Blades For Hire News

Hello, dear players!

We - the DoubleTap team, in collaboration with publisher Valkyrie Initiative - are pleased to announce that our strategy game Blades For Hire is taking part in the Ancient Costume Game Festival on Steam.

In this game, you will take command of a guild of mercenaries in a world where honor has long lost its value, and survival depends on tough decisions - your decisions.

[h2]PLAYTEST SIGN-UPS ARE OPEN![/h2]
To celebrate the festival, we would like to invite you to sign up for the playtest.
To register, click the “Request Access” button on the game’s Steam page.



Today, as promised, we are sharing more details about the playtest - but first, we suggest watching a short trailer dedicated to the festival and the start of registration.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h2]WHAT AWAITS PLAYTEST PARTICIPANTS:[/h2]
- An improved version of the game, based on feedback collected from the currently available demo version.
- Bonus content.
- Two available Steam achievements, one of which will unlock unique equipment.

[h3]🏆EXCLUSIVE REWARD:[/h3]
For participating in the playtest and fulfilling certain conditions, each participant will have the opportunity to receive unique body armor and a two-handed sword when the game is released.



Conditions to receive the reward:
- Add the game to your wishlist.
- Follow the publisher page on Steam.
- During the playtest, earn the Steam achievement "Old Guard".

To earn the "Old Guard" achievement, you must complete the playtest without hiring new recruits.
This means you can only use the mercenaries available from the start. Since they can die, flee, or quit if not paid on time, this can be quite a challenge.

[h3]The playtest is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2026.[/h3]
When the playtest begins, you will receive a notification.
For now, you can already complete the first requirement by adding the game to your wishlist so you don’t miss the start of the playtest.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3180000/Blades_For_Hire/

Hello!
From September 1 to 8, 2025, Blades For Hire is taking part in Sword Celebration — a special Steam festival dedicated to sword-focused games.

You are not a hero. You are a contractor, managing a guild with blade and calculation. Experience the demo and immerse yourself in a world where morality has a price and survival is everything.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3180010/Blades_For_Hire_Demo/

Add the game to your wishlist so you don’t miss the upcoming full release and special offers!

[h2]PLAYTEST SIGN-UPS ARE NOW OPEN![/h2]

Sign up for the playtest now and later you’ll be able to receive a unique reward in the form of a sword and armor.
We’ll share more details in a separate announcement.



[h2]INFORMATION FROM THE PUBLISHER[/h2]

Discover new worlds, fresh ideas, and unique atmospheres in other games, each of which showcases the power of the sword and the spirit of adventure in its own way.

Test yourself in a hardcore role-playing game with a nonlinear story and survival elements.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/687800/Heads_Will_Roll_Reforged/

Sign up for the playtests and explore a surreal world alongside a drunken alpaca!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1820100/DREAMOUT/

Immerse yourself in turn-based strategy with RPG elements in the spirit of Heroes of Might and Magic. The demo is available now.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2779310/Stones_Keeper_II_Chaos_Lord/

Hardcore battles in the style of Dark Souls, a variety of deadly swords and weapons, a dark atmosphere, and challenges worthy of true warriors.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2139840/Skelethrone_The_Chronicles_of_Ericona/

Hello!

The demo version has received another update.
We’ve added new localizations and made several improvements to make the gameplay more comfortable and clear.

Full list of changes:

• Added translations for the following languages: German, French, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified), Turkish.
  
• Turn order of combat participants is now displayed in battles.
  
• Choice buttons in quests now show an icon of the attribute affecting party members' loyalty change.
  
• Generated quest titles now indicate their difficulty level.
  

At this stage, we are making changes to the full version of the game as well as the playtest version. This includes improvements to the turn-based combat system.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3180010/Blades_For_Hire_Demo/

You can always reach out to our team with any questions:
We invite you to join our Discord server.

Greetings!

Blades For Hire is part of the Steam Debut Festival 2025 — an event where debut games step into the spotlight for the very first time! This is our first major title, and we’re excited to invite you to try the free demo, available now.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3180010/Blades_For_Hire_Demo/

In the demo you will experience:
• Early missions and branching story choices
• Tactical battles with indirect squad control
• Basic guild and resource management
• An atmospheric introduction to a harsh and morally complex world

Thank you for supporting us — indie developers taking our very first steps.
Play the demo, share your impressions, and join the discussion in the official Discord community!

[h2]Publisher’s Note[/h2]
Discover new genres, fresh ideas, and one-of-a-kind worlds crafted by passionate debut creators from around the globe — all as part of the Steam Debut Festival 2025.

These games are more than just first projects — they’re honest, heartfelt creations built with the pure love of making games.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2420350/The_Mildew_Children/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2139840/Skelethrone_The_Chronicles_of_Ericona/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1599490/One_Way_Road/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2256240/Vivid_Tale/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3261140/Decadent_Heir/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2635450/Brotherhood/

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1029830/CHIP_Rescuer_of_Kittens/

Greetings!

We're grateful for all the feedback we've received from players, as well as from those who shared their playthroughs and livestreams.

We've prepared the first round of fixes, and they are now available in the current demo version:

Changes:

• Selected mercenary tactic is now saved between battles. You won’t have to choose the same tactic over and over again.
  
• Resting mercenaries now recover health continuously, rather than just once per day.
  
• Increased the chance of generating a mage recruit each week.
  
• The starting quest has been moved to a neighboring town so that new players can immediately learn how to navigate the map.
  
• Tweaked the timing of loot distribution event after the "The Warehouse Heist" quest.
  
• Adjusted the difficulty of the final quest.
  

Fixes:

• Dagger-wielding enemies can no longer attack from the back row while ignoring their front row allies (they can still ignore obstructing player characters, as originally intended).
  
• Fixed interface display issues on UltraWide monitors.
  
• Fixed incorrect display of available training options.
  
• Characters that leave due to low loyalty are now instantly removed from the Storage window.
  
• The temporary effect "Lacerations" now correctly reduces healing speed by 50%.
  
• Fixed an error caused by clicking through quest steps too quickly.
  
• Fixed an error caused by "Hymn of the Invincible" tactic.
  

Very soon, we’ll launch playtests open to everyone, which will include all the current fixes. Based on the results of the playtests, we’ll make the final adjustments and begin preparing for release!

If you have any questions for the team, don’t hesitate to ask —
we’d love to hear from you on our Discord server.