“Fighting against royalty”: The inspirations behind Order Automatica

The roguelike genre feels like it’s evolving every month, with indie developers leading the charge for intriguing art styles, weird themes, and mesmerizing gameplay loops. One such game that’s caught my eye is Order Automatica.

With an occultish pixel art style and an auto-battler playstyle, it’s a unique experience. I sat down with the mind behind the game, Mickey Sanchez, to learn more about how Order Automatica came to fruition and what inspirations lay beneath its mystical exterior. 

Breathing life into pixel art

As someone who’s never dabbled in game design, the act of bringing a game into existence still feels like witchcraft to me – which is apt considering the gorgeously dark, occult themes that Order Automatica offers.

I got the chance to chat with the mind behind the upcoming roguelike game, Mickey Sanchez, about the process of crafting Order Automatica and what fans might not know about creating a game in this style. 

I started by asking about the game’s journey and how Sanchez began working on Order Automatica. 

“I did a personal game jam in the summer of 2022,” he explained, saying that he was fascinated by the idea of Super Auto Pets taking place on a 3×3 grid.

“I made that original prototype in a month or so and put it out on [itch.io]. I’ve kept working on it in my spare time,” Sanchez continued, “My ambitions for it have changed a lot. I wanted to push it towards something that’s not a middle-of-the-road interpretation of an autobattler or roguelike.”

Looking at the inspirations behind Order Automatica, Sanchez picked out Super Auto Pets, Inscryption, Into the Breach, and Hearthstone Battlegrounds as the key motivators for the game’s style of play.

Aesthetically, Order Automatica feels distinct from its gameplay inspirations. Sanchez explained that the art style has undergone three major revisions over the game’s lifespan, and that the current artist is a Polish creator named Mr. Pekinczyk. 

“The inspiration is occult stuff and some religious iconography,” he explained, “Tarot cards and things like that. I wanted to make the characters normal working-class type people who were fighting against royalty.”

I wondered what the biggest challenges were in bringing Order Automatica to life; Sanchez noted that balancing difficulty levels for both new and experienced players could be tricky.

A golden age for indie games

I asked what the biggest misconceptions folks might have about Order Automatica are, or what players might be surprised to learn about the behind-the-scenes work.

“For this game, people are often surprised to know that the enemy teams are designed, rather than randomly generated,” Sanchez mused, “That felt like the right way to go so I could design the progression and challenges.”

Despite game development being a lengthy and intensive process, it seems to be a joyful experience for most developers. Sanchez noted that his favorite thing about working on Order Automatica so far was being able to put out new versions of the game regularly. 

Order Automatica isn’t his first game by any means, either, making me curious if previous projects might’ve influenced this upcoming title, if at all.

“My first game on Steam was a narrative game called Robot Island,” Sanchez mused, “After finishing that, I decided I wanted to focus more on gameplay design and did a lot of pure gameplay type game jams…I have a few other small roguelikes on my Itch.io page that helped me learn how to make games like this.”

On the upcoming launch, Sanchez shared that he hadn’t been thinking much about the big day yet, but he would try to have a little party with friends and family to celebrate Order Automatica coming out in full.

Releasing a game is no easy feat, after all. I asked what he thought the biggest challenges were for indie developers in 2026, and he noted that it was hard to stand out from the crowd and make enough money.

When asked if he had any advice for someone hoping to release their first game, Sanchez explained, “Try lots of things and see what you like. See if you even like the day-to-day work of making games.”

It’s looking like a big year for indie games as a whole, with some mesmerizing titles just around the corner. To wrap things up, we discussed the indie release calendar for 2026 and whether there were any titles or studios he was particularly excited about.

“Off the top of my head, I was pretty excited by the trailer for the new Sunset Visitor game,  Prove You’re Human,” Sancheze revealed, “Also, [I] was excited by the trailer for Machine Party. Who deserves more love… Ace Team!”

If you’re a fan of indie roguelikes and auto-battlers, Order Automatica is one to watch – and it’s clear that it’s been made with absolute passion. The game is due to release in the second quarter of 2026, so potential players shouldn’t have to wait too long.

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