Building a powerful army usually makes a strategy game easier to control. In Everbrink roguelike deckbuilder, however, even your strongest defenses have an expiration date. Every turn destroys part of the floating battlefield, forcing players to abandon familiar positions and fight for new territory.
Tokyo-based indie studio Impachi Inc. is bringing this unusual combination of card battles and 4X strategy to PC through Steam Early Access in 2027. Yet the most interesting part isn’t simply the collapsing island. It’s how that mechanic could change almost every decision players make.
Everbrink roguelike deckbuilder turns safe territory into a temporary advantage
Traditional strategy games often reward careful expansion. Secure valuable resources, establish defenses and gradually overwhelm your opponent. Everbrink introduces a problem with that approach: the ground supporting your entire operation is disappearing.
Its central mechanic, known as the Collapse, removes sections of the floating island from behind your forces every turn. Units and structures caught on those tiles are lost, regardless of how much effort went into developing them. Fortunately, enemies face exactly the same danger.
Upcoming collapses are marked in advance. Consequently, players can plan around disappearing tiles or potentially eliminate opponents by letting the environment do the work. A dangerous enemy occupying unstable ground might become less threatening than one guarding a secure route forward.
This creates an interesting strategic reversal. Instead of asking where to build the strongest permanent defense, players must consider which investments will remain useful long enough to justify their cost. Holding territory matters, but knowing when to leave it could matter even more.
Every card helps determine how quickly your army can advance
Everbrink describes itself as a 4X roguelike deckbuilder. Exploration, expansion, exploitation and extermination all operate through cards, connecting the broader principles of strategy games with individual tactical decisions.
Players fight alongside the paladin Alethea and her companions, summoning creatures such as elves and Cerberus while deploying structures and spells against skeletons, zombies and other threats. However, placing a unit is not simply a matter of finding an empty tile.
Your existing units and structures define your Territory. New deployments must connect to that controlled area, making positioning essential to expansion. Meanwhile, forests and seas provide resources in four colors, with logging camps and fisheries improving collection.
Another mechanic, Direct Assault, allows a unit card from your hand to attack an enemy adjacent to your Territory. If successful, the attacking unit occupies its defeated opponent’s position. One card can therefore remove a threat and extend your frontline simultaneously.
That interaction could be particularly important when the Collapse is approaching. Spending resources on gradual development may strengthen your economy, but an aggressive deployment might secure the space needed to survive another turn.
It’s a different approach to the decisions explored in Slay the Spire 2’s card balance and tactical trade-offs. Both games make timing important, although Everbrink adds physical territory and environmental destruction to the equation.
Conquering an enemy stronghold changes the next stage of survival
Destroying an enemy stronghold does more than finish an encounter. It attaches another floating island to your existing battlefield, creating new territory and opportunities for further expansion.
However, progression comes with a significant restriction. Your deck and constructed facilities carry over, while summoned units disappear when islands join. This means a successful assault doesn’t automatically leave you with an established army for the next confrontation.
Instead, players must rebuild their forces using the resources and infrastructure they have preserved. Moreover, newly encountered islands may contain uneven resource distributions or unexpectedly dangerous enemies, making each advance a fresh tactical challenge.
Deck development also happens during combat rather than exclusively between battles. A Cairn allows players to obtain another card, an Altar upgrades a unit card, and a Trader offers potentially useful items. Newly acquired cards are placed on top of the draw pile, making them available on the next draw.
These systems suggest an appealing tension between immediate survival and long-term preparation. A powerful card could solve the current problem, but preserving useful structures might provide greater benefits across several islands.
For comparison, HARMA’s approach to roguelike deckbuilding emphasizes controlling unpredictable combat effects through its Focus system. Everbrink instead makes shrinking space and territorial expansion central to its tactical identity.
Former HARVESTELLA talent is preparing the Everbrink roguelike deckbuilder for 2027
Developer Impachi Inc. is a Tokyo-based independent studio founded in 2026. Its team includes developers with experience at Square Enix, SEGA, PlatinumGames and GREE, including work associated with HARVESTELLA and Another Eden.
The studio’s leadership includes a former producer and game designer of HARVESTELLA. That background is notable, although Everbrink is pursuing a very different style of gameplay, placing more emphasis on compact strategic encounters and deck construction.
According to the official Everbrink Steam page, the game is scheduled for Early Access in 2027. It will initially support English and Japanese, follow a buy-to-play model and contain no in-game purchases. An exact release date and launch price have not been announced.
Impachi expects Early Access to last approximately six months to a year, depending on development. The studio also plans additional leaders, cards, units, relics, events and enemies, alongside balance adjustments and quality-of-life improvements informed by player feedback.
A playable demo is being prepared, although its availability date remains unconfirmed. This will be an important opportunity to see whether the collapsing battlefield produces meaningful tactical variety over repeated encounters.
Ultimately, Everbrink roguelike deckbuilder has an intriguing challenge ahead. Its mechanics promise a strategy game where expansion isn’t simply about becoming stronger, but about staying one step ahead of destruction. If Impachi can balance resource management, deckbuilding and constant movement, this could become one of 2027’s more distinctive indie strategy releases.
Creator of the website, Pokemon trainer by nature. Trying to report on everything related to the world of video games, series and movies. Yu-Gi-Oh is my weakness, collecting cards since the dawn of time.
