Coming to us from developer SF Team and published by Big Way, STEAM HAMMER is a hardcore sandbox RPG in a steampunk setting featuring survival elements. After a successful Kickstarter campaign which achieved its goal, it has been released on Steam in the Early Access program. SF Team has stated that the game will be in development as an Early Access title for at least 1 year while it irons out further planned features, bugs, and gathers feedback from players and Kickstarter backers.
STEAM HAMMER will be SF Team’s first developed game, and if their current progress is anything to go off of, they can expect a bright future. Steam’s Store Page for STEAM HAMMER also quotes how SF Team wants to handle the development of their game in Early Access, and it looks like they expect a positive outlook. “We want to listen to our players first impressions and new ideas. That way we will know which parts of the game require more attention and improvement. We want to have a constructive dialog with the community. Our first and main aim is to make our players happy.” This is definitely a great approach to be taking, and their work so far shows it.
During my time with the game, I saw many of the core systems and ideas already in place. STEAM HAMMER plays much like any other sandbox survival title, but with a steampunk twist. Your goal is to take what you can find as far as minerals and resources go, and make what you can out of them. The primary starting resource is copper, which you can find laying around in piles as you explore the land. Using that as a base, your first set of tools can be created. Using them to find more resources (and of course some food), your journey in this world begins. Visually the game is pretty stunning, it’s clear SF Team put a lot of effort into the game’s overall look and graphic fidelity. Everything appears as it should, as far as machines and items go. I got all the way up to the beginning of building my first airship, and from what I’ve seen so far it’s amazing.
I can certainly see STEAM HAMMER being a big hit in the future. If SF Team delivers on it’s promises and continues steady development, I have no doubt it will be. It’s certainly worth checking out in Early Access, as there’s plenty of the game already playable in it’s current build.
