Sandustry hits Steam Early Access — a factory automation game where every pixel is a resource

Sandustry, a survival and factory automation game from Lantto Games, is now available in Early Access on Steam. Every pixel in the game world is a mineable, mixable, or destroyable resource — and the right ones can be used to build sprawling production lines.

The core hook is pixel-based simulation with physically realistic interactions: sand absorbs water and becomes easier to sift for gold, ice melts when heated, and various materials trigger unique chemical reactions when combined. Worlds are procedurally generated and fully destructible, so you can either carefully engineer complex factories or just blow everything up. There are also mysterious artifacts tied to an ancient civilization's backstory scattered across each world, and the game is built with modding support from the ground up.

Sandustry sits in a growing genre of factory automation games — think Factorio or Satisfactory — but the pixel-simulation angle gives it a more freeform, sandbox feel. Lantto Games is a small indie studio, and this is their take on blending the "every block matters" destructibility of games like Noita with production-line automation.

The Early Access period is expected to last roughly a year, and the price may go up after full release — so jumping in now locks the current rate. Everything advertised on the Steam page is playable already. A free demo is also available if you want to test the waters before committing.