EXCISA Turns a Séance into a Deadly Game of Tarot, Dice and Uninvited Guests

Most horror games send players running through corridors, checking cupboards or hiding from things they would rather not meet. EXCISA, from independent developer zooyos, keeps the player seated. Its central idea is a risky occult ritual played out around a table, where card choices, dice rolls and dwindling resources determine whether you reach the truth or attract something far less welcome.

The studio contacted Coloured Static Press directly about the game’s participation in the Halloween discovery season. Its free Steam demo is available now, with the full game scheduled for 29 October 2026 on Windows PC. For this First Signal introduction, we’re drawing on the developer’s press kit and official gameplay description rather than claiming to have tested the build ourselves.

One question. One ritual. Eleven ways it could go wrong.

At the centre of the story is a ritual supposedly capable of summoning an Angel that will answer one question with complete honesty. Anna, whose brother vanished years ago, performed the ritual hoping to learn what happened. Now the player takes a seat with a question of their own.

The ritual doesn’t work by simply drawing a card and hoping for the best. Each turn permits one action. Players choose among tarot cards from the Major Arcana, consider the potential reward and the threat attached to each one, and decide how many dice to risk rolling. Safer rolls can bring resources and temporary help, but only the highest-stakes option can progress towards summoning the Angel.

The table is the whole world

The ritual room is also part of the interface. Candles burn down as the clock runs; the character’s physical condition changes; the atmosphere of the room responds to fear. The developer says eleven kinds of uninvited guests can appear, each with different rules and ways of threatening your progress.

Survival therefore depends on more than picking the right card. There are protective tools such as salt, holy water and iron nails, a strange phone for ordering supplies, and cursed objects that grant advantages while making future choices more dangerous. Players can sometimes sacrifice health to shift the odds in their favour.

Six depths, and a reason to keep going

The game divides the ritual into six progressively harsher depths. Each stage introduces new complications while retaining the existing ones. Between stages, there’s a meaningful decision: stand up, bank the score you’ve earned and leave safely, or remain seated with all the rewards and curses you’ve accumulated.

That gives the project the structure of a roguelite rather than a one-off escape-room scenario. The threat is not just whatever arrives at the séance table. It’s the growing temptation to take one more risk because you’ve already invested so much in the run.

Why EXCISA is on our Halloween radar

It’s an appealing premise for people who enjoy games built around systems as much as scares. The action remains in one tightly defined space, but the consequences of each decision can make that space feel increasingly hostile. The extent to which those mechanics stay fresh, or how clearly the threats communicate their rules, will need proper hands-on evaluation.

The free demo covers the opening depth of the ritual, introducing its card and dice rules and a selection of unwanted visitors. We also appreciate the developer’s clear press materials and its spoiler guidance, which asks publications not to reveal the outcome of the completed ritual in headlines, thumbnails or unmarked footage. We intend to respect that.

For a different flavour of indie horror discovery, we’ve also recently featured Shadows of Christmas Eve, which uses a changing family home and recurring nightmares rather than a single ritual room to build tension.

Editorial note: First Signal discovery coverage based on a direct developer submission, official Steam listing and zooyos press materials. This is not a hands-on review. No review score has been assigned.