Sandustry is a factory automation sandbox made by the small studio Lantto Games and published by Hooded Horse. It launched into Steam Early Access on August 13, 2026. You mine sand and other terrain, process it through a chain of machines, and turn raw ground into gold, fluxite, and an ever-larger self-running factory.
Reviewers have described it two ways: PCGamesN called it "Factorio-style automation with Terraria-style 2D pixel terrain", and Rock Paper Shotgun said it feels like "playing a factory sim inside a Noita maze". Both descriptions get at the same idea — it is a factory game where the world itself is the raw material.
The short version
Sandustry is a single-player game with no co-op or multiplayer mode, and the developers have not announced any multiplayer plans. You build a factory that digs, sorts, heats, cools and presses sand into refined materials.
The core loop is simple:
- Mine sand, red sand, and other terrain.
- Process it — water plus sand makes gold in a Shaker, and gold plus other inputs eventually becomes fluxite.
- Automate — conveyor belts, launchers, filters and drones move materials while you expand.
- Research new machines and upgrade your tools with fluxite.
There are three currencies that gate your progress: Gold unlocks Research, Fluxite unlocks inventory and tool upgrades, and Energy powers late-game buildings.
What you actually do
- Dig everything. The ground is destructible voxel-like terrain. Sand, red sand, lava, crackstone and other materials are all mined and moved.
- Build a production line. Machines like the Shaker, Kinetic Slag Press and Planter Box each turn one material into another, so you chain them together.
- Manage liquids and gases. Pumps, pipes and vents move water, steam and other fluids, while thermal machines heat and cool materials to change their state.
- Research a tech tree. Spend gold to unlock three tiers of machines, from basic logistics to drones and advanced fluid systems.
- Upgrade with fluxite. Fluxite is the rare purple resource that upgrades your mining tools, weapons and drones.
A note on the name
Sandustry is a portmanteau of "sand" and "industry" — fitting, since sand is the base material that kicks off almost every production chain in the game. The Steam page lists the Chinese name as "沙金工业" (literally "sand gold industry").
Is Sandustry right for you?
If you like Factorio, Mindustry, or Satisfactory's planning puzzle, Sandustry is squarely in that genre. If you want co-op or a story campaign, it is not for you — it is a single-player sandbox about building and optimizing a factory that runs itself.