SteamWorld Dig's Successor Plots a Steamy Smash and Grab

Following the release of the immensely popular SteamWorld Dig on the PlayStation 4 and Vita, entertaining Swedish outfit Image & Form has been busy beavering away on the title’s natural successor: SteamWorld Heist. Don’t call this a sequel, though, as outspoken gaffer Brjann Sigurgeirsson is billing it as something much bigger than that.

“It’s set in the same world, and the cowbots are still the heroes – but a lot has happened to SteamWorld since then, and we want to make a game that is radically different,” he explained as part of a press release. “[That’s] partly because we really wanted to make a turn-based strategy game, but also because it felt like a clever move. The obvious follow-up would’ve been Dig 2; we wanted to surprise instead.”

As already alluded, this will play completely differently to its predecessor, as a “cataclysmic event” has destroyed the world, forcing its inhabitants to live in steam-driven spaceships. It’s from here that you’ll recruit a ragtag group of robots in order to help forage for precious supplies – and dismantle a few rivals in the process. For a little more information, check out our sister site Nintendo Life's hands-on impressions and developer interview.

There’s no word on platforms or a release date just yet, but we suspect that Sony’s systems will be treated to the title eventually. For now, though, Sigurgeirsson and his team are eager to keep everyone up to date with the game’s progress in the run up to its launch next spring. “We’ll be keeping our fans and media in the loop,” he beamed. “I have the patience of an insect, but will try to keep from pestering you every day.” Appreciated – we get enough of that from Ubisoft.