Check the current input mode and bindings first. The released game offers drawing assistance and a button-press alternative; older demo hotkeys are not a reliable default.
Sigil input and accessibility checks →Fan-made community wiki
The Magus Circle
Playing now? Find the answer you need
Start with the task that is blocking your run. These are source-led explanations, not a complete tested spell database or a fixed best-build ranking.
Separate mana cost, duration and input. Older zero-mana guidance does not cover the documented Prismatic Gale change.
Spell costs and the Prismatic Gale exception →Identify whether the problem is casting reliability, mana, damage or survival before picking an upgrade. An advertised upgrade total is not an optimal-build recipe.
Choose an upgrade for the problem →Choose drawing or button-press controls, check the displayed bindings, then inspect unlocked spells in the Hub Spellbook. Use the guide's release-era setup before its labelled demo observations.
First-run setup checklist →Looking before buying? Check dated regional prices or the release and patch history. Price checks and game-version facts keep their original verification dates. This answer-navigation revision was made October 21, 2026; it is not a new gameplay test.
What the latest documented updates change
Checked October 24, 2026: the newest announcement in the official Steam news feed is 1.1.5, published October 20. These are developer-reported changes.
- The Magus Circle familiars: missed Puddle — 1.1.5 adds acquisition opportunities in acts 2 and 3 after beating the game.
- The Magus Circle saves and early extraction — Cloud saves, Anima after interrupted runs, and the no-boss-loot extraction condition.
- The Magus Circle upgrades and chest rewards — the five-minute chest limit and fallback mana/XP rewards.
- The Magus Circle spell changes — synergy, Mana Burn and specific interaction fixes.
See the The Magus Circle release and patch history for dated 1.1.5 and 1.1.4 sources.
Version 1.0 released on Steam on September 24, 2026, and the game is now at version 1.1.5. The
Magus Circle is a single-player survival roguelite where you cast spells by drawing their sigils by hand.
Steam describes 20 unique spells augmented by 600 possible upgrades, across 4 planets and 6 playable mages.
Those are official store totals, not a spell-by-spell catalogue independently tested by this wiki.
September 24, 2026 Steam release date
$12.99 USD Steam list price (Oct 20, 2026)
1.1.5 Latest official patch
21,000+ Demo players (Feb 2026)
600 Possible upgrades (current Steam listing)
4 Planets (current Steam listing)
6 Playable mages
By Witchlight Independent studio
Start here
The Magus Circle beginner guide Draw sigils to cast, manage durations, and survive your first runs. The Magus Circle release and patch history Version 1.0 launched September 24, 2026; every patch through 1.1.5. The Magus Circle sigils and spellcasting How the drawing input works, how forgiving it is, and what to do when it fails. The Magus Circle upgrades In-run and out-of-run progression, and the six mages with their own stories.
Guides & mechanics
These pages are built from the official store description, the developer's own site, hands-on press coverage of the PlayXpo demo booth, the developer's post-launch patch notes, and aggregated player reviews of the February 2026 demo. Where something has not been published, the page says so instead of guessing — and pages that draw on the pre-release demo carry a note saying so.
Some guides still use labelled demo-era evidence The Magus Circle sigils The drawing input The Magus Circle spells Skills, durations, mana The Magus Circle upgrades Build paths and stats The Magus Circle characters Milk, Matcha and the mages The Magus Circle challenges Difficulty you choose The Magus Circle familiars Puddle catch-up conditions and evidence limits The Magus Circle demo What it was, and what replaced it
About the game
The Magus Circle is an action roguelite with bullet-hell combat, built around a single unusual input: instead of a button, every active skill is bound to an arcane sigil, and you draw that sigil to cast. The developer states that you do not need to be an artist — even crude drawings hold magic. Current Steam information lists drawing-time assistance and a button-press mode; check the current controls menu for bindings rather than assuming keys from an older demo report.
Structurally it is a survival roguelite in the Vampire Survivors mould. Enemies drop mana crystals that fuel your next cast; between runs you return to the Magus Circle, a hub with an explorable mansion, residents who grant buffs, familiars and tea. There are six playable mages, each with their own story. Earlier copy described optional difficulty challenges; the current storefronts do not supply a full modifier list. See the challenge guide for the dated evidence limits.
| Developer | By Witchlight (independent studio) |
|---|---|
| Genre | Action, Indie — Action Roguelike, Bullet Hell, Roguelite |
| Platforms | Windows · macOS · Linux (Steam) |
| Release date | September 24, 2026 (Steam). STOVE has a separate Early Access-labelled listing; see the platform guide for its dated records. |
| Current version | 1.1.5 (October 20, 2026). The full patch log is on the release date page. |
| Price | $12.99 USD on Steam with no active discount (checked October 20, 2026). Regional prices differ — see the price page. |
| Languages | English (full audio), Korean |
| Players | Single-player only — no multiplayer or co-op |
| Official trailer | Gameplay Trailer on Steam |
What is in the game, according to Steam
The current Steam listing gives the clearest official description of the content you are buying. It advertises 20 unique spells augmented by 600 possible upgrades, 4 unique planets with colossal bosses, and 6 mages “each with their own skill trees, abilities and emotional baggage.” Progression outside a single run covers unlocking familiars, wagering winnings, concocting potions and growing a garden, while the story side is an explorable manor where you meet the other mages and uncover the secrets of the Circle.
Those numbers are the publisher's own totals. We publish them as such rather than expanding them into a full spell table, an upgrade ranking or a tier list, because no official item-by-item list has been published and the demo-era numbers that circulate online no longer match the released build. What we can do is explain how the systems work — see the spell guide, the upgrade guide and the sigils guide — and flag exactly where the official record stops.
The six mages
Steam lists six playable mages, each with its own skill tree, abilities and story. Three names are documented in the developer's own concept portfolio and in released patch notes: Milk, the first player character; Matcha, who has her own unlock state referenced in the 1.0.3 fix; and Anchan, whose ability appears in post-launch hotfix notes. The mansion also houses named non-player characters such as The Gambler and Sandra.
For the remaining three mages the released game does not publish a name roster, and we are not going to guess one. That is why the characters guide lists exactly what each source establishes and what it does not — no invented names, no fabricated unlock requirements, and no character tier list. Patch notes can prove that a character exists or that a bug was fixed; they cannot prove a full acquisition route.
How forgiving is the drawing input?
This is the question that decides whether you enjoy the game, so it is worth answering precisely rather than in marketing terms. The official copy says you do not need to be an artist and that even crudely drawn sigils still hold magic. A journalist who played the build at the 2025 PlayXpo indie zone found that skills activated as long as the drawn pattern was "somewhat similar" to the required shape — and that during busy moments the same sigil sometimes had to be redrawn two or three times in a hurry. That is normal play, not a failure state.
There are three further safety nets. Steam confirms settings to slow or freeze time while drawing and a button-press mode for players who cannot or do not want to draw at all; the developer has also described automatic drawing, shape correction and a slower drawing timing. Version 1.1.0 added settings tabs for movement, ability, button-press and controller bindings, and 1.1.1 added the option to toggle world corruption on all maps after you finish the game. The sigils guide has the full breakdown, and the beginner guide walks through a first-run setup for the current version.
What has changed since launch
Because the game launched on September 24, 2026 and has been patched nine times since, older guides written against the launch build can be quietly wrong. The three patches that change how the game feels are 1.1.0, which overhauled the physics engine and how every spell interacts with enemies, 1.1.2, which added a Hub Spellbook listing every unlocked spell with its upgrades, and 1.1.5, which added Steam Cloud saves so your progress follows you between devices. The complete dated patch table lives on the release date and patch history page.
As of our October 26, 2026 check, 1.1.5 is still the newest official patch — the Steam news feed, the store price and the platform list were all unchanged from six days earlier, and the developer has not announced a 1.1.6. That is the kind of check worth doing before you follow a guide that quotes a specific patch number.
Before you buy
Price: the Steam list price is $12.99 USD with no discount, and the introductory $11.69 launch offer expired on October 1, 2026. The separate STOVE listing is $10.99 USD, rechecked in a live browser on October 24, 2026 — $2.00 cheaper in the US, but still labelled Early Access. Regional Steam prices differ; see the price page for a nine-region table and confirm the checkout amount on Steam.
The demo is gone: the free Steam demo was delisted after February 2026's Next Fest. What happened and how to play the full game.
Careful with search results: the developer's own games page still says "currently in development" and "over 250 upgrades", though the game has been out since September 24. If a result says the game is unreleased, it is quoting a page the studio has not updated — the release date and patch history has the current record.
Quick answers
Platforms, download and system requirements
The Magus Circle is a desktop release for Windows, macOS and Linux. The full system requirements list all three platform specifications, including the Windows 10 caveat that catches people out. For install size and where the game can actually be bought, see The Magus Circle on Steam and other storefronts. And if you are wondering whether you can play with friends, the multiplayer and co-op page explains why the answer is no.
Who makes the game
By Witchlight is a small independent studio — six people, listed on the official About page as co-founders Kevin R. and Dayuun L., plus sound, art, coding and voice roles. That roster is worth keeping in mind when you read early reviews of a young game: the people drawing the sigils, scoring the music and writing the code are the same handful of people. The characters guide covers the playable roster on top of that, and the release page tracks the official YouTube channel where the studio posts its own development vlogs.
Frequently asked questions
Is it The Magus Circle or The Magnus Circle?
The game is The Magus Circle. “Magnus Circle” and “the magnus circle” are common misspellings of the name — they refer to the same game, and searches using them should land here.
How much does The Magus Circle cost?
$12.99 USD is the Steam list price with no active discount, checked on October 20, 2026. The $11.69 introductory launch offer expired on October 1, 2026. Steam prices each region separately. The separate STOVE listing is $10.99 USD, rechecked in a live browser on October 24, 2026.
Is The Magus Circle still in development?
No. It released on September 24, 2026 and is now at version 1.1.5. The developer’s own games page still says “currently in development” — that subpage simply has not been updated, which is why some search results still describe the game as unreleased.
Is The Magus Circle on mobile or console?
Not yet. The developer has said it is working on Google Play and iOS ports targeted for the end of 2026, but neither has a confirmed release date, and the studio says there is no active Switch or other console-port plan. The released version is for Windows, macOS and Linux on Steam.
What is the latest version?
Version 1.1.5, published October 20, 2026. It added Steam Cloud saves, kept Anima rewards when a run crashes or you quit mid-run, made achievements track during a run, and fixed a batch of spell and UI issues.
Where can I download The Magus Circle?
From Steam, or from the separate STOVE listing. There is no free download: the game is paid, and the free February 2026 demo has been delisted. Install size is 500 MB on Windows and macOS and 2 GB on Linux or SteamOS.
Does The Magus Circle have multiplayer or co-op?
No. Steam lists it as a single-player game, and nothing in the official announcements or the current patch notes adds multiplayer or co-op.
What this site is
This is an independent, fan-made resource. It is not affiliated with By Witchlight. We publish what official sources confirm, label anything drawn from the pre-release demo, and deliberately do not publish upgrade rankings, complete spell lists or challenge lists without sources for the released build. Demo-era rankings should not be mistaken for a verified 1.0 meta.