Heavy metal. When I wore a younger man’s clothes, it was what I lived and died for on a daily basis. It was everything to me. My escape, my best friend, my confidence, and most importantly, my gateway to my true love of punk and hardcore music.
So when a game uses the slogan “Enter the Moshpit,” my interest is piqued. But I also chuckle, because man, have I been in some big boy moshpits over the years.
As you boot up this 2D horizontal arcade shoot ’em up, you immediately notice that the game is teeming with METAL. From the Iron Maiden-inspired fonts in the UI to the Slayer-esque music on the menu screen, the influences are everywhere. During my first run, I caught a reference to Ride the Lightning, and then, of course, there’s the Motörhead-inspired nod to the Road Crew.
Lemmy would approve.
My immediate thoughts, or maybe I should say feelings, when playing Cataclyzm are that it makes me smile like one of those fat, fluffy Cheshire cats. If you enjoy shmups, especially chaotic, over-the-top games that don’t take themselves too seriously, then this one is more than a little fun to play.
As you progress through the various stages, you can swap weapon types by collecting guitar pedals. Your bullet type and spread change depending on the color of the pedal. Blue is Chorus, orange is Overdrive, and the white is Fuzz, which will grant you fuzz bombs!
You can also collect beer to increase your score. Beer initially appears as a can, but as you defeat enemies and fill the meter, it transforms into a stein and eventually a chalice worth 66,666 points.
Cataclyzm is participating in the October 2026 Steam Next Fest, giving players an opportunity to experience its heavy metal-inspired chaos ahead of its October 29, 2026 release on PC via Steam. You can check out the demo on the game’s Steam store page.
Image credit: Dogroach / Cataclyzm Steam store page
| GAMEPLAY | |
|---|---|
| Genre | 2D vertical-scrolling arcade shoot ’em up. |
| Gameplay | Fast-paced, chaotic shooting across multiple stages with heavy metal-inspired themes. |
| Weapon System | Collect guitar pedals to change weapon types, bullet patterns, and shot spread. |
| Guitar Pedals | Chorus (blue) and Overdrive (orange) change your weapon’s bullet patterns and shot spread. |
| Fuzz Bombs | Use Fuzz bombs during dense enemy bullet patterns to help survive overwhelming situations. |
| Scoring | Defeating enemies upgrades beer collectibles from can to stein to chalice, increasing their point value. |
| PRESENTATION | |
| Visual Style | Colorful, exaggerated arcade visuals with heavy metal-inspired artwork and typography. |
| Soundtrack | Heavy metal-inspired music complementing the game’s frantic arcade action. |
| Metal References | References and nods to bands including Iron Maiden, Slayer, Metallica, and Motörhead. |
| AVAILABILITY | |
| Platform | PC (Steam). |
| Release Date | October 29, 2026. |
| Demo | Playable demo available on Steam, with an older build also hosted on itch.io. |
| Engine | Godot. |