Elven colony sim DarkSwitch just got an official release date, so buckle up for cable cars and airships as you erect your treeside utopia

DarkSwitch, an upcoming tower defence-style strategy game from Cyber Temple, just got a new trailer during the PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted that shows off some of the expansive colonies you can build. If you've been following along with the development, you'll be pleased to hear the studio has also given us an expected release date of March 12, 2026.

Add it to your wishlist

The trailer features sprawling cityscapes built up against an ancient, gargantuan tree, entangled in a vast network of cable cars and pulley systems to deliver goods to your people.

We also get to see more up-close looks at some of the mechanical wonders that you might unlock as you grow your city to prosperity, connecting up windmills and building zephyrs to chart routes into the unknown. All this while fighting back the twisted creatures crawling out of the dense, maddening fog. Don't forget about them.

With a sandbox mode and over 80 unique buildings, there's plenty of creative freedom awaiting you in the realms of DarkSwitch. As the trailer says, "Hope creates". And as much as this is a game centered around building yourself a safe haven, the trailer notes that "the Fog sows fear", so you'll need to be on your guard lest your people become affected.

In a similar vein to the Frostpunk series, citizens of your elvish utopia will ask you to make difficult decisions to ensure the continued survival of your people. If you are to thrive, you'll need to face some grim consequences along the way.

DarkSwitch is coming to Steam March 12, 2026. So only a few months to go before you can get stuck into some vertical, elven city building. Wishlisting now is the best way to keep an eye out for updates, too.

Katie Wickens
Hardware Writer

Having been obsessed with game mechanics, computers and graphics for three decades, Katie took Game Art and Design up to Masters level at uni and has been writing about digital games, tabletop games and gaming technology for over five years since. She can be found facilitating board game design workshops and optimising everything in her path.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.