The City of Endless is a roguelike auto battler with asynchronous multiplayer elements, set on PC in the strategy, indie, and casual genres. Players manage a mobile base called a Rig that travels an endless rail network through a once-utopian city now warped by unstable magic. The experience centers on short daily sessions where choices about route, scavenging, and board arrangement determine survival across a ten-day run with five lives.
Gameplay
Each run begins with selecting a direction for the Rig along the rail network. Deeper progress yields stronger resources, but the path requires careful planning to maintain momentum and avoid hazards. Scavenged items feed directly into board construction, where players arrange weapons, gear, skills, and upgrades into combinations that trigger automatically during encounters.
The board supports over seventy distinct pieces in the Early Access version, allowing for extensive rearrangement and upgrades as new finds appear. Positioning and synergies matter because combat resolves without further input once the Rig engages threats. Leveling the Rig through successful fights expands available space for additional pieces, creating opportunities for more complex layouts over time.
Progression ties into a fixed ten-day window. Surviving deeper into the sprawl unlocks more advanced items that reward inventive board designs. Leaderboards track the most effective arrangements, encouraging repeated runs focused on optimization rather than raw speed.
Game Modes
The core loop revolves around daily inhabitant encounters. Once per day, players select from fifteen or more twisted monsters native to the city. Victory grants experience that expands the Rig, while the choice of opponent influences the rewards received.
Asynchronous player interaction occurs at midnight. Each Rig uploads automatically to a shared pool, so the defense phase pits the current build against a random opponent from the pool. This system supports flexible play schedules because matches resolve independently of real-time presence.
The overarching structure imposes a ten-day limit with five lives. Runs emphasize resource management and board refinement across these days, with failure ending the attempt before the core is reached. Leaderboard placement rewards builds that consistently handle both monster and player defenses.
Build Systems and Progression
Board construction forms the central strategic layer. Players combine scavenged pieces into chains that amplify damage, defense, or utility during automatic fights. Upgrades applied to individual pieces further tailor performance, and the ability to rearrange the entire layout at any time supports adaptation to newly acquired resources.
Deeper runs introduce higher-tier items that demand more sophisticated synergies. The limited space on early Rigs forces prioritization, while expanded boards later allow for layered effects that exploit multiple interactions simultaneously. This progression rewards experimentation across multiple attempts rather than mastery of a single preset.
Is It Worth Playing?
The City of Endless targets players who enjoy roguelike decision-making combined with auto-battler board building and asynchronous competition. Its daily structure suits those who prefer short, repeatable sessions over long continuous play. The absence of planned DLC and commitment to free content updates suggests ongoing support once Early Access begins in December 2026.
With the core loop already implemented and over seventy pieces available from the start, the game offers immediate depth for strategy fans comfortable with asynchronous multiplayer. Those seeking traditional real-time combat or extensive single-player campaigns may find the automated fights and limited daily interactions less engaging. Early adopters who value community feedback shaping future content will find the planned development approach aligned with their interests.
