Ukrainian studios Hologryph and TowerHaus have announced the release date for SAND, a multiplayer first-person shooter also known as «Galicians in Space.» SAND will be released into early access with a number of updates and improvements — in particular, the game will feature NPC enemies that will hunt players.
Ukrainian studios Hologryph and TowerHaus have announced the release date for SAND, a multiplayer first-person shooter also known as «Galicians in Space.» SAND will be released into early access with a number of updates and improvements — in particular, the game will feature NPC enemies that will hunt players.
SAND is a multiplayer first-person shooter where teams of up to six players build and upgrade mobile fortresses called Tramplers to survive the harsh desert conditions.
«The heroes of the game are desperate adventurers from Galicia, who in an alternative history of the early 20th century became part of the space expansion of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Get ready to embark on a journey through endless sands, where challenges and riches await at every step!», — the developers describe the project.
Previously, over 200,000 players played SAND during an open playtest, and the game’s demo was among the top ten projects at last year’s Steam Next Fest. With its Early Access release, SAND receives an expanded game world and a number of improvements to keep players engaged.
SAND is scheduled to release in Steam Early Access on April 3, 2025. In Early Access, the project will receive:
New cities, additional locations and much more treasures.
Zombie NPCs roaming the ruins and lurking for unwary players
Minefields and other desert hazards
Improved Trampler control, making it easier to maneuver the machine.
Expanded customization options for Tramplers: new compartments, chassis, and weapons to create a unique vehicle.
During the Early Access period, the developers plan to release regular updates that will add new items, locations, and other improvements to the game. A development roadmap for SAND will be published alongside its release on Steam.
SAND is published by tinyBuild, a company with a mixed reputation in the Ukrainian community. The publisher has previously collaborated with Russian studios.
«We asked Alex [Nychiporchyk, CEO of tinyBuild] whether he was ready to continue cooperating with companies in Russia. He replied that no, if they are not ready to leave and do business outside the Russian Federation», — said Head of Hologryph Maksym Khrapai in an interview with dev.ua.
According to him, Hologryph’s fundamental position is that the company should not pay taxes to the Russian budget, have any financial ties with Russia, or have employees in Russia.
«Our publisher is satisfied with it: tinyBuild not only took all employees out of Russia, but also terminated contracts with those who remained or decided to return. We can confirm that all these decisions remain in force now, and tinyBuild management is actively adhering to them», — said Khrapai in an interview with DOU.
He added that the team helping with SAND from tinyBuild does not have a single person in Russia.
