Paradox Interactive and developer Channel 3 Entertainment have released factory builder Foundry via Steam Early Access on PC ($29.99). It’s currently 10% off through May 16 ($26.99).
Foundry is the latest in the increasingly popular automation and base building genre, which namely includes Factorio and Satisfactory. In these games players act out their engineering dreams by building increasingly complex and self-sustaining factories.
Foundry builds on the genre by utilizing 3D voxel (block-based), randomly generated worlds a la Minecraft, but with better graphics since its early-alpha release on Itch.io. As robots armed with drill-arms and scanners, players mine the world from humble beginnings before constructing machines, powerlines, pipes, and conveyor belts.
Four players can play together in online and local co-op, though there’s no hard limit. Multiplayer is a bit buggier compared to single player.
According to the Steam page, Foundry already includes about 50 hours of content, including modular buildings, power grids, and the modifiable voxel world. Future road map includes critters and blueprints, as well as higher tiers of research, science, and power plants. Foundry is scheduled to receive at least two major updates later this year.
Channel 3 Entertainment is a new studio with developers whose credits include Oxygen Not Included and Don’t Starve Together.
Foundry is available now via Steam Early Access. The full 1.0 release has not yet been announced.
