Hello everyone!

The second official KAZ Playtest is coming soon, and signups are now open.

After the first playtest wrapped up, I spent a lot of time going through your feedback, fixing bugs, and reworking parts of the game that needed improvement. This new build is the result of that work, and I’m really excited to finally put it back in players’ hands!

If you missed the first playtest, this is a great chance to jump in early, try out the new content, and help shape the game before release!

For this Playtest, I am excited to partner with STAN, a gaming community platform focused on connecting developers with players across India. STAN will help introduce KAZ to more Indian gamers during the playtest. STAN is a social platform where gamers can connect, join communities, participate in events, and discover new games together. Their growing community will be joining the chaos of the KAZ playtest alongside the rest of you. Excited to work with the STAN team and welcome more players into the world of KAZ during this playtest!

Playtest applications

March 10 – March 19, 2026

Playtest period

March 20 – April 2, 2026

Winner announcement

April 3, 2026

🥇 1st place — $100

🥈 2nd place — $30

🥉 3rd place — $20

Top players will also receive an exclusive Discord role.

This build includes several additions and improvements I’ve been working on since the last test:

• New spells

• Updated UI

• 40 items (10 new items)

• New Themes

  There’s a lot of new stuff to explore and I’m really curious to see what builds, strategies, and ridiculous runs people come up with!

You can request access to the playtest directly through the KAZ Steam page:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3633760/Kaz/

If you’re accepted, the KAZ Playtest app will appear in your Steam library once the build goes live.

Make sure to join my Discord to stay up to date with announcements, share your runs, and connect with other players during the playtest. This is also where we'll contact the leaderboard winners!

https://discord.gg/Q5gmjnfBRS

• You can attempt the leaderboard as many times as you want during the playtest period.

• No cheating or third-party keyboard software.

• Only runs on 'Survival Mode' will be counted towards the competition.

• If you place high on the leaderboard, you may be asked to provide video proof of your run.

• Streaming or recording gameplay is highly encouraged!

The first playtest was incredibly fun to watch, and I can’t wait to see what strategies, builds, and ridiculous runs players come up with this time!

Good luck everyone! I’m really looking forward to seeing who ends up on top of the leaderboard this time around. ;)

– Kalinarm

February was a big month for KAZ, with our first community competition going live and the game appearing in several international showcases.

Our Community Theme Showcase launched in mid-February. The idea behind this event is to bridge arcade gameplay and visual art by collaborating directly with creators.

My vision for KAZ has always been to turn the game into something like a playable, living art gallery. That’s why I opened the door for artists to submit their own theme concepts that could become part of the game itself.

Artists can submit their theme ideas, and the best submissions will be implemented directly into KAZ, complete with creator credits and cash prizes.

The response so far has been incredible! Because some creators mentioned the timeline felt a bit tight, I’ve decided to extend the submission deadline to March 10, 2026. There’s still time to participate if you’ve been working on an idea.

Submit your theme here:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfjJuLu3zn0GQQxXDICL-hnPId3s_Jo7IA2rttc3340cgTzyQ/viewform?usp=dialog

KAZ appeared in several showcases this month:

• Best Indie Games Spring Showcase 2026 (#BIGSpringShowcase)

• Typing Fest

The Best Indie Games Spring Showcase 2026 is currently live, and I'm very happy to be part of it. It’s always exciting seeing KAZ alongside so many great indie projects.

Typing Fest was another highlight this month, and we’re grateful to have had the opportunity to showcase the game there as well.

KAZ has also been accepted into the Mundo Gamer Showcase, Game Pavilion Japan, and the Six One Indie Showcase. I’m really looking forward to sharing the game with everyone during these upcoming events.

This month focused heavily on polish and improvements based on feedback from the first playtest.

• Full UI rework to improve clarity, usability, and overall visual design.

• Bug fixes addressing issues reported during the previous playtest.

• Balance adjustments to items and quests based directly on player feedback.

• New malus added to introduce additional challenge and variety during runs.

• New quest added to expand progression goals.

• Sound design improvements, along with new OST tracks added to the game.

• Additional general bug fixes and stability improvements across the build.

Next up is the March playtest.

This upcoming playtest will give players another chance to try the game ahead of release and experience more of what KAZ has to offer.

Applications for the closed playtest will open March 10 and run until March 19. The playtest itself will take place March 20 – April 2, with winners announced shortly after.

This new test build will include:

• New spells

• Updated UI

• Item balancing and gameplay tweaks

• Multiple playable themes

As with the previous playtest, I'll also be running a competitive leaderboard with cash prizes:

🥇 1st place: $100

🥈 2nd place: $30

🥉 3rd place: $20

If you’d like to participate, keep an eye on upcoming announcements and make sure to join our Discord for updates:

https://discord.gg/Q5gmjnfBRS

If you’d like to stay updated, make sure to join our Discord and keep an eye on announcements.

More updates soon!