Two decks, edible enemies, and one very strange trip underground
Shroom and Gloom is Fix Gaming Channel’s Game of the Week #71, selected as an editorial spotlight based on its concept, public footage, Early Access presentation, and development story.
We have not played Shroom and Gloom yet. This is not a hands-on review or recommendation based on our own gameplay. It is a Game of the Week spotlight on an indie game that stood out to us through its unusual mechanics, visual identity, and current Early Access build.
Following Fugue Shot, our Game of the Week #70, this week’s pick heads underground for a first-person roguelike deckbuilder from Team Lazerbeam, published by Devolver Digital.
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Two decks instead of one
The basic hook is easy to explain. Shroom and Gloom uses two separate decks, one for combat and another for exploration.
The Combat deck handles attacks, damage, effects, and the fights themselves. The Explore deck covers the dungeon around you, including actions that can open routes, break obstacles, reveal paths, and interact with the environment.
Cards in Shroom and Gloom are used outside combat too, including for navigating and interacting with the dungeon.
That means the card system is not limited to combat encounters. From the public footage and store information available so far, deckbuilding appears to shape the full run rather than only the battles.
Build the deck, then push it further
Cards can be gained and upgraded as a run develops, and the game encourages increasingly strong combinations. That is a familiar roguelike idea, but the first-person presentation and split between combat and exploration give it a different feel from the usual top-down deckbuilder.
New cards can expand the player’s options as a run develops.
Yes, you can eat the enemies
This is where Shroom and Gloom gets even stranger. Defeated enemies can be turned into food, with the game presenting fungal creatures as something you can roast, season, cook, and eat to recover health or gain useful effects.
Combat pits the player’s card deck against a very strange collection of fungal enemies.
It is exactly the kind of mechanic that gives a game a clear identity before you even know whether every part of it works perfectly.
A prototype that grew into a full Early Access game
Shroom and Gloom began as a smaller prototype before expanding into a larger project. Team Lazerbeam continued developing the idea after the original version attracted attention, and Devolver Digital later came on as publisher.
The game entered Steam Early Access on September 10, 2026. The current release is still in development, so systems, balance, content, and structure can continue changing while Team Lazerbeam works toward the finished version.
Why Shroom and Gloom is Game of the Week #71
This week’s selection comes down to one of the strongest and strangest indie concepts we have seen recently.
It is a first-person roguelike where you build two decks, fight horrible mushrooms, and then cook your enemies.
That is a hook.
From the footage and information currently available, the hand-drawn creatures and environments give Shroom and Gloom a strong visual identity, while the separate Combat and Explore decks appear to push the card system beyond simply choosing attacks during battles.
Again, we have not played the game, so we are not judging how well those systems ultimately work. This is a spotlight, not a review, and there is no score attached.
Game of the Week can be based on hands-on experience, but it can also highlight a game because its concept, presentation, development story, or approach makes it worth watching. This week, that game is Shroom and Gloom.
Shroom and Gloom is Fix Gaming Channel’s Game of the Week #71.
Shroom and Gloom
Release: September 10, 2026, Early Access
Genre: Roguelike, Deckbuilder, Dungeon Crawler
Developer: Team Lazerbeam
Publisher: Devolver Digital
Platforms: Windows and macOS — Steam
View Shroom and Gloom on Steam
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Fugue Shot at PAX West | Game of the Week #70
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Written by Ronny Fiksdahl, Founder & Editor-in-Chief of Fix Gaming Channel.
Send interview pitches, corrections, tips, or developer stories to contact@fixgamingchannel.com.
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