Blog - RJ Arcade

Gifs from my folder

2026-04-05T00:00:00-07:00

Sometimes I record gifs while we’re working on new features. I was just looking through my gif folder and thought, why not dump it here?

Keep in mind none of these features have been tested or balanced yet, so they will probably change.

By the way, I’ll occasionally post these in the Discord as I record them. Join us if you want early peeks at what we’re working on! It’s also a great place to find other players in the Alpha demo.

OK, here’s a bunch of gifs of WIP content!

Dash Attack

Makes melee standoffs more dynamic.

Taunt

A little boost if you’re outnumbered.

Chaos

Sudden death if time runs out.

Missile Direction

Choose where your missiles spawn.

Spider Abilities

Wall Climb

Mortars

Cannons

Sky Beam

Misc Combat

Glaiver Abilities

Jump Shot

Surrounding Shot

Inferno

Misc Combat

That’s all for now. Good luck pilot!

-RJ

Release Timeline Change, Equipment Preview, and Other Stuff

2025-09-22T00:00:00-07:00

Here’s a progress update for Mecha Simultactics, and a preview of some upcoming mech equipment and features that will be available in the full version.

Release Date

First off, the release has been postponed to 2026.

Development is progressing well, and there are no roadblocks standing in our way. We simply need more time to work on the game. We don’t want to rush things just to meet an arbitrary deadline. Thank you for your understanding and support!

Mech Equipment

There are several different types of equipment. In this preview I’ll show main weapons, and some “EX” equipment. As usual, this is WIP content. Some of this might change in the future.

EX Weapons

The EX slots are for miscellaneous equipment in addition to your main weapon. Here’s a preview:

And here’s a preview of some main weapons:

Titan G1 - Two-Handed Sword

GZero - Dual Blades

GZero - Ring Sabres

Wrecker - Fists

Wrecker - Pile Bunker

Spider - Cannons

Spider - Mortar

Glaiver - Halberd

Glaiver - Heavy Rifle

Custom Equipment

Modders can add more equipment if they wish. I will post an example weapon on Steam Workshop to use as reference for creating custom equipment.

Other Stuff

Here are a few other things we’ve been working on. Mostly UI stuff, but highly requested, so I thought I’d share.

In-Game Guide

Click on any action or keyword to learn about it with the in-game guide.

Button Hotkeys

You’ll be able to rebind any button, and also set hotkeys for every slot in the radial action menu.

UI Scaling

Scale the UI by a percentage. For example, this can be used for a more spacious view on Steam Deck, or to increase the size of the UI on 4K screens if you are playing on a TV from the couch.

Steam Deck (100% Scale)

Steam Deck (80% Scale)

4K (100% Scale)

4K (200% Scale)

Chat

Please be nice to each other

That’s all for now. Good luck pilot!

Have an idea for equipment you want to see? Leave a comment!

-RJ

Preview the New Mechs (And More)

2025-06-04T00:00:00-07:00

Here’s a preview of some upcoming features like new mechs, sudden death, manual practice mode, new combat abilities, and the Mech Creator with Steam Workshop support.

This is an early look at features that are still work in progress, so a few things might change between now and release.

Also, the alpha was just updated with a new map! Check out the new map here.

Launch Date

Btw, we plan to launch Mecha Simultactics later this year! We’re still working on nailing down the exact date. Sign up for the newsletter to get notified when the full game is released!!

New Mechs

Here’s the first batch of mechs planned for release. We want to make a lot of different mechs. So, after release, we plan to add even more mechs.

Havoc SP100 “Spider”

The SP100 Spider by Havoc Labs, manufacturer of unconventional mechs. The Spider can climb and mount to walls allowing it to attack from a distance like a turret.

Titan G-Proto “GZero”

The GZero is a mech from Titan Industry’s G-Series. Its unbound momentum provides increased speed at the cost of endurance. It also has a powerful Charge Beam attack.

Velve V-41 “Glaiver”

Luxury mech designer Velve Gear’s V-41 Glaiver is a mixed melee and ranged specialist with the ability to launch a targeted flurry of missiles.

Titan X5 “Wrecker”

The Titan X5 Wrecker is a heavily armored grappling specialist with various grab abilities, including the ability to carry enemies.

Sudden Death

Also coming soon, battles can have an optional turn limit for “Chaos”. When the limit is reached, Chaos monsters spawn around the map, move in towards the middle, destroy terrain, and spread Chaos tiles which cause damage if you touch them.

Manual Practice Mode

In practice mode, the CPU can be controlled manually, allowing you to play out specific scenarios.

New Combat Abilities

A lot of new combat changes are coming. Here’s a few:

Burst Air/Ledge Recovery: You can Burst before you start falling to act in mid-air. This gives you a chance to recover if you get knocked off a ledge.

…This also gives you a chance to act instantly after DBlast, which allows for some silly combos.

Terrain Cover: Terrain provides cover from melee attacks.

Buildings also provide cover, but only briefly, as they are easily broken with melee strikes.

Ranged Attacks: Titan G1’s Palm Shot can hit targets from a distance, and destroys terrain with Overdrive.

More Custom Colors

The whole color wheel! The future is now!

Mech Creator and Steam Workshop

In addition to custom maps, the game will also support custom mechs, equipment, game modes, and CPU behaviors. The Mech Creator imports Photoshop or Aseprite files to generate game assets, and Lua is supported for scripting custom content.

I’m also going to add a few examples/starter assets to Steam Workshop to help modders create mechs and other content.

That’s all for now. In the meantime, check out the new map!

Good luck pilot!

-RJ

New Map - Cliffside - Mecha Simultactics v0.10 Release Notes

2025-06-04T00:00:00-07:00

We’ve been so busy working on the game I forgot to post news for the past… 5 months?! Rest assured we are still here working very hard, every day.

There’s a lot to talk about, so I split this update into two parts. In this post I’ll show some of the new things just added to the Alpha. In part two, I’ll show a few things we’re working on for the full release (spoiler: new mechs).

Release Notes

Version 0.10: Changelog.

You can play this update for free in the Mecha Simultactics Alpha.

New Map - Cliffside

That’s right, a smaller map! In Cliffside, running away is far less effective, and the risk of ring-outs adds a new challenge.

New Ability - Vent

Added a new ability, Vent, which repairs your mech and pushes enemies away. This depletes your Guts, so it should only be used in dire moments.

Gameplay Changes

You can now move instantly after Burst if used defensively, (i.e. while in knockback). You still miss a turn if you raw burst or if your burst is parried.

Flank attacks now cause knockback even while dodging or attacking.

Jab now pushes enemies away.

Speed

I replaced “Efficacy” with “Speed”. The original purpose of efficacy was to provide a simple number for comparing various attacks. However, it seems to cause some confusion… So, to simplify it further, I changed it to “speed” which displays a positive number. The higher the number, the faster the attack. Faster attacks beat slower attacks. I hope this helps!

New Mechs

That’s it for new demo content. Check out what’s coming soon in part 2 of this update.

Read Part 2 here: Preview: New Mechs (And More).

-RJ

Clash! Combo! - Mecha Simultactics v0.8 Release Notes

2024-12-07T00:00:00-08:00

Mecha Simultactics has just been updated with a new game mode called Clash Combo, plus lots of combat improvements, spectate while waiting, replay studio features, and networking and performance improvements.

You can play this update for free in the Mecha Simultactics Alpha.

Release Notes

TLDR: Changelog.

New Game Modes

New game modes have been added: 1v1 and Clash Combo.

In Clash Combo mode, two players automatically clash at the start of battle. Then, combo and fight. When both players reach neutral, they respawn and clash again. This was originally added to be used as a tiebreaker for tournaments that end in draws. It’s also useful for practicing combos or just playing a quick game of Rock Paper Scissors with a twist.

Spectate

You can now spectate the battle while you wait if you join a lobby mid-match.

Efficacy

Efficacy is now displayed as a number. There are a lot of changes under the hood to how priority works and how efficacy is calculated. The simple word-based indicator was not enough to compare all the attacks. As a number, efficacy should be an accurate indicator of how actions will resolve.

Preventing Stalemates

There was a problem in 1v1s where both players stand their ground and get punished for approaching. In order to prevent stalemates, melee trades now cause knockback to both players, which resets the players to neutral. Also, in order to encourage aggressive play, moving forward towards your opponent is treated similar to a dodge and does not get knocked back on hit. In other words, you don’t get knocked back while moving if you don’t pivot. The exception to this is if you are staggered or flanked - in these cases you are still prone to knockback.

Parry and Stagger

Parry now causes stagger on melee attackers regardless of their position. This effectively increases the range of parries to match the attacker’s range. To balance this, parry no longer does damage.

Also, stagger is now a much more dangerous status effect. You can now use special attacks while staggered, however, you can’t parry or block. And if you get his while staggered you get knocked back, making you susceptible to combos.

Burst

You are now immune to being launched immediately after a Burst. This should make Burst less risky to use.

Overdrive

“Overheat” has been renamed to “Overdrive” to make it more clear this is a positive effect. Also, Overdrive has been buffed significantly and now modifies all of your Combat actions.

Overdrive now gives an efficacy bonus to melee attacks. This means that you won’t clash if your opponent does not have overdrive as well – you’ll bypass the clash and hit them. Parry and grab no longer cause you to skip your next turn if missed during overdrive. Plus, you now get 1 free Lunge on any turn during overdrive, not just the first turn.

Replay Studio

The Replay Studio finally has a file picker, so you can watch any replay instead of only loading the newest one. The game will save up to 99 replays. Also, you can now pause and step frame by frame in the replay studio, and hover over units to inspect their status.

Other Fixes

Networking: Fixed battles sometimes failing to start in large lobbies. Performance: Added an option to disable VSync in the Graphics settings, greatly increasing frame rate on some machines.

Okay that’s all cool or whatever but where are the new mechs????????

We are working on new mechs! I will show them off as soon as they are ready. Join the Newsletter to get notified when I post about it.

In the meantime, if you are hungry for more content, check out the custom maps created by other players in the Discord server!

Good luck, Pilot!

-RJ

Mecha Simul-Team-Battle - Mecha Simultactics v0.7 Release Notes

2024-09-28T00:00:00-07:00

The first Mecha Simultactics update just dropped! This update includes private lobbies, lobby kick, networking fixes, combat balance, a new self-destruct ability, and a new team battle mode!

You can play this update for free in the Mecha Simultactics Alpha.

Also…

10,000 Pilots!

Wow, over 10,000 people have played the alpha! Thank you so much for playing this weird game with me!

You may have noticed a few bugs. But don’t worry, this is what alpha is for. You’d be surprised how many bugs go unreported though. Even though there are 10,000 of you, the community is small enough that I can read and respond to everyone. You’re part of a very special phase of development, where you have power to make an impact on this game with your feedback. So, if you find a bug, please let me know. You can post bug reports on the Steam forum or in the Discord.

Ok ok, let’s talk about the new stuff!

Team Battles

Mecha Simultactics now has two game modes: The original Free For All, and the new Team Battle mode. You can select Team Battle after you create a multiplayer lobby. Team Battle mode really changes the dynamics of tactical combat as team formation, directional advantage, and team coordination come into play. Can you coordinate a crazy team combo? Let’s see those replays!

Lobby Features

I implemented a few highly requested QOL features for lobbies. Sorry for not adding this sooner… haha. Now you can create private lobbies if you only want to play with your friends. Also, the host can now kick members from the lobby and set a custom lobby name.

Combat

I made a lot of changes to combat, and more to come. The goal here is to balance fundamental combat, prevent cheesy unavoidable damage, and prevent infinite combos, a.k.a. Touch of death (TOD). There are a lot of moving parts, so this will probably take a few tries to get right. Please let me know if I made anything worse!

Here are a few highlights of the combat changes. You can check the full changelog linked at the bottom of this article for more detailed information.

Destructive Blast

New Ability: Destructive Blast, which damages everything in the surrounding area, including yourself. If someone activates this you can pick them up and throw them like a grenade.

Stagger

New Status effect: Stagger. Parry and Knockdown now cause Stagger which prevents the use of special abilities and reduces melee priority.

Burst

Dodge and Teleport now evades Burst. Burst can now be parried or blocked with shield.

Shield

Your shield can now break after taking significant melee damage. Burst breaks it instantly.

Combos

I put some limits in place to prevent players from getting trapped in an infinite combo. For example, no more launching players off the floor with melee, and no more grabbing after a wall splat. Stagger plays a role in chaining combos - giving the defender an opportunity to break free.

Networking Fixes

Two major networking fixes:

Region lock fix: Steam filters the lobbies by default based on region distance. This prevented players from joining their friends’ games. I have fixed the configuration for this so you should be able to join rooms worldwide now. If it’s still not working, please let me know.
“Waiting for players” freeze: There are issues with large lobbies. The more players in a lobby, the more likely the connection is to fail during battle start. This should be improved now, but not 100% fixed. If you get stuck at battle startup with the new version, please let me know.

Changelog

Here’s a detailed breakdown of all the changes: Changelog

Wait, what about more content???????

Believe me, no one wants new mechs and abilities more than I do. I am so excited to add more content to this game. But first, we need to focus on fixing fundamental issues. This is what alpha is for! You will be hearing from me as soon as we add more content. Thank you for being patient while we work towards that!!

Stay up to date

Click these links:

Good luck, Pilot!

-RJ

Mecha Simultactics Alpha Out Now!

2024-09-05T00:00:00-07:00

Mecha Simultactics Alpha Demo has just released on Steam!

Get it!

HUD Design, Map Props, and Burst

2024-07-05T00:00:00-07:00

In this dev log I’ll show details about new things we added to Mecha Simultactics like HUD design, map props, and the “Burst” action.

But first, let’s celebrate a milestone: 6,000 wishlists! 🎉 This is an important milestone because Steam will now list the game in the Popular Upcoming sections, generally increasing visibility of the game.

Thank you so much for your interest in Mecha Simultactics and for waiting patiently while I work on the Alpha build! If you want to make sure you don’t miss the Alpha release, you can stay in the loop in various ways. Sign up for all the things!

HUD Design

Begone placeholders! Here you can see the new battle UI. Here’s the action menu and the clash menu. The clash menu opens if you and your opponent attack at the same time.

Action Menu

Clash Menu

Map Props

We’re adding some flavor to the maps with props, like trees and cars. You can create your own props in custom maps, too.

Burst

I’m often asked if it’s possible to break a combo if your mech is airborne or getting juggled.

I just started working on the “Burst” action which allows you to break free and gain control of your mech. It’s still a work in progress, but here’s how it looks so far. If you have Burst available, you will get the option to use it while you are being knocked back.

What’s Next

The Alpha build is getting very close. Thank you for waiting!! I’m still working on fixing some bugs and ironing out the actions and attacks.

Don’t miss an update! Sign up for more news:

That’s all for now!

-RJ

Verticality, Battle UI, and Custom Maps

2024-06-04T00:00:00-07:00

Since the last update I’ve been working on several features for Mecha Simultactics. I implemented the vertical axis, improved the battle UI, and added features to the map editor.

Verticality

The vertical axis opens up a ton of strategic possibilities. I have finally implemented elevation, allowing you to climb the terrain and fall down if you jump or get knocked off a ledge.

Battle UI

I’ve been working on improving the battle HUD. We have not created graphics for it yet, but I improved the layout and added necessary information like a minimap, targeted player info, and selected attack information.

Also, you can now see characters and the grid behind walls.

Custom Maps

Up until now the map editor was very janky. Well, It’s still janky. But slightly less so. Map data is now saved in a shareable format so you can share maps with other players. Steam Workshop is not implemented yet though. That will come later.

I also made it so you can create your own terrain textures in custom maps.

What’s Next

Now I’m working on polishing up the combat and balancing the attacks. After that, I will release an alpha build for playtesting!

Don’t Miss Out

That’s all for now!

-RJ

Mech Customization, Soundtrack, and Predicting Turns

2024-04-28T00:00:00-07:00

Here’s an update about what we recently added to Mecha Simultactics, and what’s coming up next.

Listen To The Soundtrack

The soundtrack is now in progress! It will feature EDM, breakcore, and techno created by System ST91. We just released a track from the OST. Listen to it here!

Predict Future Turns

You can preview the next turn while you are selecting your action to predict how it might play out.

Customize Your Mech

Mech customization is a highly requested feature. The characters are now split up into multiple sprites, so you can fine-tune their colors. Plus, there will be various equipment options to choose from, visible on your mech.

You might be wondering if there will be other types of mechs. The answer is yes! But, I’ll show those in a future update.

Current State of Development

Mecha Simultactics is not quite ready for playtesting yet, but it’s getting close. There are two major things I need to fix before sending out invitations to playtest the game.

Battle UI

The in-game UI is pretty confusing and janky. I need to add some more information like stats, and fix some input issues.

Attack Balancing/Fixes

Attacks are just a proof of concept right now. So, you can spam them and easily grief each other. I need to tweak and balance them a bit. This will be an ongoing process even after release.

Stay In The Loop

Never miss an update:

That’s all for now!

-RJ

Announcing Mecha Simultactics!

2024-01-26T00:00:00-08:00

Mecha Simultactics is a simultaneous-turn-based tactics game with online PVP on an isometric battlefield. Each turn, players select an action, which are then executed at the same time. Your available actions depend on the outcome of the previous turn.

Add Mecha Simultactics to your Steam wishlist!

FEATURES:

Simultaneous-turn-based tactical gameplay
Multiple types of mechs and customization options
Isometric battlefield with destructible terrain
Anime-inspired battle replays
Map editor
Online PvP netplay

Playtesting for Mecha Simultactics will commence soon. You can sign up for the Playtest on the Steam page.

Simultaneous-Turn-Based PVP Tactics

2023-12-07T00:00:00-08:00

I’m taking a short detour from Mercura, which is a very big project, to experiment with a smaller game idea.

See the full post and video here.

Some animated gifs…

Melee:

Projectiles:

Destructible terrain:

Spirit Companion, Character Customization, and Skill Trees

2023-09-05T00:00:00-07:00

Here’s an update on Mercura’s latest features!

Spirit Companion:

The Spirit Companion is now integrated into the game. This acts both as a guide and an additional weapon during combat. You can equip it with any weapon that is not compatible with your character’s class.

Character Customization:

You can now choose your hairstyle, clothing accent color, and equipped garments are visible on your character. There are only a few to choose from right now, but I will be adding more in the future.

Skill Trees:

I’m currently working on the fusion skill tree system. You can choose both a Spirit class and a Technical class, each with their own skill tree, plus unique skills that are only available for certain combinations.

More details

Read the full details of this update on Steam.

Want to play?

Mercura is a 2.5D online sandbox action rpg. Want to play an early build of Mercura?

✨ Join the playtest at playmercura.com ✨

Top-Down Sandbox Action RPG

2023-08-02T00:00:00-07:00

Mercura is a top-down sandbox action RPG with online co-op in an online virtual world.

In Mercura, you may discover towns and dungeons created by other players, or harness the power of Mercura to create your own.

✨ More info at playmercura.com ✨

Huge Rival Megagun Patch Now Live On Steam

2020-06-21T00:00:00-07:00

We just released a huge patch on Steam! This is a major update with new online multiplayer options, practice while matchmaking, user avatars, more battle settings, and gameplay tweaks! Additionally, the game is on sale at 40% off. Console updates are coming soon.

Full patch details here!

Rival Megagun Physical Release Pre-Orders Now Live

2020-02-07T00:00:00-08:00

Brought to you by Spacewave Software, Degica Games, and First Press Games, Rival Megagun physical and collector’s editions are coming soon for PS4 and Nintendo Switch!

Pre-orders are now live.

Get your copy here!

Rival Megagun XE coming to exA-Arcadia

2019-01-26T00:00:00-08:00

POWER TO THE EXA!

Rival Megagun XE is coming to exA-Arcadia.

ExA-Arcadia is an upcoming arcade platform bringing video games back to arcades globally.

View it on the ExA-Arcadia website.

See Rival Megagun XE at JAEPO here (Starting at 1:12:10):

Rival Megagun out now!

2018-12-08T00:00:00-08:00

Rival Megagun is out now on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.

Learn more:

Rival Megagun Website

Join the community:

Discord

Buy Rival Megagun:

Rival Megagun release date update

2018-11-22T00:00:00-08:00

Rival Megagun will release on the following dates:

North America:

Steam - November 29, 2018
PS4 - November 29, 2018
Xbox One - November 30, 2018
Nintendo Switch - December 6, 2018

Europe:

Steam - November 29, 2018
PS4 - November 29, 2018
Xbox One - November 30, 2018
Nintendo Switch - November 29, 2018

Japan:

Steam - November 30, 2018
PS4 - November 30, 2018
Xbox One - December 1, 2018
Nintendo Switch - November 29, 2018

Rival Megagun coming November 29th!

2018-11-09T00:00:00-08:00

Rival Megagun is set to release on November 29, 2018, on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch!

Watch the official trailer here:

Transform into your Mega Gunship boss form to blast your rival head-on in this unique shooting game with a competitive twist. Rival Megagun is a competitive split-screen vertical shmup (or shoot ‘em up, shooting game, STG) where you transform into a gigantic boss ship - your “Mega Gunship” - to invade your opponent’s screen.

Key Features:

Classic shmup action with a competitive twist
Multiple playable heroes, each with their own special weapons and Mega Gunship boss
Intense 2-player “couch-competitive” local versus battles
Online battles - challenge your friends of find opponents via matchmaking
Unlockable gear and weapons for customizing your ship
A single-player arcade mode