TECHMASH

Tag: #SilkSoftworks

  • ShantyTown Set to Shine at PAX East 2026: A Cozy City-Builder in the Spotlight

    ShantyTown Set to Shine at PAX East 2026: A Cozy City-Builder in the Spotlight

    London-based publisher Kinephantom Games and solo developer Erik Rempen (the mind behind the acclaimed strategy title Kainga) have officially announced that their upcoming project, ShantyTown, has been hand-selected for the prestigious PAX Rising Showcase at PAX East 2026.

    Taking place from March 26th to 29th at the Thomas M. Menino Convention & Exhibition Centre in Boston, the PAX Rising Showcase highlights a curated selection of the most promising indie titles of the year. For ShantyTown, this selection follows a massive surge in momentum; during February’s Steam Next Fest, the game doubled its wishlist count and saw over 30,000 players dive into its urban dioramas.

    What is ShantyTown?

    Developed under Rempen’s studio, Silk Softworks, ShantyTown is a “casual diorama-builder” that celebrates the beauty of dense, messy, and lived-in urban environments. Unlike traditional city-builders that focus on rigid grids and resource management, ShantyTown is a meditative experience.

    Vertical Creativity: Players build upwards in tight spaces, filling every nook and cranny with light, utility, and over 150 unique decorations.

    A Relaxing Journey: Featuring a handcrafted soundtrack by vaporwave artist Macroblank, the game encourages a “no wrong answers” approach to architecture.

    The Surveyor’s Dossier: Players travel across 20 distinct locations, from floating tea shops to industrial warehouse markets, photographing their finished towns to fill a personal portfolio.

    Catch it at PAX East

    Attendees heading to Boston this week can find ShantyTown at Booth 13097. Visitors will have the exclusive opportunity to:

    Play the full game ahead of its official release.

    Meet solo developer Erik Rempen in person.

    Snag ShantyTown-specific goodies and physical swag.

    Can’t make it to Boston?

    The celebration isn’t limited to the show floor. A brand-new update for the ShantyTown demo is now live on Steam, introducing the highly anticipated Creative Mode. This sandbox state allows players to revisit any surveyed location with unrestricted access to all unlocked buildings and decorations.

    The community is also buzzing on Discord, where the third weekly build competition is currently underway. Winners of these contests even have the chance to be “immortalised” within the game’s puzzles.

    “ShantyTown is inspired by my love for densely built cities—the kind of places where every wall, alley, and rooftop tells a story,” says developer Erik Rempen.

    ShantyTown is scheduled to launch in full on April 16, 2026, for PC via Steam.

    Find out more here on Steam – https://shorturl.at/rSMzj

    #KinephantomGames #SilkSoftworks #ShantyTown #PAXRisingShowcase #PAXEast #gameupdate #games #gaming #gamers #platformer #gameplay #demogame #videogames #arcadegames

  • Finding Beauty in the Urban Tapestry: Why You Need to Wishlist ShantyTown

    Finding Beauty in the Urban Tapestry: Why You Need to Wishlist ShantyTown

    Forget sprawling metropolises and perfect grid layouts. The next big thing in cozy gaming is all about compact chaos and finding beauty in the dense, delightful mess of urban life. Get ready to dive into ShantyTown, the unique diorama-building game coming to Steam on April 16, 2026.

    Created by solo developer Erik Rempen (Silk Softworks), the mind behind Kainga: Seeds of Civilization, ShantyTown is not your typical city builder. It’s a meditative exercise in creativity, challenging you to construct bustling, colorful, and organically-growing neighborhoods in the tiniest of spaces.

    Diorama Building: A Puzzle of Placement

    At its heart, ShantyTown is a diorama builder with a delightful twist of puzzle mechanics. Each location you visit—from a tiny peninsula to an industrial pipe tunnel—gives you a limited space to work with and a curated set of objects to place.

    • The Three-Card Deck: Items appear in groups of three, and it’s up to you to strategically place them. You’ll be layering buildings, stacking shops, and tucking rooftop gardens into every available nook.
    • Creating Life and Utility: The challenge isn’t just fitting things in; it’s upgrading your structures. Buildings need supporting elements like lights, decor, and utility services to level up, adding a layer of depth and strategy to your placement decisions.
    • Uncovering the Location’s Purpose: As you build, the specific blend of objects you use reveals the true identity of the location. Will your creation become a Dockside Teahouse, a vibrant Nightlife District, or a bustling Seafood Market?

    This mix of creative freedom and constrained placement makes ShantyTown feel like a blend of games like Dorfromantik and Tiny Glade, offering both a relaxing creative sandbox and satisfying objective-based progress.

    The Vibe: Cozy, Atmospheric, and Aesthetic

    A key feature setting ShantyTown apart is its incredible atmosphere:

    • A Unique Aesthetic: The game embraces an imperfect yet charming urban aesthetic, full of warm colors, dense detailing, and little visual surprises like walking houses and drifting birds. It genuinely finds beauty in the improvised, resourceful nature of the environments.
    • Dynamic Soundtrack: The atmosphere is perfectly rounded out by a custom, adaptive soundtrack from the prolific vaporwave artist Macroblank, ensuring the experience remains peaceful and immersive as you build.
    • Photo Mode & Dossier: Once you’ve perfected your micro-city masterpiece, a detailed photo mode lets you capture the scene. These photos are then added to your in-game dossier, allowing you to revisit your favorite creations later or share them with the community.

    Get Your Hands On It Now!

    Excited to start building? The full game is scheduled to launch on April 16, 2026, for PC via Steam.

    The good news is that you don’t have to wait! A recently updated, free demo is available right now on the Steam store page. The demo includes tutorial levels and a taste of the creative mode, allowing you to fully immerse yourself in the unique vibes of ShantyTown.

    The partnership between Erik Rempen’s Silk Softworks and publisher Kinephantom Games means this project—four years in the making—is heading for a smooth and highly anticipated launch. Go check out the demo and add ShantyTown to your wishlist today!

    ShantyTown – https://www.silksoftworks.com/

    #ShantyTown #Kinephantom #ErikRempen #SilkSoftworks #steam #pcgames #dioramabuilder #demogame #newgames #building #games #gaming #gamers #videogames

  • Creating an urban ShantyTown

    Creating an urban ShantyTown

    Welcome to the ShantyTown game where players create their own small village on the outskirts of a city using their artistic and architectural skills to provide it with everything needed, such as water and power, but it can go beyond with such things as farming, fishing and even different districts depending on the location. ShantyTown will be released later on in the year and for those players who cannot wait there will be a public Steam Playtest, players can register their interest on Steam now

    To find out more about the ShantyTown game go to the official game website here https://www.silksoftworks.com/ or go to the games page on Steam here https://shorturl.at/bTHr2

    #ShantyTown #ErikRempen #SilkSoftworks #Building #Project #Locations #Buildings #Homes #Restaurants #Power #Water #Farming #Design #CityLimits