Shard Squad Brings Bullet Heaven Roguelite Action to Xbox

A Brazilian Indie Dream Lands on Xbox

After months of anticipation, Shard Squad is now available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox on PC. Developed by Brazilian studio The Root Studios and published by Nuntius Games, the game carries Xbox Play Anywhere support, so one purchase covers both console and PC. The announcement was made directly on Xbox Wire by Renato Cavallera, CMO at Nuntius Games, as part of the ID@Xbox program.

The game falls into the bullet heaven subgenre, which puts players in the middle of escalating enemy swarms and asks them to survive long enough to build something worth surviving with. Shard Squad layers on top of that formula a creature-collection hook: players recruit new monsters throughout each run and discover synergies between them, which the team says keeps individual playthroughs feeling distinct. The pixel art presentation is deliberately designed to maintain on-screen clarity even as the chaos ramps up.

More Than Mechanics

The heart of Shard Squad, according to game director Rennan Costa, is the cast itself. The game features more than 20 playable creatures called Shards, and the development team put real effort into making sure players would want to pick a favorite for reasons beyond raw stats.

Some Shards were directly inspired by the developers’ own pets, a detail that speaks to the kind of personal investment a small studio can pour into a debut project. But the world-building goes further than cute designs. The Shards have relationships with each other: friendships, rivalries, family ties, and shared story moments that give each character a context beyond their ability loadout.

“In many games, character choice ends up being based only on which one is the strongest or which ability best matches your playstyle. That’s important, of course, but we wanted there to be a connection beyond the mechanics,” Costa said in the Xbox Wire post. “That’s why we created a universe where the Shards have relationships with one another. They can be friends, family members, rivals, or simply share important moments in the story. That context gives each character a stronger identity and makes them feel like they truly belong in a living world. In the end, that creates a deeper connection with the player: they don’t choose a”

The quote was cut off in the source material, but the intent behind it is clear enough. The studio wants players to pick a Shard they feel something for, not just the one with the most optimal number attached to them.

ID@Xbox and the Road to Release

Shard Squad arrives under the ID@Xbox banner, Microsoft’s self-publishing program for independent developers. For The Root Studios, this marks the studio’s first game, and Cavallera framed the launch in his Xbox Wire piece as the realization of a long-held dream, one earned through sustained effort.

The bullet heaven genre has grown considerably since Vampire Survivors turned it into a mainstream phenomenon a few years back, and there is no shortage of entries now competing for player attention. What smaller studios tend to bring to the space is personality, and Shard Squad appears to be betting that a roster of monsters with actual relationships and emotional backstories is the thing that will make players return for another run rather than moving on.

For fans of the genre who have been waiting for something with a little more warmth baked into its creature design, Shard Squad is available right now across Xbox consoles and PC.