Quick text summary

Vellum scored 73/100 on Steam Analyzer — Good for a Online Co-Op capsule. Top priority fix: [genre_clarity] Integrate a visual cue that communicates the 'roguelike' or 'writing mechanic' directly—consider adding readable book spine elements, ink splatter effects, or a spell tome UI frame to reinforce the literary-action hybrid.

Capsule scores by dimension

Genre Clarity: 7/10 — Literary action-adventure clear. The capsule communicates a fantasy action game through the character pose (staff-wielding figure in combat stance) and magical environment with glowing elements. At tiny size, the silhouette reads as an action protagonist in a magical setting, though the specific 'literary roguelike' subgenre hook is not visually apparent without context. The game world backdrop with floating geometric shapes suggests indie creativity but doesn't strongly signal the writing-focused core mechanic.
Title Readability: 8/10 — Bold ornate title holds. The 'Vellum' title uses a gold-outlined serif font with high contrast against the purple gradient background, maintaining legibility at small and tiny sizes. The ornate letterforms have sufficient weight and spacing to avoid collapse during scaling. At tiny size the word remains recognizable though fine serif detail softens, but the overall shape and color pop ensure it is still readable in quick scroll.
Contrast & Color: 8/10 — Strong purple-gold value separation. The warm gold title and the character's light-colored upper torso create clear silhouettes against the cool purple-teal gradient background, generating strong value contrast that reads well on Steam's dark interface. The character's white/light armor and the glowing purple environment elements maintain distinct edges in both color and grayscale tests. At tiny size the warm-cool separation persists, ensuring the focal character and title remain visually distinct.
Uniqueness & Polish: 7/10 — Polished but familiar fantasy. The capsule demonstrates clean craft with a cohesive color palette, professional lighting on the character model, and intentional environmental design featuring gradient transitions and floating book-like geometric elements that hint at the literary theme. However, the overall composition—character standing in a magical environment—follows a familiar indie action-adventure template seen in many comparable titles, and the unique 'roguelike' and 'writing-focused' mechanics are not distinctly communicated visually. The floating assets and magical aura suggest premium polish but lack a standout visual hook that immediately differentiates Vellum.
Brand Consistency: 6/10 — Functional but generic identity. The capsule uses a consistent purple-gold color scheme and depicts a single humanoid character in a cohesive art style, providing internal visual coherence. However, there are no iconic symbols, signature motifs, or highly recognizable visual brand markers that would make this capsule immediately identifiable as Vellum in isolation—the character design and environment could fit several indie fantasy titles. The ornate title font is distinctive but the overall visual identity feels aligned with genre conventions rather than distinctly branded.
Composition: 8/10 — Clear hierarchy with centered focus. The composition places the staff-wielding character as the dominant focal point in the right-center area, with the bold gold title anchoring the left side and environmental elements framing the edges. The layering—background landscape, mid-ground purple gradient, and foreground character—creates depth that guides the eye naturally. At small and tiny sizes the character silhouette and title remain the primary subjects with supporting elements receding; the composition is balanced without dead space or awkward cropping hazards, and the figure does not hug dangerous margins.

What works

High-contrast title legibility. Gold outlined 'Vellum' text maintains clear readability and ornate character even at tiny thumbnail size due to strong value separation against the purple background.
Cohesive color harmony. The warm gold, cool purple-teal, and light character accents create a visually appealing and internally consistent palette that stands out against Steam's dark interface.
Clear focal point hierarchy. The character figure and title are visually dominant and well-separated from supporting environmental elements, ensuring quick visual parsing at all sizes.

What hurts the capsule

Generic fantasy archetype. The staff-wielding character and magical environment follow familiar indie action-adventure conventions without a distinctive visual signature that differentiates Vellum from similar titles.
Hidden core mechanic identity. The roguelike structure and writing-focused gameplay loop are not visually communicated; floating geometric shapes hint at literary themes but lack clarity about what makes the game mechanically unique.
Minimal brand recognition cues. The capsule lacks an iconic symbol, recurring character trait, or signature visual motif that would make it immediately recognizable in future marketing or fan contexts.

Priority fixes

[genre_clarity] Integrate a visual cue that communicates the 'roguelike' or 'writing mechanic' directly—consider adding readable book spine elements, ink splatter effects, or a spell tome UI frame to reinforce the literary-action hybrid.
[brand_consistency] Develop a signature visual motif or character detail (distinctive color accent, iconic tool, or symbol) that recurs across marketing materials to create strong brand recall.
[uniqueness_polish] Refine the environmental storytelling to suggest Vellum's unique co-op and build-crafting mechanics—consider layering team silhouettes or showing class-color variants to hint at the class system.

Store copy priority fixes

[feature_communication] Add a sentence in the opening detailed description that explicitly explains the 'Torn Pages' mechanic: 'Uniquely, you decide how enemies evolve mid-battle, creating dynamic challenges that no two runs repeat.' This sets apart the core innovation.
[hook_strength] Elevate run length into the short description or first paragraph: 'Quick 30-minute co-op runs mean you can save the books in one sitting.' This addresses a key player decision point earlier in the decision funnel.
[feature_communication] Add one concrete synergy example to the 'Shaping Your Spellbook' section, such as: 'Pair vampiric Red spells with summoned Shields to heal while protecting allies.' This makes the build-crafting promise tangible instead of aspirational.

Related guides

Steam screenshots guide — How the screenshot row converts wishlists, and what each slot is for.
Pre-launch Steam capsule checklist — Practical checklist to pressure-test your capsule before submitting.

Steam app ID: 917950 · Tags: Online Co-Op, Action Roguelike, Third-Person Shooter, Fantasy, Magic