Catherine Hu
We were supposed to start our noodle business in Nivalis this year, soaking in the neon rain and synthetic steam during the 2025 holidays.
However, as we head into 2026, the blueprints for our cyberpunk empire have been adjusted.
If you’re reading this in late December 2025 expecting to download the game, we have a strategic status report: Ion Lands has officially moved the release of Nivalis to 2026. While the team initially targeted 2025, the sheer ambition of this “slice-of-life” simulation required a final stretch of polishing.
Here is the definitive breakdown of Nivalis’s status, the massive voice-acting expansion, and how you can prepare for the city’s opening.
Quick Summary (TL;DR)
- Release Date: Early 2026 (Specific month TBA by year-end 2025)
- Platform: PC (Steam), consoles TBA
- Genre: Cyberpunk life sim, restaurant management, slice-of-life RPG
- Connection: Set in the Cloudpunk universe
- Estimated Price: Likely $29.99 – $39.99 (based on Ion Lands pricing)
Table of Contents
- Editor’s View: The “Voice Over” Challenge
- The Official 2026 Delay Explained
- Price Prediction: How Much Will It Cost?
- Cloudpunk Connection: Same World, Different Story
- Gameplay: Restaurant Management & Cyberpunk Life
- Why Voice Acting Became the Final Puzzle Piece
- Estimated System Requirements
- How XMOD Will Support Nivalis
- Optimize Your Entire Library with XMOD
- FAQ
- Conclusion
Editor’s View: The “Voice Over” Challenge
“Quality Over Speed in the Crumbling City”
Catherine Hu | Life-Sim Specialist and Game Writer at XMOD
“As a Cloudpunk veteran, I know Ion Lands builds cities that feel like living, breathing characters. Nivalis isn’t just about managing a shop; it’s about the atmosphere. The decision to delay to 2026 to implement over 200,000 words of dialogue shows they aren’t willing to release a ‘quiet’ city. This commitment to quality is exactly why we are already prepping XMODhub to handle the game’s complex economic and voxel-based systems.” — Catherine Hu, Life-Sim Specialist at XMODhub
The Official 2026 Delay Explained
The primary driver for the move to 2026 is the massive expansion of voice acting.
- The Scale: Ion Lands has just completed casting for over 100 new voice roles, bringing the total to approximately 135 unique characters.
- The Narrative: With over 200,000 words of dialogue, every customer and gang member you meet will have a distinct personality and story.
- Final Polishing: Working with publisher 505 Games, the team is now focusing on UI iterations, inventory management, and fixing “blocker” bugs to ensure the smoothest 2026 launch possible.
Price Prediction: How Much Will It Cost?
While Ion Lands and 505 Games have not confirmed pricing, we can estimate based on similar titles:
- Cloudpunk: Launched at $19.99
- Cloudpunk: City of Ghosts DLC: $14.99
- Nivalis Prediction: $29.99 – $39.99 USD
Why the higher range?
Nivalis features business management, farming sim, fishing, cooking, RPG elements, romance, inventory management, story rich content, time management, and open world adventure. The scope significantly exceeds Cloudpunk’s delivery-focused gameplay.
Cloudpunk Connection: Same World, Different Story
Nivalis, the cyberpunk restaurant sim set in the world of Cloudpunk, has been delayed. For fans unfamiliar with the connection:
The Setting:
Welcome to Nivalis! Making it in this cyberpunk city isn’t easy. The gangs want to harvest your organs, the Corps will fine you for breathing, and the whole time, the ground under your feet is crumbling. This city could fall into the ocean tomorrow, so you better make your fortune today.
The Difference:
While Cloudpunk focused on HOVA delivery driving through neon-soaked rain, Nivalis explores the economic struggle from ground level—building businesses, forming relationships, and surviving in the city’s dangerous underbelly.
Gameplay: Restaurant Management & Cyberpunk Life
You’ve got to start small: a food stall, a noodle stand, a stim store. Build your way up to a bar, a restaurant, or even a nightclub. Eventually, you’ll own all the nightlife in Nivalis. You’ll own the night!
Business Management:
Manage businesses like restaurants, ramen stands or night clubs. Buy or grow your own ingredients. Combining restaurant management, decorating, apartments, farming, fishing and boat exploration with a compelling story is a challenging task.
Life Simulation:
Experience your simulated life in Nivalis, and choose how you spend your time each day. Explore the city with your own boat and go fishing. Decorate your home or buy and customise a new one.
Social Elements:
Discover the stories of the people you meet in the city, your friends, your customers, and maybe even find love.
Transportation:
To reach these gardens in the sky, you’ll need to make use of the flying taxi service provided to Nivalis citizens. For most of your travels, though, the city’s intricate subway system – centered around The Metro Hub – will be more than enough.
Why Voice Acting Became the Final Puzzle Piece
We’re also tying all the story threads together, implementing them into the game before we can start with the VO recording for every character (yes!) in the game.
The Scale:
Over 132 voice roles total (32 initial + 100 new) represents significant narrative ambition for an indie life-sim. Each NPC, customer, and story character needs professional recording.
The Process:
Between casting, recording, and implementing the voiceover, releasing the game in 2025 would risk compromising its quality. Professional voice work requires months of studio time and post-production.
Additional Work:
At the moment we are implementing the final iterations on the UI and inventory management, we’re balancing the economy and fixing all the blockers.
Estimated System Requirements
With voxel-based cyberpunk visuals similar to Cloudpunk, hardware demands should remain moderate:
Predicted Specs:
- OS: Windows 10/11 (64-bit)
- RAM: 8 GB minimum (16 GB recommended)
- GPU: GTX 2070 / RX 5700 XT (8GB VRAM per Steam page listing)
- Storage: SSD Recommended (likely 20-30GB)
How XMOD Will Support Nivalis?
XMOD will provide full trainer support upon the game’s official release, ensuring compatibility and stability from day one.
Managing a business in a crumbling city can be a brutal grind. When Nivalis launches in 2026, XMODhub will be ready to help you bypass the struggle and focus on the vibes:
- Infinite Currency: Build your nightclub empire instantly without the daily stress of organ-harvesting debt.
- Time & Weather Control: Freeze the neon night for perfect screenshots or skip the rainy days for better fishing.
- Voxel Optimization Hooks:Nivalis’s dense environments can be heavy on VRAM. XMODhub provides custom performance stablization to keep your boat rides fluid.
- Inventory & Relationship Multipliers: Max out your friendships and storage space to unlock story content faster.
Optimize Your Entire Library with XMOD
While you wait for 2026, XMOD supports the cozy life-sim hits you’re likely playing right now:
Stardew Valley: Infinite stamina and instant crop growth for stress-free farming.
Dave the Diver: Unlimited oxygen and instant restaurant management.
Stop downloading separate trainers for every life-sim. Get XMOD and manage your entire library in one place.
FAQ
Q: Is there an exact release date?
A: We’re currently working closely with our publisher to determine a specific launch date – which we hope to share before the end of the year. Expect an announcement by December 31, 2025.
Q: Do I need to play Cloudpunk first?
A: No. While set in the same universe, Nivalis is a standalone experience with different gameplay mechanics and story focus.
Q: Will it come to consoles?
A: Currently confirmed only for PC via Steam. Console versions have not been announced by Ion Lands or 505 Games.
Q: Is this another delay after multiple pushbacks?
A: After the pushback in 2024, its release date was slated to land sometime in Spring 2025, making this the second major delay. Hopefully, this is the final delay for this weird, wonderful, and utterly beautiful game.
Conclusion
For that reason, we’ve made the decision to officially move Nivalis’ release a few months ahead into 2026. This will also allow us to dedicate all the time needed for additional testing, optimization, polishing, and balancing, to ensure the smoothest experience possible.
While the repeated delays frustrate fans who’ve waited since the game’s 2022 announcement, the commitment to voice acting quality and system polish suggests the wait may be worthwhile. Soon, we’ll let you know when we’ll be able to celebrate ‘Nivalis Day’.
Until launch day, XMOD is here to support your life-sim adventures across Stardew Valley, Dave the Diver, and beyond.
Nancy Miller