Brazilian developer Behold Studios and Swedish independent publisher Raw Fury released Deep Dish Dungeon on Tuesday (13) for Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam and the Xbox app, and Xbox Cloud. The survival and exploration title entered the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate catalog on its first day of availability, following a two-year development cycle carried out by a two-person team.
The release marks the first time a title from Behold Studios has joined the Microsoft subscription service. Game director, programmer, and designer Saulo Camarotti developed the project alongside artist Carolina Baumgarten, who led the art direction and visual elements. “It is very good to have this partnership, and a privilege for a Brazilian developer to be on Game Pass, and to have this prominent place,” Camarotti said.
Technical specifications and pricing for Deep Dish Dungeon
The game is a console exclusive for Xbox Series X|S and includes full support for portable devices. Players can access the title through different purchasing and subscription formats, though the official price in Brazilian reais on the national Steam and Microsoft Store storefronts has not yet been confirmed.
Keep reading: Microsoft ends day-one releases on Xbox Game Pass in 2027
- Genre: Dungeon crawler, survival, crafting, and Metroidvania
- Developer and publisher: Behold Studios and Raw Fury
- Platforms: Xbox Series X|S, Xbox on PC, Xbox Cloud, Steam, and verified for Steam Deck and portables
- Features: Xbox Play Anywhere, online cross-play between Steam and Xbox platforms, and Brazilian Portuguese interface and subtitles
- Standard PC price on Steam: US$ 14.99, € 14.99, or £ 13.99, featuring a 15% launch discount
Valheim inspiration and Metroidvania structure in Deep Dish Dungeon
The concept for the project originated while Camarotti was exploring an underground ruin in the survival game Valheim. “That dungeon alone could be a really cool game,” Camarotti recalled. Rather than focusing on traditional combat progression, the studio designed a campaign with an estimated average duration of 15 hours where players control an explorer searching for treasures and deciphering narratives scattered across the environment. “I wanted to create an experience about exploring a dungeon as an adventurer and not as a warrior. It is not about killing, dying, and leveling up. This is a game where you try to understand this ancient ruined place and try to survive,” the director stated.
Unlike survival titles that rely on procedural generation to build randomized stages, the map in Deep Dish Dungeon is fixed, handcrafted, and fully interconnected. Every room, obstacle, and secret was placed intentionally to replicate the progression style of a Metroidvania, a subgenre where access to new areas depends on acquiring specific equipment. As explorers gather resources in the ruins or locate items on the ground, they can craft tools that alter how they navigate the environment. Obtaining a hammer allows the player to break through iron doors that previously blocked a path, while crafting a grappling hook grants access to elevated ledges, secret passages, and unexplored chambers. “The dungeon is all interconnected just like a Metroidvania, and as you find tools and gain abilities, you can open new rooms and explore deeper,” Camarotti explained.
Learn more: Xbox Game Pass cuts day-one releases in major 2027 overhaul
Brazilian culinary mechanics and Amazonian setting in Deep Dish Dungeon
Cooking serves as a central survival requirement during the campaign, giving meaning to the word “Dish” in the title. Instead of consuming food during or after battles to restore lost health, explorers must prepare meals at camp before venturing into the corridors. “You eat before going on an adventure. It is not afterward, to heal yourself. And each category of ingredient in the game gives a different advantage, such as more health or stamina,” Camarotti said.
To build the culinary system and the visual architecture of the ruins, Camarotti and Baumgarten drew from Brazilian culture. While the game never explicitly names its geographical setting, the internal concept placed the ancient structure in Northern Brazil. “The game takes place in a fictional place, but for us, internally, it is more or less there in the Amazon,” Camarotti revealed. The menu features traditional national foods and native ingredients that grant specific attribute bonuses to the explorer:
- Cassava (mandioca): provides an advantage in melee combat
- Guarana seed: increases character stamina and movement speed
- Traditional prepared dishes: players can cook coxinha, pastel, and bolo de fubá (cornmeal cake) for exploration buffs
Multiplayer cross-play and Behold Studios history before Deep Dish Dungeon
The entire 15-hour campaign can be played solo or in online cooperative mode for up to three players (the host and two friends). According to Camarotti, launching directly on Xbox Game Pass Ultimate strengthens the cooperative component by expanding the active player base across different ecosystems. “Creating a multiplayer community in this type of game is essential. Our game is multiplayer and cross-play. So, if you are playing on Game Pass, you can invite a friend who is on Steam,” the director noted.
Founded by Camarotti in 2009 in Brasília, Federal District, Behold Studios relocated its operations to Toronto, Canada, in 2019. Over the past decade, the company accumulated more than 70 international awards and nominations, gaining industry recognition with independent titles such as Knights of Pen & Paper—which won an award at the Independent Games Festival (IGF) in 2013—and the tactical role-playing game Chroma Squad. According to the founder, the new release represents a shift toward a phase of faster productions with a focused scope. Prior to its arrival on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, at 11:30 a.m. (Brasília time), the title passed through several pre-release milestones:
- February 19, 2026: launch of the free playable demo on Steam, which registered 82% positive ratings across 1,039 user reviews
- August 27, 2026: official announcement of the release date during the Xbox broadcast at gamescom 2026
- Pre-launch demand: the game reached the mark of 500,000 additions to user wishlists on Steam, ranking among the 100 most wished-for titles on the platform
