Rogue Waters sails the turn-based tactical roguelite seas in September

thesixthaxis.com:

Tripwire Presents and developer Ice Code Games have revealed that their turn-based tactical roguelite Rogue Waters will launch on 30th September 2024.

Tripwire Interactive are best known for their Killing Floor series, but their Tripwire Presents publishing label is picking up and promoting indie tiles. Rogue Waters is one of these early publishing partnerships, working with Hard West 2 developer Ice Code Games.

This is a seafaring turn-based roguelike that will have you venture into the supernatural pirate seas, filled with giant sea monsters and enemies to battle. You’ll actually  be able to call upon these classic monsters to fight by your side – albeit in somewhat limited fashion – while also engaging in tactical combat that puts a great deal of emphasis on positioning and controlling the space as your swashbuckling raiders swing onto the decks of enemy ships. There’s also island-based battles and turn-based ship combat with targeted cannon fire.

“Bringing Rogue Waters to life has been a real adventure,” said Mateusz Pilski, Ice Code’s VP of Development. “Our goal in creating games is always to contribute to the genre in ways that bring players more satisfaction and fun in tackling tactical challenges. Dynamic melee combat which recreates the dance-like fencing bouts of boarding actions, combines immersion with thoughtful planning.”

We’ve just been hands on with the game at Gamescom – we’ve also played Killing Floor 3, by the way – and there’s a really interesting blend of precise tactical options at play. Look out for our preview in the next week or so!

Looking back on Hard West 2, we said in our review, “Hard West 2 comes with an enjoyably aggressive twist on XCOM-like turn-based combat, and with a fun way of upgrading your characters alongside, but it’s wrapped up in world exploration and characterisation that just leaves me wanting to get back in the fight. There’s a lot of fun to be had in Hard West 2, even if it’s not blowing minds as a complete package.”