Horizont Computergrafik

Factsheet

Founding date:
July 2022 in Berlin, Germany

Contact:
mail@horizontcomputergrafik.com

Company Social Media:
Horizont Computergrafik on LinkedIn Horizont Computergrafik on Steam

Studio Description

Horizont Computergrafik is a games and interactive media studio based in Berlin, founded in 2022 by Luca Beisel.

The studio draws inspiration from the technological and cultural pioneering spirit of early computer graphics and the demoscene of the 1980s and 90s. We are interested in unique, deep, and mesmerizing games and digital experiences that are informed by history but quintessentially contemporary.

The Founder

Luca Beisel is an art historian and software developer with a background in Digital Humanities, simulation and visualization software for academia and immersive media. He has worked on projects spanning interactive 3D simulations of ancient astronomical models, VR experiences for cultural heritage and research software for network visualization.

Luca Beisel Personal Website

This multidisciplinary interest, bridging art history, scientific visualization, and interactive technology, shapes the studio's approach: technically ambitious work that explores novel concepts in game design, interface design, creative software, and interactive computing.

Horizont Computergrafik is a member of
Saftladen Indie Games Collective Berlin.

Rogue Voltage

Factsheet

Developer:
Horizont Computergrafik
Based in Berlin, Germany

Release date:
May 10th 2024 (Steam Early Access)

Social Media
Rogue Voltage on Bluesky
Rogue Voltage on Discord

Platforms:
Rogue Voltage on Steam

Description

The engineering roguelike.

Construct your own skills by wiring circuits. Zap monsters with crazy machines, trigger satisfying chain reactions, manipulate the timeline and try to get the power back on in a world, in which time is out of joint.

Rogue Voltage is a hybrid of roguelike deckbuilder, tactics JRPG and engineering game with a fully deterministic combat system — no dice rolls, no randomness. Players know exactly what they're going to get, and every decision counts.

Features

Wire Up The Modules

Construct your own skills by wiring up modules. Some generate energy, others amplify or store it, and others convert it into effects. Pick from over 150 unique modules to construct crazy machines, discover devastating synergies, and create overpowered builds.

Connect the right modules and watch chaos unfold: Energy cascades through your circuits, triggering satisfying chain reactions. Feel like a mad scientist as you tinker, experiment, and discover new ways to amplify your power.

Zap the Monsters

Every turn raises tactical challenges where to direct your energy: Into your blaster to zap the monsters? Into a decelerator to control the timeline? Should you crack a healing potion? Or do you store energy in a battery and prepare an even more ambitious move next turn?

Turn-Based with a (Time-)Twist

In this shattered world, cause and effect are out of joint. Master the art of Gravitonics to move turns forward or backward in time: Dodge volcano eruptions and lightning strikes, slip before your enemies or throw them into a devastating Grav-Spike.

The tactical timeline interface of Rogue Voltage

Roguelike Progression

Your adventure leads you through a variety of biomes where tricky groups of enemies try to ruin your day. Compose and patch up your racks wisely to deal with procedurally generated and progressively dangerous threats.

Impressions

Awards & Recognition

Winner Most Innovative at IndieX Portugal 2024

Nominated for Best Game at Indie Arena Booth at Gamescom 2024

Runner up Best of Show at IndieX Portugal 2024

Winner Pitch Royal at Hamburg Games Conference 2024

Finalist at Tencent GWB Game Awards China 2024

Winner Favorite Playthrough at Devcom 2023

Finalist Rising Star Award at IndieCup Germany 2023

Finalist Indie Award at the Game Development World Championship 2023

Official Selection WASD x IGN 'Curios' Indie Games Showcase 2023

Early Access Reviews

"Maybe [I need] a time machine, so I can play Rogue Voltage for hours and hours and then go back in time to do some work. This is easily one of the best ideas for a game I've played so far this year"
- Liam Dawe, Gaming on Linux
"The core of Rogue Voltage is making crazy machines that do weird stuff. How you do that is the cool part."
- Jon Bolding, PC Gamer
"Seeing the electricity spark through the wires and watching each module kick into gear was super satisfying"
- Rachel Watts, Thinky Games
"This roguelike deckbuilder has a great twist"
- Graham Smith, Rock, Paper, Shotgun
"An extremely unusual take on the genre. [...] Mechanically interesting, and with a grungy palette-crushed look."
- Dominic Tarason, PC Gamer

Production

The Idea

Rogue Voltage started as a passion project of Luca Beisel, an art historian turned software developer, who in 2019 originally set out to make “a sort of Final Fantasy”: Growing up on 1990s SquareSoft titles, he was interested in a game design problem that most RPGs have in common: the healer would always heal, the fighter would always attack, and once a mage learned a better spell, the old one became obsolete.

While making music with synthesizers, Luca had the idea for a game that used cable connections to build attacks and abilities - an innovative combat system for a roguelike tactics game. Players tinker with clanky machines and wire intricate patches to finally flip the switch and witness the mayhem unfold.

”Oldschool Final Fantasy, but you play it like a Zachtronics-style engineering puzzler.” — original game idea

Diverse Inspiration

Rogue Voltage's muted color scheme pays homage to the intriguing color palette of the Commodore 64, while giving it a gritty and contemporary update. The game's rough but charming pixel art evokes the nostalgia of 16-bit JRPGs on the Super Nintendo, particularly Secret of Mana, which Luca would often watch mesmerized on the screens of older brother figures. The modular rack components are clicky and haptic, with a tactile, metallic quality and weight, loosely inspired by the look and feel of synthesizer hardware. When the switch is flipped, the modules buzz with electricity and rattle on metal bars while they produce a satisfying chain reaction like a Rube Goldberg machine. The stage design of the different biomes has an unlikely inspiration: 18th century landscape and stage painting, which also features dimly lit scenes against parallax backgrounds, that frame the action like a theatrical set. Finally the overall UI, especially the game's unique timeline interface, draws from the intuitiveness and hyperfocus of "dark mode" UIs of creative programs like Ableton Live and Adobe Premiere while the wiring mechanic uses a visual language adjacent to visual programming or circuit diagrams.

Development & Launch

For the longest time, Luca developed Rogue Voltage entirely by himself. As the Early Access launch approached, he brought on additional team members to avoid burnout. The game launched in Steam Early Access in May 2024.

Since the inception, the game's community has become an active part of development, with players regularly discovering “broken” combinations and proposing new module ideas. The game has maintained a 94% positive rating on Steam.

Rogue Voltage is represented in Asia by IndieArk, known for their innovative roguelite portfolio including Backpack Battles, Backpack Hero and Peglin.