Star Conflict: Burrownauts is the latest project announced by Targem Games, expanding the established Star Conflict universe in a notably different direction. Rather than focusing solely on conventional space combat, the new game is being positioned as an action roguelite built around two contrasting activities: deliberate mining expeditions through ancient planetoids and sudden, overwhelming bullet-heaven battles against hostile forces.
The premise places players in the role of a space miner working far from safer, settled areas. Each journey begins with a landing on a remote planetoid, where the objective is to reach valuable deposits, extract rare materials, and return with the haul intact. That task is complicated by hazardous environments, the condition of the player's ship, and waves of space bandits that can descend upon a base before an expedition is complete.
A playtest is already running for early participants, while a broader Steam playtest is planned to open soon. Targem Games is collecting sign-ups ahead of that Steam test. Players taking part in the current test are permitted to stream the game, record gameplay, and publish their impressions, giving interested space-game fans an early chance to see how its mining and combat systems work together.
A Roguelite Built Around the Calm Before the Attack
Burrownauts' most distinctive pitch is the intended rhythm between peaceful exploration and frantic defense. The interiors of the game's planetoids are meant to offer a slower-paced phase of play, as miners search for routes to rich veins of resources and decide what to bring back to their operation. These moments emphasize exploration, gathering, and planning rather than constant combat.
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That sense of calm does not last forever. Once enemies move on the player's position, the game shifts toward fast, crowded action described as bullet-heaven combat. In that style of action game, survival depends on contending with large numbers of hostile units and a screen filled with attacks, effects, and threats. Burrownauts applies that pressure to base defense: the resources gathered below must be protected as raiders attempt to overwhelm the miner's position.
The setup gives expeditions a straightforward but potentially tense risk-and-reward structure. Going deeper into a planetoid may uncover more valuable materials, but doing so can leave a player with more to lose when the fighting starts. Securing loot is not just an optional bonus; surviving an expedition and getting its resources safely through dangerous conditions is presented as the central objective.
That loop could make every outing feel like a changing calculation. A player may need to decide whether to head back with a modest load, keep searching for rarer deposits, spend time repairing or improving equipment, or hold position against another assault. As with many roguelites, the appeal will likely depend on how well those decisions create meaningful momentum from one run to the next.
For another perspective on this story, read Star Conflict: Burrownauts Announced as a Mining-Focused Action Roguelite With Bullet-Heaven Base Defense.
Mining, Ship Maintenance, and Upgrades
Resources will have a practical purpose beyond simply acting as score or currency. Burrownauts asks players to improve their ship as they progress, with the game also placing importance on monitoring the condition of its systems. The announcement does not yet outline the full range of modules, weapons, mining tools, or defensive options available, but ship development is clearly intended to sit at the center of the experience.
That focus fits the game's identity as a mining-focused roguelite. A stronger vessel could potentially support more ambitious dives into dangerous territory, while better defensive capability may be essential when bandits arrive. Likewise, system condition suggests that the ship may be more than a simple menu for purchasing upgrades. Managing its state could become part of preparing for expeditions and responding to the damage incurred during a difficult run.
The game's use of ancient planetoids also provides a thematic reason for exploration beyond pure resource extraction. These worlds are described as places containing evidence of lost civilizations. Players will not only be searching for materials, then, but also encountering traces of the setting's deeper past. Exactly how much narrative discovery or environmental storytelling will be present has not been detailed, though the lost-civilization angle suggests the expeditions may have mysteries to uncover alongside their economic goals.
Familiar Star Conflict Elements in a New Format
Although Burrownauts changes the genre framework, it remains connected to Star Conflict. Players can expect familiar ships, technologies, and other elements from that universe to appear during their mining operations and hazardous journeys. For existing fans, that connection may be one of the project's biggest draws: it provides a fresh way to engage with recognizable science-fiction concepts without simply repeating the same style of game.
The shift is important because the announced structure emphasizes a more contained, run-driven experience. Instead of framing the player only as a pilot in open space engagements, Burrownauts centers on the life of a worker operating at the edge of dangerous territory. The fantasy is less about a single glorious battle and more about repeatedly taking calculated risks: descend into an unfamiliar place, gather whatever can be found, build up the ship, and survive long enough to make the effort worthwhile.
Space bandits provide the immediate combat threat, but the dangerous conditions of each expedition appear just as important. Mining in distant planetoids is not being portrayed as a purely relaxing activity even before combat begins. Getting to deposits, keeping systems in working order, and deciding how much risk to accept will all factor into whether a run ends in a successful extraction or a loss.
Star Conflict: Burrownauts is designed around the collision of methodical underground resource gathering and high-pressure survival when hostile waves target the player's base.
What "Bullet-Heaven" Could Mean for Burrownauts
The bullet-heaven label offers a useful clue about the scale and pacing of the game's combat. It generally points to encounters where a player faces great numbers of enemies and attacks, often relying on movement, upgrades, ability combinations, and efficient crowd control to stay alive. In Burrownauts, those conventions are being used in a science-fiction mining context rather than a fantasy or horror setting.
The announcement confirms hordes of enemies and base-focused attacks, but it does not yet specify whether weapons fire automatically, how much direct aiming is involved, or whether players will place separate defensive structures. Those details will matter greatly to the game's eventual feel. A defense sequence centered on ship loadouts and maneuvering would play differently from one based heavily on turrets, traps, or deployable machinery.
Still, the broad concept is clear. Mining is not isolated from combat progression; it feeds into it. The rarer resources players collect should help support the upgrades needed to withstand stronger assaults, while survival allows them to preserve the materials required for future improvements. That interdependence could distinguish Burrownauts from games in which gathering and fighting exist as separate activities with little effect on one another.
Steam Playtest Plans and What Has Not Been Announced
For now, Steam is the only confirmed platform for Star Conflict: Burrownauts. A Steam playtest is planned for the near future, and registrations are currently being gathered. An early playtest is already underway for a group of players, who are allowed to share their experience through streams, recorded footage, and reviews.
Targem Games has not announced a release date, price, final launch window, or additional platforms. It has also not yet provided a complete feature list covering progression systems, multiplayer support, controller compatibility, or the long-term structure of its roguelite runs. Those unanswered questions make the planned playtest particularly relevant, since it should offer the first broader look at the game's balance between excavation, upgrades, and defense.
Star Conflict: Burrownauts arrives with an appealingly unusual combination of ideas. The prospect of quietly navigating the depths of an ancient celestial body before racing back to defend hard-won resources gives the project a strong central contrast. If its upgrades, hazards, and hostile swarms reinforce each other effectively, the game could offer a distinctive spacefaring twist on the action roguelite formula.
Players interested in trying that formula early can watch for the forthcoming Steam playtest and submit a sign-up. Until more details emerge, Burrownauts remains a promising new branch of the Star Conflict universe--one where the next valuable discovery may be only moments away from a full-scale fight for survival.
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