About This Game
You play an archaeologist who has to save all the artefacts deep underground next to an erupting volcano. Because that's what sane explorers do.
Yes you are an archaeologist but no, you do not have a whip, why does everyone ask me that? What would an archaeologist do with a whip?
Once you start digging, the volcano erupts and from here on there is only one way - down.
Deep down flares are your only hope to make it through the darkness. Flarebound is a tactical roguelite. You play in short bursts:
Move: Your archaeologist runs and digs along the path you drew.
Freeze: The world halts automatically - lava hangs, enemies pause, everything stops.
Plan in the Dark: In this calm pocket of frozen time you can throw some of your limited flares and draw the next path for your miner. Or save your flares and draw blindly - but that can have serious consequences.
Resume: Once the path is drawn, time snaps back to life and your archaeologist commits to the path, for better or worse.
Each pause is a small puzzle: Will that flare reveal treasure, a wall of granite, or a waiting spider? Or save flares and just dig? No matter what you do, the lava is always behind you.
Every section ends with a gate that provides random upgrades that will improve your equipment and give you better chances to make it all the way down.
Helm-lamp upgrades, brighter bouncing flares, and path-length boosts become vital as you dig toward harsher biomes filled with snakes, skittering spiders, and stranger predators the deeper you go.
Earn coins, unlock permanent gear, learn how different creatures react to light—and try again.
I am making Flarebound in my spare time after kids’ bedtime, so every update is a labour of late-night love of game development.
Wishlist if you’d like to follow the journey down into the dark.
Key Features
Draw-and-Go Movement
Trace tiles in darkness to plan the way and then watch how it plays out.
Dynamic Flares
Upgrade burn time, radius, stickiness, bounces, pulses, infrared vision, and more.
Dripping Lava Pressure
Constant time limit keeps every choice tense.
Upgrade Gates
Upgrade your archaeologist after each section; pick one of three run-defining perks.
Vault Rooms
Optional side gates with riches unlocked by scarce keys: extra loot vs. valuable seconds.
Treasure Chests
Mid-segment rewards: flares, coins for meta-progression, or keys for vaults.
Pixelated Atmosphere
Retro 2D pixel art, dynamic lighting, and reactive soundscape.
One-More-Run Loop
Permanent upgrades, collectible fossils and more. Just one more dig!
Roadmap to Release
Demo & Next Fest
I will participate in the upcoming "Steam Next Fest" if I manage to get a stable and fun demo together until then.
Early Access
Flarebound will be released at the end of 2025 in Early Access for community-driven balancing and to start the development of new biomes/volcanoes.
1.0 Launch
Date unclear, depends how early access goes and how much time I have, but some time in 2026. When launching the full version you will be able to complete the descent in many volcanoes and have proper Steam integration for achievements and trading cards etc.
