SCHAR: Blue Shield Alliance launched in 2012. Nearly 15 years later, we're still flying it, and we wanted to give it something new: a full roguelike survival mode, free for everyone who owns the game.
Squadron Survivors drops you into an endless sector with one ship and a simple job: stay alive. Enemies pour in from every direction, they get meaner by the minute, and the only way through is to build a fleet big enough to push back.
Where it came from
We love Vampire Survivors and the games it inspired: that loop of "one more run," the slow climb from fragile to unstoppable, the level-up choice that changes everything, and the huge swarms of enemies - something BSA has always had.
We kept asking what that would feel like in SCHAR, a game that's always been about salvage, squad play and big capital ships. So we didn't just borrow the formula. We built it around the things that make SCHAR, SCHAR.
What makes it different
You command a squadron, not just one ship. Every level-up can add a wingman. Grow from a lone fighter to a fleet of up to 48 ships flying and fighting at your side.
You still fly and fight. This is SCHAR's twin-stick combat, not autopilot. You aim, you dodge, you haul salvage, and your squadron fights around you.
Formations are your playbook. Switch on the fly between Ring, Wedge, Wall and Scatter. Each one changes how your squadron fights, and each can be upgraded. Each provides a unique bonus.
Salvage is XP, and it matters. Collect wreckage to level up, and deliver it to allied space stations to raise shield domes that protect you, repair your fleet and bring lost wingmen back.
Unleash the Squadron Strike. Keep collecting with a full hold to charge your strike meter, then fire every special weapon in your squadron at once: missiles, turrets, mines and more, rippling out through the whole formation.
Call in the cavalry. Earn the right to summon the Alliance battleship, and watch it warp in beside you, guns blazing.
Every run counts
Runs earn credits you spend in the Hangar on permanent upgrades: extra lives, starting escorts, tougher hulls, a stronger salvage magnet, card rerolls and more. Challenges unlock new ships, new formations and new Hangar upgrades as you go. You'll get further every time.
Bring your friends
Squadron Survivors supports 1 to 4 players, in couch co-op on one screen or online co-op (also brand new and in testing). The squadron cap is shared, so every pilot matters. It runs on Windows, Linux and Steam Deck.
How to join the beta
Right-click SCHAR in your Steam Library, then choose Properties > Betas.
Select the deck-test branch.
Let Steam update, launch the game and pick Squadron Survivors from the main menu.
Everyone who plays online needs the same beta build.
We need your feedback
This is a beta, so expect rough edges, balance swings and the occasional bug. Tell us what felt great, what felt unfair and what broke in the Community Forums. If something goes wrong online, please attach your online-log.txt:
Windows: %APPDATA%/SCHAR/SCHAR_SaveData
Linux / Steam Deck: ~/.config/SCHAR/SCHAR_SaveData
No new purchase, no DLC, no catch. Just a new way to play a game we still love, and we hope you do too. See you in the grinder, pilots.
- Nick & Dave (The SCHAR: BSA team)