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Nova Drift
Nova Drift distills the mechanical depth and strategy of an ARPG into classic arcade space combat. Control an endlessly evolving bio-mechanical ship, face legions of strange and deadly foes, and ride the wake of a dying star across the void.
Recent Reviews:
Very Positive (79) - 89% of the 79 user reviews in the last 30 days are positive.
All Reviews:
Overwhelmingly Positive (10,198) - 96% of the 10,198 user reviews for this game are positive.
Release Date:
Mar 27, 2019
Developer:
Publisher:
Pixeljam
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Features
Languages:
Interface Full Audio Subtitles
English ✔
French ✔
Russian ✔
Simplified Chinese ✔
Traditional Chinese ✔
Japanese ✔
Polish ✔
Portuguese - Brazil ✔
Korean ✔
Spanish - Spain ✔
See all 10 supported languages
Includes 40 Steam Achievements
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all 40
Awards

Early Access Game

Get instant access and start playing; get involved with this game as it develops.

Note: This Early Access game is not complete and may or may not change further. If you are not excited to play this game in its current state, then you should wait to see if the game progresses further in development. Learn more

What the developers have to say:

Why Early Access?

“Nova Drift is mechanically deep and offers near-endless player configurations, making game balance an ongoing challenge. As a living game, Nova Drift will continue to receive a steady flow of content, adjustments, and features. The wealth of player feedback, experimentation, and data that Early Access provides will make the game as solid as possible leading up to its full release.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“The full release is expected to take place in 2024.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“Early Access focuses on the meat of the game: The upgrade system and game balance. Nova Drift's endless mode is a perfect arena to focus test player abilities, enemy capabilities, and game flow. The full version will include the campaign: a game mode with exposition, an introduction, and a game ending. Additionally, the final version will include the game's final boss fight.

During early access, the game will also gain additional features such as new upgrades, greater challenges for veteran players, optimizations, more musical tracks, polish, and more game customization.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“Nova Drift is stable, highly player vetted, and dense with content. Players are limited to choosing endless mode or practice mode, with the campaign unavailable.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“The price might increase once we transition out of Early Access.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“Nova Drift has been community driven for the greater majority of its development cycle, thriving on feedback and player suggestions. The game will continue to value this relationship throughout its lifespan, long after full release, as more content is deployed.

The best way to get involved is through our Discord server.”
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Buy Nova Drift

$17.99
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Buy Nova Drift Game & Soundtrack

Includes 2 items: Nova Drift, Nova Drift OST

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$22.38
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Reviews

“Its integration of rogue-lite unlocks and a ridiculous level of ship customization transforms the game into something magical.”
Game Informer

“Nova Drift is a big, endless, beautiful universe of arcade combat, fusing the modern indie gaming style with the deepest roots of gaming history.”
Hardcore Gamer

“It’s not only sleek and sexy looking, but it comes with smooth-as-can-be controls with enough personalization in the upgrade modules to make your head spin.”
Manablast

About This Game

- SURVIVE - EVOLVE - DOMINATE -


Nova Drift is a 'rogue-lite' space shooter that melds a classic arcade experience with modern action-RPG elements, emphasizing build-crafting and deep customization. Your ship rapidly evolves as you defeat enemies, allowing you to take a build from inception to execution in a single, captivating game session.

Build to play how you want, creating a unique build every game. Runs are quick, allowing for rapid experimentation and iteration.

DEFINE YOUR BUILD, combining dozens of choices of Weapon, Shield, and Body GEAR, including:




  • Weapon - Thermal Lance: Channel a focused lance of heat that makes targets vulnerable to further damage.
  • Weapon - Swords: Wield a pair of monomolecular double-edged swords that parry projectiles.
  • Shield - Warp: Teleport when your shield breaks, creating an entry and exit blast.
  • Shield - Halo: Burn targets within your shields radius.
  • Body - Carrier: Command a legion of Swarm Constructs.
  • Body - Leviathan: Become an ever-growing serpent that shreds with its body.
  • Body - Firefly: Sear targets with massive thrusters.

Unlock an arsenal of over 200 MODULAR UPGRADES:


Transform your build, choosing from dozens of SUPER MODS:





  • Charged Mines: Your mines charge, unleashing your weapon on detonation.
  • Dying Star: Take constant damage, but burn nearby targets based on proximity and how damaged you are.
  • Barrage: Transform any weapon into a bullet hose.
  • Singular Strike: Fuse all of your projectiles into one giant projectile.
  • Ataraxia: Gain powerful passive buffs for each unspent upgrade point.
  • Antimatter Rounds: Your weapon can punch through hostile projectiles.
  • Void Slice: Teleport, slicing through anything in your path.
  • Warp Strike: Your projectiles can screen-wrap.
  • Sanctuary: Convert your shield into a massive roving bubble and gain power while within it.

Enjoy varied GAME MODES:




  • Endless: Find out just how far you can push your build after victory.
  • Draft: Jump deep into enemy territory with a pre-constructed build.
  • Wild Metamorphosis: Enjoy a challenging "rogue-like" experience that offers powerful, transformative mods.

Unlock MODULAR CHALLENGE MODES as your skills grow. Greater risk means greater rewards!


EXAMPLE BUILD - Celestial Striker:


This unconventional build defeats enemies by slamming right through them, detonating its shields, and burning anything nearby.





  • Hullbreaker is the cornerstone of our build, fast, resilient, and able to deal massive crash damage based on its velocity.
  • Amp Shield increases our velocity and damage, which results in massive crash damage.
  • Volatile Shields ensures that when our Amp Shield breaks on impact, nearby enemies receive a devastating explosion.
  • Flash Shielding lets us get our shield back quickly.
  • Celestial Lance converts our speed into a burning aura, letting us crowd control as we soar.
  • Celestial Surge lets us convert our aura into a massive burning projectile on demand, igniting anything in its path.

Nova Drift is a decade-long labor of love developed by Jeffrey Nielson (Chimeric) in collaboration with its community, featuring music and audio by Miles Tilmann (Pixeljam).

System Requirements

Windows
macOS
    Minimum:
    • OS *: Windows 7 or higher
    • Processor: 2 Ghz CPU
    • Memory: 4 GB RAM
    • Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4000 or equivalent, Integrated cards also work
    • Storage: 500 MB available space
* Starting January 1st, 2024, the Steam Client will only support Windows 10 and later versions.
    Minimum:
    • OS: 10.10 or higher
    • Processor: 2 Ghz CPU
    • Memory: 4 GB RAM
    • Storage: 500 MB available space
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