Factory & automation games have really been growing in popularity. Thanks for games like Factorio and Satisfactory really bringing the genre to people’s attention we have been getting all kinds of fantastic automation games. Factory Town, Autonauts, and Dyson Sphere Program are some of the more recent ones that have sunk their claws into me. Here are four upcoming games, 1 of which you can get now in alpha, that any fan of this genre should be on the lookout for.
Automation Station
Automation Station is a game focused on automating every process in the game. Starting off with nothing you’ll eventually be automating your harvesting, refining, and crafting. Of course, you will be able to connect all your machines with conveyor belts too. As your factory grows you’ll be able to unlock more of the world to find new resources and machines that further expand your factory.
An ambitious solo-developed game, Automation Station really looks to do some new things with how your factory is built. The way you will be able to use various machines together to create complex assembly lines has me very interested in this one.
Features
- DEEP CRAFTING: Collect, refine, process, and craft new items using a variety of machines.
- FACTORY AUTOMATION: Use conveyor belts, arms, sensors, and other gadgets to create a fully automated factory.
- EXPANDING WORLD: Discover pylons that require a continuous flow of manufactured goods to power up. Once powered, the pylons will unlock additional areas of the map.
- DISCOVERIES: Explore the world to discover and unlock new machines. Use what you’ve found to expand the capabilities of your factory, allowing you to venture out further.
- UPGRADES & VEHICLES: Discover upgrades for your playable character or vehicles to make it easier and more enjoyable to navigate the world.
- PHYSICS SANDBOX While resources and items can be neatly slotted into machines and conveyor belts for a tidy factory, they can also be freely dropped wherever. Combined with the physics system of the game, you can create all kinds of interesting, albeit less reliable contraptions.
- INNOVATE There are many different ways to accomplish a goal in Automation Station. Each of the individual machines are simple on their own but can be combined to create sophisticated behavior. Design your own splitting mechanism, an item sorter, or anything you dream up.
You can wishlist Automation Station on Steam. For more news check out their Twitter & Discord.
Techtonica
Techtonica is a first-person factory building game where you are beneath the surface of an alien planet. Build factories, gather resources, research tech, create a home base, mold the destructible environment, and explore and discover secrets.
Techtonica is inspired by Satisfactory and Factorio but it also takes inspiration from Subnautica. Something to expect with this game is a story that will have you exploring the world you’re on. I am really excited to see this as the world looks amazing and beckons to be explored.
Features
- BEAUTIFUL WORLD. Explore the cavernous depths of Techtonica surrounded by bioluminescent flora in first person.
- FACTORY BUILDING. Power your mining and production with dynamic and interlinked factory systems.
- COMPLETE AUTOMATION. Conveyor belts and unique travel systems make sprawling, automated factories easier to build, connect, and traverse.
- REWARDING UPGRADES. Start small and get massive with gameplay systems that continually evolve with new challenges and solutions.
- AURAL NIRVANA. Techtonica arrives with a build-inspiring original soundtrack from Cityfires (20XX, Catlateral Damage: Remeowstered).
- CO-OP. Techtonica will be entirely playable alone or with up to four-player co-op.
You can wishlist Techtonica on Steam. For more news follow the games Twitter and Discord.
Factory Magnate
Factory Magnate is a casual factory game. In this, you’ll be building factories to achieve objectives which leads to promotions and more production lines. That’s the main drive here, build to complete objectives, gain promotions, and achieve the rank of Magnate. An interesting twist on this is you can compete against previous runs and really dial in your production lines.
Features
What you’ll get
- More than 30 machines and buildings. (As of pre-alpha 0.21, more is guaranteed to come)
- More than 50 items to produce and refine. (As of pre-alpha 0.21, more is guaranteed to come)
- Manageable depth and complexity; well suited for players who can’t be bothered spending hours upon hours studying intricate production chains.
- A bite-sized experience; the end goal for the finished game is that each individual run will last 2-5 hours.
- Procedurally generated maps, so no two runs are exactly the same.
- Free future content updates.
What this game doesn’t have
- No enemies and no combat. It’s a peaceful game.
- No character to control. You are free to navigate and build wherever you like.
- Multiplayer. I’m very sorry, but I am just a solo developer, and I have enough work to do as it is. Sad face.
- Rocket launches. But it may have rocket parts.
You can wishlist Factory Magnate on Steam. For more news check out Twitter.
Foundry
Foundry is another first-person factory-building game. This one is set in an endless procedurally generated voxel world. The whole environment is destructible (think Minecraft) and gives you lots of options to build amazing factories. In Foundry you have the ability to automate everything. Conduct research to unlock more advanced technology to advance the output of your factory. Want to build with your friends? Foundry is multiplayer and has no limit on the number of players that join through online connectivity or offline LAN networking.
I’ve sunk a fair amount of time into Foundry and have loved my time with it. The devs keep adding a lot of new things and the game handles its factory building and power systems in a unique way. It’s definitely one that any fan of the genre should check out.
Foundry is playable currently in Alpha on Itch.io and can be wishlisted on Steam. For more news check out Twitter and their Discord.
This an outstanding list and I’m especially happy to see Foundry listed. I’ve played through to the end of that game (twice!) and as good as it is (and its GREAT!) it is still in development and promises to only get better!