- A hardcore strategy RPG combining dark fantasy colony management and dungeon exploration
- With 260,000 YouTube views and encouragement for Rimworld creators, Steam Wishlist surpasses 85,000
A desolate land cut off from the world by magical erosion. Players must establish a settlement to provide food and shelter to survivors and venture into the abyss of a dangerous dungeon with a four-person expedition. Under harsh survival rules where even a single death cannot be undone, the player must bear the full responsibility for the consequences of every strategy and choice.
Dungeon Settlers, a dark fantasy strategy game developed and published by CanOpener, a small indie studio based in Seoul, South Korea, has unveiled a public Steam demo and a new demo trailer.
The game is a hardcore strategy game that combines colony management simulation with dungeon exploration, and players have noted that it is reminiscent of the settlement management in ‘RimWorld’ and the intense expedition system in ‘Darkest Dungeon’. The game is currently in the open playtest phase, aiming for a full release in the third quarter of 2026.
Dark fantasy rendered in pixel art… Real-time combat and strategic tension
Dungeon Settlers captures a gloomy dark fantasy atmosphere through 2D pixel art-based visuals. The wastelands crumbling from magical erosion, the dreary passages deep within the dungeons, and the portraits of characters with diverse races and backgrounds simultaneously convey detailed expression and individuality.
The sound also supports the game’s atmosphere. The medieval fantasy-inspired music and sound effects naturally create a contrast between the relatively peaceful daily life of the settlement and the tense moments of combat. In particular, the Real-Time with Pause system during combat functions as a key element that provides players with time for strategic thinking while maintaining the thrilling flow of battle.
From settlement management to dungeon expeditions… a complex strategic structure
The core of the game consists of four main systems: settlement management, character development, combat, and dungeon exploration.
First, in settlement management, players can design spaces by freely placing walls and doors on desolate land and construct facilities such as bedrooms, dining rooms, and blacksmiths. Players must cultivate crops, manage resources efficiently, and establish a foundation for survival. Subsequently, they produce food for expeditions and camping supplies, and unlock new buildings and equipment through research.
The character development system also adds depth. Each member possesses six major attributes, talents, and various combat and life stats, and has different characteristics depending on their race, background, and personality. Unique character combinations are also possible, such as the curious Lizardman wanderer. Players must grow their characters through leveling up and equipment setups, and assemble a four-person expedition team by considering roles and synergies, such as swords, maces, bows, and fire magic.
Combat takes place in real-time, but you can pause at any time to readjust your strategy. You must devise tactics utilizing various status effects and mechanisms, such as stun, bleeding, burn, taunt, vulnerability, charge attacks, and summoning; victory or defeat depends on party positioning, exploiting enemy weaknesses, and the proper use of skills.
Dungeon exploration is randomly generated every time. The floor structure and room layout vary, and different environmental effects are applied to each area. The deeper you descend, the greater the chance of securing rare resources, but the higher the danger becomes. Players can battle enemies such as giant golems and acid monsters while collecting wood, herbs, gem veins, and mysterious mandrakes. Special events, such as trading with dungeon merchants and encountering ancient trees that demand blood, also appear as variables during the exploration process.
CanOpener… The debut work of a small indie studio based in Seoul, South Korea
CanOpener is a small, Seoul-based indie game studio. ‘Dungeon Settlers’ is the team’s first official project and self-published title, and the development team emphasizes active communication with the community as a key development direction.
The studio collects player feedback through various communication channels such as Discord, YouTube, X (formerly Twitter), and Bilibili, and is continuously improving the game by incorporating user opinions starting from the open playtest phase.
Although it is a small team, its approach targeting the global market is noteworthy. The game is also focusing on securing an overseas user base by announcing multilingual support, including Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), French, German, Russian, and Spanish.
Support from Rimworld Creators, 260,000 YouTube Views… Community Interest Grows
Dungeon Settlers has been attracting the attention of overseas communities and content creators since before its release.
The gameplay trailer released in March 2025 recorded 260,000 views and over 13,000 likes on YouTube. In particular, it garnered attention when ‘Rimworld’ creator Tynan Sylvester personally left a comment on introductory video by indie game YouTuber Splattercat, saying, “You guys are doing great.”
Even though it is currently in the open playtest phase, the Steam wishlist has already surpassed 85,000. This is a very encouraging figure for an indie game before its official release.
Global strategy and simulation fans are focusing their attention on ‘Dungeon Settlers,’ which combines a dark fantasy worldview, the strategic nature of colony management, and the tension of dungeon exploration, to see what level of polish it will demonstrate based on its public demo.
Information regarding ‘Dungeon Settlers’
| item | detail |
|---|---|
| Developer | CanOpener (Seoul, South Korea) |
| Publisher | CanOpener (Self-publishing) |
| Genre | Colony Simulation / Dungeon Crawler / Strategy RPG / Dark Fantasy |
| Release platform | PC (Steam) |
| Scheduled release date | Q3 2026 |
| price | Undecided |
| Steam Wishlist | 85,000 (Playtesting stage) |
| YouTube trailer views | 260,000 views (released in March 2025) |
| YouTube Like | 13,000 pieces |
| core system | Real-time Pause Combat / Settlement Construction / Character Development / Random Dungeon |
| graphics | 2D pixel art |
| Main Keywords | Rimworld, Darkest Dungeon, Colony Sim, Hardcore, Permadeath, Tactical RPG |
| Supported languages | English, French, German, Russian, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified/Traditional), Korean, Spanish |
| Steam Page | Shortcut |
