Cardaway is a turn-based card survival game on a tropical island, with a playable, self-funded prototype. We’re seeking a publisher to fund full-game production and bring the game to release.
5–7 monthsEstimated window from funding to release
Playable prototypeBuilt with the team’s own funds
The playable prototype is the starting point. Main production targets 4–5 months; the 5–7 month release window includes 3–5 weeks of content tooling, external tests, and polish. Scope, timing, and costs remain preliminary.
02 / Existing foundation
A connected playable loop.
An existing technical foundation.
The self-funded prototype connects exploration, resource gathering, crafting, camp construction, and survival needs. The story slice runs from the beach to the bunker door.
Cards & camp
Drag items between the scene, hand, storage, and containers. Place structures and supply construction projects with materials.
Time & survival
Actions advance simulated time. Hunger, thirst, energy, eating, drinking, resting, and sleeping are connected.
Crafting & passive processes
Recipes, construction, tool wear, fuel, cooking, food spoilage, and wood drying already run in the prototype.
Exploration & persistence
Five beach exploration stages reveal discoveries up to the bunker. Validated browser checkpoints preserve Story and Sandbox separately.
Source review and automated checks: 23 Oct 2026. 51 of 52 checks passed; one campfire-menu expectation conflicts with newly added building actions and needs reconciliation. These are engineering checks, not external player tests or release certification.
Prototype boundaries & demonstration materials
Full-island travel, health/death, combat, animals, and diseases are not implemented. Some crafting entries are previews. Lighting and visual weather exist; this is not a complete weather simulation. External playtests have not yet been conducted.
The prototype build link and version details remain to be attached. The existing trailer illustrates the intended experience; it is not a recording of the current prototype.
03 / Market & competitors
An audience already
buys this kind of game.
Card Survival is our direct genre reference. Stacklands shows the wider appeal of card-based crafting and building.
Direct reference · Survival
Card Survival: Tropical Island
≈68k
Estimated Steam copies sold
≈$1m estimated gross revenue
The closest reference for deep card-based survival, crafting, and character needs.
These examples indicate an existing paying audience, not a market-size estimate or a Cardaway sales forecast. Raijin figures are third-party estimates, not publisher accounts; gross revenue is not developer profit. Dates, prices, and time on market differ. Sources checked on 23 Oct 2026; snapshot dates are shown separately.
04 / Why Cardaway
A camp you can see.
Progress you can feel.
Cardaway combines card-based survival systems with a spatial camp: place objects, build, and see the environment change.
What we learned from competitors
Individual player discussions raise friction around moving materials, repeated clicks, navigation, and unclear actions. These are design signals from selected feedback, not a survey of the whole audience.
Our design response
Make the camp a readable place. Keep objects and construction visible in the scene, show the consequences of actions, and use weather, light, and sound to reinforce a sense of place.
The prototype is ready; external playtests have not yet been conducted. We will test clarity, the core loop, and whether camp development feels rewarding. These tests will refine production priorities; they are separate from the competitor evidence above.
05 / Full-game scope
From the first campfire
to a way off the island.
One island. A complete survival journey, with a clear progression and an ending.
01
Get established
Find water and food, make your first tools, and prepare a safe place to rest.
02
Build a camp
Store supplies, prepare food, and make essential items. Become less dependent on daily scavenging.
03
Explore the island
Prepare for longer expeditions, discover new places, and unravel the bunker’s mystery.
04
Prepare to escape
Use the knowledge, tools, and resources you have gathered to leave the island.
Version 1.0 prioritizes meaningful decisions, clear progression, atmosphere, and completion. Locations, items, and recipes are bounded by the production plan. Co-op, additional islands, and large secondary systems are outside the base scope.
06 / Tools & production plan
Build the tools.
Then build out the island.
Target: 4–5 months for main production; a preliminary 5–7 month window to release, including testing and polish. The first 3–5 weeks are included in this schedule.
Where we are now
Items and recipes already have separate definitions, but content is edited in code. Exploration sequences, some interactions, and the crafting catalog still contain special-case logic.
What the tools will enable
A designer will create items, recipes, locations, discoveries, and simple events using existing mechanics, with artwork selection, data validation, and immediate in-game preview. New mechanics still require programming.
01
Content tools & first playtests
Separate content data from rules. Build focused editors and validators. Run initial external playtests while art and progression work proceeds in parallel.
Weeks 1–5
02
An end-to-end playthrough
Connect locations and progression from the beach to escape, using temporary assets where needed.
Months 2–3
03
Content & remaining systems
Produce the agreed island content, implement remaining essential mechanics, and iterate on art, audio, and balance.
Months 3–5
04
Testing & release readiness
Complete playtests, fixes, optimization, localization, and release checks. Work overlaps with content production.
Months 5–7
First production gate: a designer-built location
By the end of the tools phase, a designer creates a second playable location with items, recipes, and discoveries without programmer changes to game code. Measure the time through testing and fixes, then refine the remaining content estimate.
Planning assumptions: full-time core team, timely specialist support, bounded one-island scope, and editors limited to this game. The existing prototype reduces foundational work; content throughput is not yet measured. Timing is an estimate, not a committed release date. Scope and schedule will be agreed with the publisher.
07 / Team
Three core roles.
Targeted reinforcement.
V
Vladimir
Development & game design
Game systems, player experience, and programming. Practical experience with acquisition, retention, and monetization in mobile games.
M
Mikhail
Gameplay programming
Technical solutions and implementation of gameplay systems. Worked with Vladimir on the team’s own and commissioned projects.
L
Leonid
Visual direction & UI
The game’s visual language, interface, and prototype materials. A planned focus on UI as content production grows.
Experience bringing games to players
Our team’s work includes Eternal Light VR, an independent Steam release; commercial games for VR venues and arcades; and mobile releases on Google Play.
Portfolio links and verified results will be added before external distribution.
Planned production support
Funding lets the core team work full-time on Cardaway and bring in specialists when their work is needed.
Content artist
Game items, environments, and other production artwork.
Balance & progression designer
Resource economy, recipes, pacing, and iteration from playtests.
Audio & music
Atmosphere, interactions, and musical states.
QA & localization
External testing, translation, and in-game language checks.
08 / Funding request
A complete game.
A focused budget.
$100–120k
Preliminary request · US dollars
Content tools, full-game production, release preparation, and short-term support. Tool development is included in core-team time. The prototype is the team’s own contribution.
Allocation
Estimate, USD
Core team · 5 months
$45,000
Content artist
$9–12k
Balance & progression
$6–9k
Audio, QA, localization & tools
$15–25k
Schedule reserve & short-term support
$20–30k
Individual ranges total $95–121k; the headline request is a rounded planning range. A single final amount will follow the detailed estimate.
The estimate is preliminary. Final costs depend on scope, specialist rates, and mandatory employment charges. Planning allocation: at $9k/month for the three-person core team, months 6–7 use $18k of the $20–30k reserve, leaving $2–12k for other overruns and support. Longer specialist engagements or additional costs require a revised estimate; the current range is not a guaranteed seven-month budget. A full marketing campaign is excluded and will be discussed separately with the publisher.
09 / Next step
Let’s bring Cardaway
to its players.
We’re looking for a publisher to finance production and help prepare and promote the release.
We are open to milestone-based funding with concrete deliverables: a designer-built location using the new tools, an end-to-end playthrough, completed content, and a release build. Let’s start with the prototype, the full-game scope, and the production plan.
A prototype is available for evaluation; the build link and team contact details still need to be added to this page. Steam beta preview access may be restricted.
