Tape to Tape

Tape to Tape is a hockey roguelite developed by Canadian studio Excellent Rectangle and published by Null Games. It entered Steam Early Access on April 3, 2023, before reaching version 1.0 on May 3, 2024. Rather than licensing real-world teams or players, the game uses an original arcade universe and turns a season into a sequence of replayable runs. Each run asks the player to guide a hockey team through a bracket of matches, events, shops, and upgrades, with defeat sending the squad back to the beginning while unlocking longer-term options for future runs and more ambitious attempts against the league.

The core gameplay is built around direct control rather than simulated management. During a game, players skate, pass, shoot, check, and defend in real time. A distinctive mechanic lets users control the puck carrier while teammates move independently, making passing lanes and positioning central to scoring. Tape to Tape also embraces exaggerated physics: body checks can launch opponents, loose pucks ricochet, and charged shots reward timing. Matches are short enough to fit a run, but their result matters because injuries, cash, and roster choices carry forward between games, shaping the next part of a run and its risks over time.

Between games, the player can spend money in shops, recruit new skaters, select upgrades, and respond to random encounters. These decisions give the title its roguelite structure: an apparently strong lineup can be undone by a difficult matchup or an unlucky event, while an imperfect team may benefit from the right combination of abilities. The roster is intentionally comic and fictional; player names and descriptions contribute to the game's playful tone rather than reproducing professional hockey statistics. Upgrades and player archetypes encourage different approaches, from aggressive hitting to puck movement and shooting. The result is a distinct team-building layer overall.

Excellent Rectangle is based in Montreal, and Tape to Tape was the studio's breakout commercial release. The project was first presented publicly through a Kickstarter campaign in 2022, where its developers described a goal of combining the feel of classic hockey video games with roguelike progression. Its Early Access period let the team add content and refine systems before the 1.0 release. At launch, the game was available for Windows PC through Steam. It supports single-player career play and local multiplayer modes, so the same arcade rules can serve either a solo run or a match with friends on one machine.