Steamworld Dig is a Metroidvania-inspired 2D side-scrolling platformer that was originally released for the 3DS handheld in August of 2013, and for the PC in December of the same year. Developer Image and Form Games announced in February of this year that the direct sequel, Steamworld Dig 2, would be released for the Nintendo Switch in the summer, and that a PC version was on the way too.
A release date hasn't been announced (in fact, it's been pushed back slightly) but today the game appeared on Steam, and the studio said that the delay between the Nintendo and PC releases won't be nearly as long this time around.
The first Steamworld Dig tells the tale of Rusty, a steam-powered robot who inherits a Wild West-style mine from his uncle. He's not actually a miner himself (so he claims at the start of the game, anyway) but he nonetheless feels compelled to "explore an underground world full of secrets, treasure and terrors," including "the remnants of human civilization."
The concept is fairly simplistic but the game itself is engaging and entertaining, and Steamworld Dig 2 promises more of the same. "In search of her lost friend, a lone steambot and her unlikely companion must dig deep, gain riches and explore an underworld riddled with danger," the Steam listing says. "But time is running short…"
The "summer 2017" target that was set when Steamworld Dig 2 was announced has since been pushed back to "late summer/early fall." The good news is that this time around, Image and Form expects to have the PC version out "within a few days of the Nintendo Switch debut," rather than a few months.
"When we plan the release for any SteamWorld game, we always want to finish as soon as possible so everyone can play and and have fun with it. But at the same time we want to create something new," the studio said. "It’s hard to estimate how long that’s going to take and at what point whatever we consider to be new is done. More often than not problems take a lot longer to tackle than anticipated. These extra months will take pressure off our team and give us enough time to give you the game you deserve."
More information about Steamworld Dig 2 is up at imageform.se.
