Independent game developers may not compete with AAA studios in terms of budget, but their work tends to have a larger degree of freedom. Something that begins as a one-person project can capture that developer’s vision, from the farming simulatorStardew Valleyto more bizarre ideas like thefractal-based arena shooterSpaceflux. German developer Benjamin “BenStar” Kiefer’sRevitais envisioned as a “fast-paced roguelite with a very, very strong emphasis on risk-reward systems.”
Among a sea ofRogue-inspired titles,Revitastands out by using its main character’s health as currency. Players avoid taking damage to reach the end of each run through its procedurally generated Clocktower, but also use that health to purchase upgrades and relics. However, this wasn’t alwaysRevita’s focus, and the game has gone through numerous iterations leading to its upcoming PC and Switch launch. Game Rant spoke to Kiefer aboutRevita’s history, Early Access changes, and recently announced console port.
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The Many Faces of Revita
Work onRevitabegan at least six years ago when Kiefer was in high school. Though they grew up a fan of Nintendo, the achievements ofHollow Knight’s small development studio Team Cherrywere “probably my biggest inspiration in general.” YetRevitawasn’tRevitaat first blush; the game was originally calledArrow Dynamic, utilizing the same “child trying to climb a tower” conceit but centered around aiming a bow and arrow.
“I was working on the idea for a while,” Kiefer said. “But as it is when you’re new to any kind of creative endeavor, it’s hard to keep to one idea.” After becoming unhappy with it,Arrow Dynamicwas scrapped in favor of aclose-combat game utilizing swords. Yet Kiefer found himself struggling to squeeze the kind of versatility he wanted out of a melee weapon, so he went back to projectile-based combat with a more “satisfying to use” gun. WhileArrow Dynamic’s bow was interesting to Kiefer because of its arcing shots, the shift to guns also led toRevita’s resource-management focus.
The Binding of Isaac’s “Deals with the Devil,“in which players can open a Devil Room to trade their hearts for items if they meet specific conditions in each area, were the chief inspiration forRevita’s health-as-currency mechanic. Kiefer wanted to see if he could construct an entire experience around the “interesting gameplay loop.” The developer would begin to build a following by sharing GIFs of various projects on Twitter — their catalog includes game jam titles like theAsteroids-inspired.FUELand rhythm-basedFeed the Beet— butRevita’s focus on long-term consequences stuck.
“I really like the idea of figuring out how to emphasize risk-reward mechanics and bring them to their full potential.”
How Early Access Changed Revita
With health management becomingRevita’s main focal point, the decision to use a straight-shooting gun weapon helps keep the experience from being too overwhelming, Kiefer said. Yet it also opens the door for versatility through relic combinations. Some offer stat buffs like a longer reach or more power, but others change the kind of ammunition fired or the way players navigate their environment. A number of relics (alongside costume pieces like hats) pay tribute togames that inspired Kiefer, such as a riff onHollow Knight’s Shade Cloak. As of Jun 01, 2025’s “Old Friends” update,Revitahas around 275 items in total.
Old Friends is the final big update released as part ofRevita’s stint inEarly Access, which began on Jul 11, 2025. Alongside the three updates preceding it; “Beasts and Bees” on April 19, “Cursed Choices” on June 22, and “Bait & Switch” on August 26; this time in players' hands helped radically change how the roguelite looks and plays.
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“We want feedback and support from the community because the goal at the end of the day, for me at least, is to make this game as good as I possibly can. While I am the designer, I don’t know how everyone will experience the game.”
Two changes Kiefer highlighted that he hadn’t considered are making the relic rewards visible at heart-trading statues, encouraging people to make considered decisions and hopefully more risks; as well as decreasing enemy damage to make health management less punishing.Revitahas also grown from a solo endeavor to a “fairly sizable” team of about six, including lead artist Tim Schipper with whom Kiefer will beattending the WASD expo in London, Englandfrom April 7 to 9. “Having multiple people on the project gives you different insights, different opinions,” Kiefer said. “It’s super helpful in making an interesting and diverse project.”
Revita Coming to Switch, and Beyond
Though version 1.0 takes the size of all previous updates combined and will have new items that are “massively scaling out of scope” - bringing the overall count above 320 - Kiefer said they’re most excited for players to see quality-of-life changes and polish, like a map of tower progress. The March 11 announcement of aRevitaSwitchskew was also a long-time coming. Kiefer said it’s been a pipe dream to release something on Nintendo hardware, and that became an early conversation with publisher Dear Villagers since they feelRevita"has a Nintendo spirit.” Transitioning the GameMaker Studio 2 project to Switch has been relatively easy beyond optimization with so many bullets and objects on-screen. In a recent Tweet, Kiefer said it’s “pretty close” to 60 FPS during tests.
https:/twitter.com/BenstarDEV/status/1509561106263691270?s=20&t=OkI2tqFfv4GG53trDN8SXg
Kiefer is looking forward to escaping the “Early Access cycle of expectancy” in regard to planning regular updates, thus having more time for games likeKirby and the Forgotten LandorXenoblade Chronicles 3. Yet being something of a workaholic with the propensity to over-scope means there are more ideas forRevita. For example, they agree with fans that modding support would fit the roguelite. However, post-1.0 development will focus on bug fixes for now, as anything more will depend onRevita’s “financial viability.”
Despite being focused on Revita in its final stretch, Kiefer has plenty more ideas sitting in a document to be fleshed out. Another pipe dream is to create aPaper Mario-inspired RPG, but the daunting prospects of this “monolithic undertaking” without financing or a big team means it might not be the time or place. Yet one can see that influence in another BenStar game jam project calledDeck Questwith its theater production aesthetic and white-outlined character models, so possibilities are out there. “Who knows what the future holds.”
Revitais available now in Early Access, and releases April 21 for PC and Switch.
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