Developer Strangers is crafting Trailblazers: Into The March, a roguelite colony simulation game that tasks players with navigating a perilous, fungal world aboard a sentient, crustaceous landship. Inspired by titles such as Rimworld, FTL: Faster Than Light, and Darkest Dungeon, the game draws thematic and mechanical parallels from Moebius's art and the works of Jeff Vandermeer.
Players will guide their landship through "the March," a hostile environment characterized by corrupting flora and a pervasive, expanding fungal presence known as the Bloom. Humanity, or at least humanoid factions, are confined to a walled city, and players are among the brave few venturing into the unknown to discover the March's secrets and a potential way beyond its borders. Before embarking, players can customize their landship, recruit crew members with distinct backgrounds and skills, manage resources, and accept contracts from various city factions.
Once within the March, the core gameplay loop involves managing the crew's daily lives, observing their developing relationships and personal stories, and defending the mobile base in tactical combat scenarios. The Bloom itself acts as a central threat, described as a "global pressure system" that grows with player actions like combat and resource extraction. As a Bloom gauge fills, players will encounter events or "perturbations" that escalate the difficulty.
Adding to the peril are Bloom leeches that drain resources and life force, sometimes detonating after a set period. This mechanic is said to take inspiration from the darkness and torch mechanics found in Darkest Dungeon, steadily increasing the challenge throughout a run. The Bloom system also draws from the Torch mechanic in Darkest Dungeon, increasing peril as runs progress.
Players' primary defense against the Bloom is a "Spirit" residing within the landship's core, a small elemental being that provides energy to cleanse the ship. This Spirit possesses its own personality, moods, and preferences, influencing gameplay based on its disposition. Some Spirits may even enjoy combat, mirroring the needs and desires of the landship's regular crew, each with their own backstories and skills. These crew members will also undertake multiple-choice quests and develop quirks that can either aid or impede the expedition's progress.
Trailblazers: Into The March is currently without a release date but is offering a limited-access Steam playtest. Further insights into the game's development are available through the developer's blog posts.