Thermal Runaway

Thermal Runaway is a wave-based survival game set on the single reinforced floor of Chamber 7-A. You fight through 100 waves across 10 levels, with no map and nowhere to retreat. A full run takes 35 to 50 minutes. Waves are generated rather than scripted, so the rules stay the same while each fight differs. You can suspend and resume a run, but there are no checkpoints; death ends it.

Build through the waves

Every three waves, you choose an upgrade; every ten, you gain an experimental Protocol. The game has 62 upgrades and 13 Protocols, which combine rather than simply add their effects. Examples include ricochets that split on every bounce, lightning that conducts through frozen targets, and echoes of your character that keep firing your weapon after you move on.

Rising threats

Difficulty escalates along 11 axes, while enemy health barely triples over the 100 waves. The number of enemies, their speed and approach, and the hazards on the floor change as the run progresses. Four enemy archetypes gain Elite and Prime ranks, and by level 9 the chamber floor itself is hostile.

The Overseer

THE OVERSEER appears at wave 100. The multi-phase fight draws on everything the facility has learned about you. After it falls, endless Overload cycles begin and continue without stopping. The game also has 32 achievements, most tied to things you do not have to do.

Generated audiovisuals

Every shape, sound and musical note is produced by code at run time; the game uses no image or audio files. It starts in under two seconds and fits in a hundred megabytes.

You can play with a keyboard, mouse or gamepad, and fully remap the controls. On-screen prompts follow the device you are using. Options include auto aim, adjustable screen shake and flashes, and a high-contrast mode; the game is playable on a keyboard alone.