We’ve reached a point where “survivor-likes” are everywhere, usually sporting the same retro pixel-art look to save on performance. But Grind Survivors, the debut original IP from the Ukrainian team at Pushka Studios, takes a different path. Dropping the pixels for Unreal Engine, they’ve built a dark, high-fidelity bullet-hell that feels more like an ARPG than a simple mobile port.
Pushka isn’t new to the industry—they’ve spent years in the trenches doing technical porting and co-dev work for AAA titles—but this is the first time they’re calling the shots.
Core Features
- Unending Waves: Survive ever-growing swarms of demonic enemies in a bullet-hell environment.
- Loot-Driven Combat: Procedurally generated weapons with randomized Diablo-style traits, origins, and affixes.
- Risk & Reward Crafting: Use “The Forge” to infuse, improve, and reforge weapons to build custom arsenals.
- Skill Progression: Spend “Ashe” across three distinct skill branches (Pride, Greed, Wraith) and equip modifying Runes.
- Endless Mode: An infinitely scaling survival mode to test your ultimate, synergized builds.
Diablo Meets the Bullet-Hell
The gameplay is exactly what the title suggests: a relentless grind through demonic hordes. You play as a towering hunter in a scorched wasteland, but instead of just picking passive boons, the game leans heavily into loot.
The weapons are procedurally generated with Diablo-style affixes and “Origins” like Doomforged or Infernal. The real hook, though, is The Forge. It’s a high-stakes crafting system where you can fuse weapons to boost their tier or gamble on a reforge. It adds a layer of “min-maxing” that most games in this genre skip, making your build feel much more personal.
The Beauty and the Chaos
Because it’s built in Unreal, the game looks fantastic—until it doesn’t. When the screen fills with high-fidelity gore, explosions, and thousands of projectiles, visual clarity goes out the window. It can be genuinely hard to see what’s killing you during the late-game waves.
The community has also pointed out some growing pains. While the gunplay is crunchy, the variety can feel thin after a few hours. You’ll find yourself replaying the same biomes on higher difficulties, and some of the later bosses feel suspiciously like reskinned versions of the early ones. There’s also a bit of a balancing issue; right now, the Teslagun is so much better than almost anything else that it makes other builds feel like a self-imposed handicap.
Visual clarity can be a genuine issue
When the screen is completely filled with high-fidelity gore and bullet-hell projectiles, parsing the action can become visually overwhelming.
Fun Fact Sheet
- A Strong Launch: The game had a highly successful debut, peaking at nearly 3,000 concurrent players on Steam, making it publisher Assemble Entertainment’s second-best launch to date.
- Support for the Cause: Pushka Studios actively engages in charitable activities to support the Ukrainian armed forces, and the game is available with a dedicated “Ukraine Supporter Pack” on digital storefronts, which donates proceeds to the Ukraine Help Foundation.
- Deck Verified, With a Catch: While Grind Survivors plays great on the Steam Deck using default graphics configurations, Valve’s official compatibility notes warn that some in-game text is unusually small and requires squinting.
Why It Matters
It’s worth noting that Pushka Studios is developing this while actively supporting the Ukrainian relief efforts. There’s even a “Ukraine Supporter Pack” available, with proceeds going to the Ukraine Help Foundation.
Technically, the game is a beast. It’s Steam Deck Verified, though fair warning: the text is tiny on that screen, so keep your glasses handy. On PC, it’s a smooth experience, provided your rig can handle the sheer amount of particle effects during the final minutes of a run.
The Verdict
Grind Survivors is a hell of a first swing. It’s mechanically deep and visually striking, even if it gets a bit repetitive once the initial “new game” smell wears off. If Pushka can patch the visual clutter and add some more enemy variety, this could easily become a genre staple.
If you’re a fan of Path of Exile-style loot and the “just one more run” addiction of Vampire Survivors, this is an easy recommendation—especially while those launch discounts are still active on Steam.
ID Card
- Developer: Pushka Studios
- Publisher: Assemble Entertainment
- Engine: Unreal Engine
- Platforms: PC (Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
- Release Date: March 16, 2026
- Genre: Action / Indie / Roguelike / Bullet Hell
Have you had the chance to test your luck at The Forge yet? Drop into the comments below and let us know your most overpowered weapon synergies!
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