SteamWorld Build Dev Says They Will Reveal Content Plans Soon

Story Highlights

SteamWorld Build is a city-building dungeon-crawler released on December 1, 2023.
The game offers a gameplay unique to the franchise with a steampunk art direction.
We interviewed Adam Vasse, Producer of SteamWorld Build, to discuss the game in depth.

The SteamWorld franchise has found its roots in various genres, with the latest iteration, SteamWorld Build, being a city-builder mixed with dungeon-crawling features and a Steampunk vibe. To understand the IP’s flexibility and get an in-depth look into SteamWorld Build, eXputer had the opportunity to talk with Adam Vasse, the game’s Producer, over an email interview.

Read ahead for the full interview containing Adam Vasse’s insights.

SteamWorld Build – via Thunderful Publishing.

It is clear that the SteamWorld franchise aims to touch various genres, with the upcoming game going towards the Steampunk/Building Sim side. Is there a specific genre you believe would be an ideal fit for SteamWorld?

Adam: I think this is the beauty of SteamWorld; almost anything is possible to do in this universe. We used to joke around at the studio that we could probably pull off a pretty decent SteamWorld Dating Sim. Time will tell.

In another short interview, Game Director Andreas Persson said that the lack of Steampunk games could be due to the difficulty in not making it 'dull and disinteresting.' Was that an issue the team faced during the development of SteamWorld Build?

Adam: Of course, it was a challenge we needed to overcome. I am lucky to have a team filled with very skilled people who have been working for years with costumes for many of the Little Big Planet games. In general, I also think that SteamWorld is a bit quirky and funny, and then you have to adapt the art style after that.

What other major challenges did the team encounter? And how were those overcome?

Adam: Game production is never easy. It’s not like building a house or putting together IKEA furniture while following a manual. There are general guidelines on how to make a game but no guidelines on how to make it joyful and fun. We worked hard on the enemies and the balancing of the game, and I think it turned out quite alright? :)

SteamWorld Build – via Thunderful Publishing.

Aside from the game's predecessors, what other pieces of media inspired the team during Build's development?

Adam: I can’t hide that Anno has been a big source of inspiration, but also the good old Dungeon Keeper. But we also snuffed some things for Hades that we did like.

You said in another interview that the game would fit neatly into the overall lore, especially with SteamWorld Dig 1 & 2. Will newcomers also be able to understand the lore, or is it recommended that they play Dig 1 & 2?

Adam: No, you could enjoy the game and the story without knowing the history of the previous games. The only thing you would miss out on would be all the funny easter eggs and flirts we implemented that refer to the other SteamWorld Games.

Can Build fans expect additional content or DLCs coming in the future?

Adam: We have some plans, and we will reveal some of them soon.

Is there anything else you would like to share with the audience? Something we haven't touched upon yet.

Adam: No, just that we are really thankful and happy for all the nice words we received so far. This is our baby that we are now handing over to the fans. Hope you enjoy the game as much as we enjoyed developing it for you.

SteamWorld Build was developed by The Station and published by Thunderful Publishing. The city-building dungeon-crawler was released December 1, 2023, on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and PC.