually like and use.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“About 6 months. The full release is planned for around June 2026. This should give me enough time to add several content updates with new locations and encounters, improve combat and balance, and make the interface and controller support better. I want to keep Early Access focused and not make it longer than necessary. If the game needs more time, I will clearly say so.”

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

“Early Access begins with a short but polished version of the game that already shows the main loop: explore, fight, break enemies into particles, print gear, and move on to new encounters. The full version is planned to include more locations and mini-quests on the ASCII globe, more enemy types and mechanics, more party build options and tactical cartridges, and more story scenes that connect the whole game better. The goal for the full version is a 3–5 hour campaign with more replay value and more ways to experiment.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“The first Early Access build is already playable and stable. It is designed as a compact version of the game.

A first full run takes about 1 to 1.5 hours, depending on how much you explore. It includes a focused set of locations that forms a short but complete gameplay loop. The main systems are already in place: party combat, particle crafting, the matter printer, save system, basic settings, and controller support. The ASCII 3D visuals, lighting, and animations already represent the direction of the final game.

Areas that still need more work include combat variety, advanced tactical options, additional locations and encounters, better controller mapping, and more accessibility and readability options.”

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

“Yes. The Early Access price is lower and will increase for 1.0 to reflect the added content and polish. If you buy during Early Access, you'll get all updates up to full release at no extra cost.”

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

“I develop the game alone, so player feedback is very important for me. During Early Access, I plan to keep pinned “Feedback & Bug Reports” threads on Steam Discussions, add short feedback forms inside the game, share a public roadmap, and post update notes after major changes.

I also plan to regularly summarize what players told me and how it affects the next steps in development. If you like Effulgence RPG, your feedback can directly help me decide what to improve first.”

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About This Game

Early Access Note: Effulgence RPG is a sci-fi party RPG with a unique ASCII 3D visual style. This first Early Access build is a short but polished part of the full game. A first run takes about 1 to 1.5 hours, depending on how much you explore.

It already includes the main visual style, the ASCII globe, party combat, and the core loop of breaking enemies into particles and printing gear. However, the current version has a limited number of locations and enemy types. During Early Access, I plan to expand the game into a 3–5 hour campaign with more locations, encounters, and tactical options.

If you would rather wait for the full 1.0 version, please wishlist the game and check back at release.

If you want to play an unusual ASCII RPG now and help improve it, you are welcome to join during Early Access. Your feedback will help me decide what to improve first.

🎧 Early Access bonus: everyone who picks up Effulgence RPG during Early Access gets the original soundtrack by Sergey Eybog as a free DLC. If the OST becomes paid later, early owners keep it forever.

░▒▓▒░ What the gaming press says about Effulgence RPG ░▒▓▒░

PC Gamer: "Sure, the ASCII art is cool, but I'm pretty into what the game seems to be doing with its RPG mechanics, too."

The Escapist: "Effulgence RPG is an ASCII-based party RPG that has visuals that remind me of both Dwarf Fortress and Geometry Wars at the same time, except it's an RPG."

Alpha Beta Gamer: "Effulgence is an incredibly cool looking ASCII-styled 2D RPG adventure where players explore a mysterious alien world rendered entirely through text symbols."

GamingOnLinux: "It looks like nothing else I've seen before, it really is quite impressively made."

░▒▓▒░ Game overview ░▒▓▒░

Effulgence RPG is a party-based, turn-based RPG where enemies are more than obstacles - they're raw material.

Defeat creatures to break them into particles, then feed those particles into a matter printer to create weapons, gadgets and mechanisms. All of this plays out in a world built from shimmering text symbols arranged in 3D space.

★ Explore a stylized ASCII 3D globe of locations.

★ Fight as a small squad in turn-based, party-focused combat.

★ Break enemies into particles and print gear mid-run.

★ Watch the world shift as text symbols reconfigure into new shapes and animations.

░▒▓▒░ Content scope ░▒▓▒░

At Early Access launch:

★ A compact, replayable slice showing the full gameplay loop.

★ Roughly 1–1.5 hours for a first complete run.

★ A focused set of combat locations and exploration spots.

★ Core systems implemented: party combat, particle crafting, matter printer, saves, basic settings and controller support.

Toward 1.0:

★ More locations and mini-quests on the ASCII globe.

★ Additional enemy types and "mechanisms" (special encounters and bosses).

★ New tactical cartridges and more ways to build your party.

★ Expanded narrative interludes and quality-of-life improvements.

★ Overall target: a 3–5 hour campaign with room for experimentation and replay.

░▒▓▒░ What Effulgence RPG is (and isn't) ░▒▓▒░

Effulgence RPG is:

★ A short, visually intense party RPG built entirely from text symbols.

★ Focused on ASCII 3D visuals, atmosphere, and darkly comic dialogues.

★ Turn-based combat that is readable and punchy, not a hardcore 100-hour min-max grinder.

★ An art project about light and symbols as much as a game.

Effulgence RPG isn't:

★ A huge open world or endless roguelite with hundreds of hours of content.

★ A hyper-complex tactical simulator with dozens of overlapping systems.

★ Completely content-complete at launch - this Early Access build is a vertical slice that will grow over time.

░▒▓▒░ Game features: ░▒▓▒░

★ The only way to gather crafting resources is by defeating creatures and breaking them down into individual particles.

★ Using these particles, you can print weapons, gear, and mechanisms on a special matter printer – even in the middle of combat.

★ A stylized ASCII 3D globe of locations to travel between: combat zones, events, upgrade spots and shops.

★ "Tactical cartridges" that twist fights in your favor: area bursts, shields, special effects and more.

★ Designed to be short, focused and replayable - experiment with different party builds and printed gear.

★ Runs great with a controller and has been tested on Steam Deck via Proton, with ASCII readability tuned for a handheld screen.

░▒▓▒░ Plot ░▒▓▒░

It's easy to transmit a video signal when you're just the distance of a satellite away. Go beyond the solar system and it may take hours to send a regular image to Earth.

But when the signal comes from a galaxy a million light-years away, only fragmented symbols make it to us. Sometimes, they can be decoded and assembled into an animation made from text characters.

Effulgence RPG imagines what happens when that signal is interactive - when you can walk inside the shimmering sea of symbols, and the creatures made of text don't intend to stay static.

░▒▓▒░ Inspiration ░▒▓▒░

Characters that can be typed on a keyboard are a powerful means of expression. ASCII art uses characters as strokes, crafted like those of an artist's pen. Each stroke carries both form and meaning: a letter, a number, a symbol.

The quality of modern printing, monitors, and phone screens is astonishing. Does ASCII art have a place in the era of True Color and ultra-high pixel densities? Absolutely.

Charcoal has been used since cave paintings, yet charcoal drawing remains relevant to this day. Paintings with rich palettes haven't replaced black-and-white graphics. When an artist picks up a pencil, it becomes a tool for creation. When an ASCII artist pulls a keyboard closer, ASCII art is born.

But what if we add a third dimension to these characters? And do so without breaking the feel of the text mode.

Effulgence RPG is more than just a game - it's an artistic exploration of light and symbols in motion.