Moonlighter dev delays Steam playtest for its “Tower Defensevania” ReVamp over concerns that AI copycats might clone it before launch
By Image credit: Digital Sun
Digital Sun – the independent studio behind addictive roguelike Moonlighter and atmospheric RTS Cataclismo – has postponed a scheduled Steam playtest for its upcoming title, ReVamp, due to worries about “games being reverse-engineered, replicated and published before the original is even out.”
The developer had intended to allow players into its vampiric “Tower Defensevania” ReVamp towards the close of this eerie month, but a rising trend of gen-AI imitators replicating both classic and forthcoming games left the studio concerned.
“So many of you registered for ReVamp’s initial playtest here on Steam (thank you!), but we’ve opted to initiate with something more limited on our Discord, with the public playtest set to follow at a later date,” the developer mentioned in a recent Steam blog post.
Digital Sun highlighted concerns regarding “reports of games being reverse-engineered, replicated and published before the original has even launched,” expressing that “sharing a build with tens of thousands of players” months ahead of the complete release is “too significant a risk.”
Going forward, Digital Sun will provide access to ReVamp’s first playtest in phases starting from the 29th of October, through Discord. “Even if you don’t gain access immediately, we encourage you to participate in the discussions surrounding ReVamp as we invite more players in. We aim to roll out the public playtest around January. To everyone who sought access here on Steam: we apologize for the change in plans, and appreciate your understanding,” the studio added.
ReVamp is set to launch fully on 25th March, 2027. Here’s hoping this strategy helps deter any potential clones.
Digital Sun isn’t the sole developer needing to navigate the gen-AI surge. Xbox recently unveiled an entire division that appears focused on gen-AI game development, as just one example.
In the meantime, Alliance Arts outright scrapped a Steam Next Fest demo for its anime-themed Russian Roulette game, Drunken Goddess Reflux,
