Most roguelites throw everything at you constantly. Enemy waves never stop, power-ups stack endlessly, and the chaos builds until your screen becomes an unreadable mess of projectiles. Waterpunk: Through the Rust from solo developer R_Games (also known as Purmalis) takes a different approach. This hardcore top-down shooter inspired by Nuclear Throne and Enter the Gungeon adds a day-night cycle that fundamentally changes which abilities work and which go dormant. Your god-tier daytime build becomes useless after sunset, forcing constant adaptation in a flooded post-apocalyptic world where humanity lost a war against something and the survivors cling to rusty metal structures above the waterline.
The game launches in 2026 with a demo planned for January on Steam. If you’ve been craving that Nuclear Throne energy but want mechanics that go beyond pure bullet hell chaos, this water-soaked roguelite might scratch that itch. The developer is actively building community feedback into development, so early demo players will directly influence the final design.
Nuclear Throne Meets Waterworld
The Nuclear Throne and Enter the Gungeon inspirations are immediately apparent to anyone who played those indie classics. Fast-paced top-down combat where positioning and movement matter as much as raw firepower. Procedurally generated levels that force you to adapt rather than memorize. Permadeath that resets progress but unlocks meta-progression for future runs. That satisfying roguelite loop of getting slightly better each attempt until suddenly everything clicks and you push further than ever before.
But the water world setting isn’t just aesthetic window dressing. This flooded post-apocalypse creates unique environmental challenges and narrative context. Human civilization fell during a war, though against what or whom remains unclear. The survivors exist on platforms, boats, and rusty structures jutting above the endless ocean. Resources are scarce. Technology is decaying. Every run is scavenging through corroded remnants of the old world while fighting whatever hostile forces emerged after the collapse.
Day Night Cycle Changes Everything
Here’s where Waterpunk diverges from its inspirations. Certain abilities function optimally during daytime while others activate only at night. This isn’t just damage number tweaks but fundamental availability changes. An ability that defines your playstyle during daylight hours might go completely dormant after sunset, forcing you to rely on different tools in your arsenal. Conversely, weaker nighttime abilities suddenly become your primary options once darkness falls.
Developer Purmalis is currently focused on enhancing this system based on initial feedback. Some players found the concept more frustrating than engaging, worried it would feel restrictive rather than strategic. Others embraced the forced adaptation as adding tactical depth beyond typical roguelite power creep. The January demo will be crucial for gauging broader reaction and refining the balance between interesting constraint and annoying limitation.
Strategic Build Crafting
The day-night mechanic creates fascinating build considerations. Do you optimize heavily for daytime dominance, accepting vulnerability after dark? Balance your loadout for consistent performance regardless of time? Focus on nighttime power and play cautiously until sunset? These aren’t abstract theorycrafting exercises but moment-to-moment survival decisions that determine whether runs succeed or fail catastrophically.
Imagine finally assembling a synergistic combination of upgrades that trivializes enemies during the day, only to watch helplessly as half your build stops functioning when night arrives. Suddenly you’re scrambling with your backup abilities against enemies that don’t get weaker. That tension between temporary power and forced adaptation could create memorable moments or frustrating failures depending on implementation and player mindset.
Collecting Feedback Early
Purmalis explicitly plans to gather player feedback from the January demo to inform future development. This transparency about iterative design shows smart indie development philosophy. Rather than stubbornly committing to an untested concept, he’s validating the core mechanic with actual players before full release. If the day-night system proves frustrating in practice, there’s time to adjust. If players love it, development can double down on expanding those systems.
This approach respects that game design often fails to predict how ideas play in practice versus theory. What sounds innovative on paper might feel tedious in execution. What seems overly complex might create emergent depth. The only way to know is letting people play and listening to their experiences. The January demo represents that crucial reality check before committing resources to a potentially flawed foundation.
Hardcore Top-Down Combat
Beyond the day-night gimmick, Waterpunk promises the fast-paced combat that made Nuclear Throne legendary. Expect tight controls, responsive movement, varied weapons with distinct feels, aggressive enemy patterns that punish hesitation, and escalating difficulty that tests your mastery. The hardcore label isn’t marketing exaggeration but a warning that this will punish mistakes and demand skill improvement through repeated deaths.
Procedural generation ensures levels never play identically, preventing rote memorization from replacing actual skill. Each run presents fresh layouts, enemy configurations, and item combinations that force adaptive thinking. The randomization creates emergent scenarios where improvisation determines success more than executing practiced strategies. That unpredictability is what makes roguelites endlessly replayable when done well.
Solo Developer Journey
R_Games (Purmalis) is building Waterpunk alone, handling programming, design, art, and community management single-handedly. The solo development shows in both strengths and limitations. The unified creative vision results in cohesive mechanics and aesthetic. The art quality varies, with early promotional materials using AI generation that community feedback criticized. Purmalis acknowledged this and pivoted to hand-drawn art despite limited artistic skills, showing responsiveness to criticism.
Solo indie development demands wearing every hat simultaneously, which inevitably means some areas get less attention than AAA productions provide. But it also means pure creative control without committee compromise. When you love Nuclear Throne’s frenetic energy but want to explore different mechanical spaces, you build it yourself rather than waiting for Vlambeer to return from hiatus. That passion project energy often results in games that take risks AAA studios won’t greenlight.
Water World Aesthetic
The flooded post-apocalypse provides strong visual identity that separates Waterpunk from desert wastelands, nuclear rubble, and other common roguelite settings. Rusted metal platforms over endless ocean. Corroded boats serving as makeshift bases. The decay of industrial civilization reclaimed by water. This environmental storytelling creates atmosphere that reinforces the desperation of scavenging survivors clinging to remnants of the old world.
The water theme potentially enables unique mechanics beyond pure aesthetics. Swimming or boat navigation between areas. Underwater sections with oxygen management. Enemies adapted to aquatic environments. Environmental hazards from flooding or tides. Whether Purmalis explores these possibilities or keeps focus on combat remains to be seen, but the setting offers rich potential for systemic depth.
Early 2026 Release Window
The 2026 release date provides substantial development runway after the January demo. Assuming feedback reveals necessary adjustments to the day-night system or other core mechanics, there’s time for iteration without rushing to meet arbitrary deadlines. Solo development already proceeds slower than studio teams, so building in buffer prevents crunch or releasing half-baked systems.
The staggered demo-then-release approach manages expectations appropriately. Players get hands-on experience with core mechanics early enough to provide meaningful feedback. The developer receives validation before full commitment. Everyone benefits from this transparency compared to surprise launching after silent development and hoping for the best. It’s the kind of smart planning that increases odds of successful launches.
Community Building Before Launch
Purmalis is actively engaging with potential players through Reddit, Steam discussions, and development updates. This community building before launch creates invested audiences who feel ownership in the project’s direction. When developers listen to feedback and implement suggestions, players become evangelists spreading word-of-mouth recommendations. That grassroots marketing matters enormously for solo indie projects without publisher marketing budgets.
The Reddit discussions already show players asking thoughtful questions about how the day-night system functions and expressing both enthusiasm and concern about its implementation. These conversations inform development priorities while building awareness. By launch, there should be a small but dedicated community ready to support the game rather than launching into complete obscurity hoping Steam’s algorithm notices.
FAQs
What is Waterpunk Through the Rust?
Waterpunk: Through the Rust is a hardcore top-down roguelite shooter set in a flooded post-apocalyptic world. Developed by solo indie R_Games (Purmalis), it features a unique day-night cycle that determines which abilities function, creating strategic build considerations beyond typical roguelite power stacking.
When does Waterpunk release?
The full game releases in 2026 on Steam. A demo is planned for January 2026, allowing players to experience the core mechanics and provide feedback that will influence final development decisions before full launch.
What games inspired Waterpunk?
The developer explicitly cites Nuclear Throne and Enter the Gungeon as primary inspirations, evident in the fast-paced top-down combat, procedural generation, permadeath with meta-progression, and hardcore difficulty that demands skill mastery through repeated attempts.
How does the day-night cycle work?
Certain abilities function optimally during daytime while others activate only at night. This forces players to adapt strategies based on time of day rather than maintaining one dominant build throughout runs. The developer is actively refining this system based on feedback.
Is there a demo available?
A demo is planned for January 2026 on Steam. The developer explicitly wants to gather player feedback from this demo to inform development priorities and refine core mechanics before full release later in 2026.
Who is developing Waterpunk?
Solo developer R_Games, also known as Purmalis, is creating Waterpunk entirely alone. He handles programming, design, art, and community management, building the game as a passion project inspired by his love for Nuclear Throne’s gameplay.
What makes it different from other roguelites?
The day-night cycle that fundamentally changes which abilities are available creates unique strategic considerations. Combined with the flooded post-apocalyptic setting and hardcore Nuclear Throne-inspired combat, it offers mechanical and thematic identity beyond generic roguelite clones.
Sink or Swim
Waterpunk: Through the Rust represents the kind of creative risk-taking that makes indie development exciting. Taking Nuclear Throne’s proven formula and adding day-night ability cycling could be brilliant or frustrating depending entirely on execution. The January demo will answer whether this aquatic roguelite sinks under the weight of its ambitions or floats on the strength of its innovations. Solo developer Purmalis deserves credit for attempting something genuinely different rather than safely copying what works. Download the demo when it arrives, provide constructive feedback, and help shape whether this flooded world becomes another forgotten indie experiment or the next cult classic roguelite. Sometimes the best games emerge from developers brave enough to ask what if abilities only worked half the time and forcing players to adapt instead of optimize became the entire point.