Octopus Panic just opened the kennel. The indie studio’s 1-to-4 player co-op action builder GRAVHOUNDS has a Steam demo live today through October 18, according to a Games Press release dated October 12.
The demo packs seven planets across two solar systems and four playable Gravhounds — Selene, Zane, Dozer and Finn. You can run expeditions solo or with up to four players. TheSixthAxis notes the build also lands in time for Steam Next Fest and follows a public playtest at the end of September.
Mod Deck Builder and playtest fixes
The biggest new piece is a Mod Deck Builder built from playtest feedback. Between expeditions, players can reshape which mods show up on a run while keeping some of the randomness that makes each shift feel different. The press release also lists fixes for planets, resources, objectives, saves, crashes, animation, audio, effects and multiplayer reliability.
“The support from our playtesters has been pretty overwhelming,” Octopus Panic co-founder Josh Holmes said in the release. “We’re a small team, and having so many people take the time to play, report bugs, and share ideas has been a huge help.” Holmes previously led creative on Halo 4 and headed Halo Studios.
GRAVHOUNDS is a co-op action builder about bio-engineered working dogs stuck on the far side of the galaxy. You fling objects with a Grav Beam, drop turrets and fabricators, and extract before the swarm overwhelms the pack. The Steam page is up for wishlists, and Octopus Panic says an Xbox wishlist is open too. RCG recently covered another Team17-adjacent indie push when Team17 announced The Escapists 3.
The demo window closes October 18, so players who want a look before Early Access have about a week to clock in.
The fantasy is blue-collar sci-fi chaos. Grav Beams fling crates and enemies, pipelines power your base, and every extra minute on a hostile rock raises both the payout and the swarm. Octopus Panic was founded by veterans of 343 Industries and DICE, and GRAVHOUNDS is the studio’s first game. A week-long demo is the right size for a Next Fest crowd that wants to know whether the pack fantasy clicks before Early Access asks for a full buy-in.
