A new indie studio made up of industry veterans has officially unveiled its debut project. Developer Raven Studio, founded by former Tencent and NetEase developers, has partnered with publisher Infini Fun to announce Cats in the Shell, a mech-building roguelike auto battler headed to PC via Steam Early Access in Q4 2026.
Cats in the Shell combines deep mech customization with roguelike progression, placing players in command of massive combat machines piloted by an eclectic cast of battle-ready cats. Players will choose from six distinct mech classes, each offering different playstyles and strategic possibilities, while recruiting feline pilots equipped with their own unique active abilities.
Customization plays a major role in the experience, with more than 1,000 equipment modules and components available to discover through random events. Players can experiment with different layouts by assigning modules across five equipment slots, balancing limited inventory space while uncovering powerful synergies that come together during automated battles.
The campaign spans four futuristic biomes filled with dangerous enemies and towering bosses. Beyond the story mode, players can test their creations against mech builds assembled by other players in asynchronous PvP battles, refining their loadouts after each encounter as they push toward a gauntlet of 10 consecutive victories.
According to Raven Studio director Alex Dong, the team’s goal is to create a mech-building experience driven by experimentation and replayability. With hundreds of modules creating countless build combinations, every run offers new opportunities to discover powerful strategies and unexpected interactions.
Cats in the Shell is scheduled to launch on PC through Steam Early Access in Q4 2026. The game will support English, German, French, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese, European Portuguese, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese at launch.