Sandustry Early Access Roadmap
Planned pillars and post-launch focus after the August 13, 2026 Early Access debut.
Early Access is a starting line, not a finish. Sandustry enters EA on 2026-08-13 with the core pixel-factory loop proven in the free Steam demo: Sand, Water, Shakers, Gold, Slag, burn, press, Research. This roadmap page summarizes themes Lantto Games and Hooded Horse have signaled plus sensible community expectations — always defer to official Steam news and sandustry.com when they conflict. Unofficial wiki; not a legal roadmap commitment.
Launch pillar — Playable factory vertical slice
Goal: Ship a coherent single-player progression from surface mining to automated refinery with slag recovery.
Wiki alignment:
- How to Play loop complete in EA
- Research Priority branches available beyond demo caps
- Buildings and Materials reference updated at launch
Player-facing success metric: You can automate Wet Sand → Gold without constant babysitting after unlocking Logistics, Filters, and Pipes as needed.
Post-launch theme — Depth and discovery
Goal: Expand underground biomes, artifacts, and environmental puzzles that reward Dig Deeper and Artifacts and Puzzles.
Expected additions: More hazard variety (ice, lava, steam), tools to counter them (Tools Priority), gated rewards that change mining strategy.
Wiki action: Update guides when new artifacts or biomes ship; run verify:facts if multiplayer or features change (currently none).
Post-launch theme — Automation breadth
Goal: Mature Drones, advanced logistics, and planter side systems without replacing manual creativity early game.
Community expectation: Drones remain late-tier on Research Checklist — not day-one crutches.
Balance risk: Patch notes may rebalance drone costs; watch Demo Patches pattern continuing into EA.
Post-launch theme — Mod ecosystem
Goal: Keep Fluxloader and map tools viable across updates (Fluxloader Install, Custom Maps).
Developer stance: Mod-friendly single-player sandboxes extend longevity; EA patches should communicate breaking changes early.
Player tip: Maintain a vanilla save slot when testing mods.
Post-launch theme — Quality of life and polish
Goal: UI clarity, performance on minimum spec (4 GB RAM, GTX 550 Ti), save stability, controller rebinding if requested by community.
Specs reference: Release Date and Platforms.
Controls baseline: Keyboard Shortcuts documented defaults unless patch notes add remapping.
What is unlikely during Early Access
- Online multiplayer — not in current official scope
- Console ports — PC-first storefronts only announced
- Complete 1.0 narrative — EA is iterative by definition
How to track roadmap delivery
- Steam news and patch notes
- Official Discord announcements
- Wiki Updates Hub summaries
- Community wiki.gg Sandustry page
- This page updated after major milestones
Milestone checklist (fan projection)
| Phase | Focus | Wiki pages to refresh |
|---|---|---|
| EA launch | Core loop + research tree | Guides, Tier List, Buildings |
| EA +1–3 months | Balance patches | Production Ratio Helper, Demo Patches style log |
| EA mid | Depth / artifacts | Dig Deeper, Artifacts guides |
| EA late | Automation polish | Drones, Automation Basics |
| Pre-1.0 | Performance + UX | Controls, Review |
Dates for post-launch phases are not official — placeholders for wiki maintenance planning.
Community expectations vs developer silence
When official posts go quiet between patches, players still infer roadmap progress from demo scope and EA store feature lists. Treat silence as uncertainty—not confirmation that drones, artifacts, or mod APIs are delayed. Fan summaries here track themes Hooded Horse and Lantto have mentioned publicly; they are not leak compilations. If a rumored feature never ships, wiki pages like Dig Deeper update when patch notes prove it.
Prepare for EA now
- Play demo — Demo Review
- Learn controls — Controls Hub
- Plan factories — Tools
- Wishlist — Release Date and Platforms
Roadmaps change; the refinery loop fundamentals documented across Guides should remain the spine of Sandustry updates.
Communication channels to watch
Follow Lantto Games and Hooded Horse on Steam curator feeds, Discord announcements, and social posts linked from sandustry.com. Wiki editors mirror milestone language here within 48 hours of major posts when possible — smaller hotfixes may only appear on Demo Patches until consolidated.
Player expectations
Early Access is not a promise of feature-complete drones, artifacts, or biomes on day one — it is permission for the factory loop to grow in public. Adjust Review expectations accordingly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common Sandustry questions.
What is the Sandustry Early Access roadmap?
EA launches **2026-08-13** with full factory loop; post-launch focus likely includes depth, automation polish, mods, and balance — confirm via official news.
Will multiplayer arrive during EA?
Not announced. Official scope remains **single-player**.
How often will Sandustry update in EA?
Expect periodic patches like the demo; follow Steam news and [Demo Patches](/updates/demo-patches/) style summaries.
Will mods keep working after EA updates?
Community goal via **Fluxloader**; compatibility may lag patches — see [Mods](/mods/).
Is this roadmap official?
No. Fan summary of public themes. Official posts supersede this page.