- Iron Log #36 - Production stats and world settings - 22 September 2026
Hi Everyone!I'm excited to share two new features coming in update 0.4.1 real soon.Production StatsAccess the Production Stats screen from anywhere with \. From this screen you can see your global production and consumption rates over time. Click on individual items to filter for specific items if the graph becomes too cluttered.Custom World SettingsWhen creating a new world you can now toggle any or all of the following options.Creative ModeEvery technology unlocked and all items available from the start for you to build with for free. Additionally there are 3 new creative only items: An infinite storage container to supply an infinite amount of specific items, or can be set to void any item input into it. A fluid tank version which does the same for fluids. And a power generator that outputs 1000 GW of power.Infinite ResourcesOre deposits will never run out. Mining outposts will stay…
- Belts of Iron Update 0.4 - 4 August 2026
Hey everyone,I'm excited to share that version 0.4 is out now! This release brings a major overhaul to many mid and late game recipes, opening up new ways to build and optimize your factories. There are changes to resource generation as well so it's the perfect time to start a new world! However, if you're continuing an existing save, expect to make some adjustments to existing production lines.Cargo DronesWith cargo drones you have a new way transport items around your factory. They are great for low throughput items in hard to reach places. Or setup a request for commonly used items to keep a storage container stocked with things you often need.Vertical Conveyor LiftsGone are they days of conveyor switchbacks. Go straight up with vertical conveyor lifts.World MapLost? Looking for nearby ore? Where does that belt go? How big is my factory? All these questions and more can be answered w…
- Iron Log #35 - Total verticality - 17 July 2026
Hi Everyone!This week I'm excited to share 2 more big features coming to version 0.4! They should make building factories feel even more "layered". And stick around to the end for info about the experimental release.Vertical Conveyor LiftsYou can now build vertical conveyor lifts to bring items straight up and down! They even attach directly to machines, splitters, and mergers. Each belt tier has their own lift so they work as fast as the normal "horizontal" belts.Machine ModulesLogic Circuits and Execution Units were previously used to increase the speed of a machine but now there are dedicated items that can do more than that!Productivity Modules - A new modifier that outputs a bonus item every so often.Efficiency Modules - Reduces the energy used by a machine.Speed Modules - Increases the crafting speed and energy used.These modules can be mixed and matched in a machine. Some machine…
- Iron Log #34 - Next update & cargo drones 🤖 - 7 July 2026
Hey everyone,I've been busy working on the next major update and thought it was time I shared a couple of the bigger changes coming to the game.Cargo DronesOne of the new features is Cargo Drones! These flying robots open up a new way to move items around your factory. Once unlocked towards the mid-late game, you'll be able to set storage containers to request or provide items to the drones. Drones available in the Drone Depots will be automatically assigned to a request and carry it out before going back to their depot to recharge.The goal is to give players a new kind of logistics tool. Conveyor belts and trains are great for steady high-throughput production, but drones should make it less tedious and dare I say easier, to solve low-volume item requests in awkward locations around your factory.I'm hoping this makes building factories feel more flexible, less rigid, and more alive. Th…
- Release Notes v0.3.17 - 3 July 2026
- Add setting for picker/pipette tool to not replace items on your hotbar.- Added a visual indicator if you get close to the world boundary.- Fixed a bug where resource deposits could have negative amounts preventing extractors from working.- Fixed a bug where players could not select train station in the locomotive UI if there were too many.- Fixed a bug where pipe valve max flow rate was not saved.
- Release Notes v0.3.16 - 5 June 2026
Fix crash after dismantling oil refinery.Fixed nudging non-world-grid blueprints when rotated (need to recreate the blueprint for this to fix it).Add flow rate to pipe tooltip.Update tech tree visuals.Update fluid icons.Fixed derailed trains would fall through the world.Fixed a bug where concrete and the world grid indicators would sometimes disappear in multiplayer.Removed the white flashing when damaging resources.
- Release Notes v0.3.15 - 31 May 2026
Fixed a crash when opening the research table in multiplayer. Insulated Wire should now correctly be 3x longer than Copper Wire. Fixed a bug preventing belts and pipes from going through water. Fixed world names with a dot character not saving correctly. Fixed splitting certain railway tracks with another track caused them to freak out.
- Iron Log #33 - Now on Steam! - 30 May 2026
Last week Belts of Iron officially launched into Early Access on Steam 🎉🚀I want to start off by saying Thank You to everyone that's left a review, bug report, feedback, or message of any kind.If you haven't yet, you can pick up the game with a 10% discount during launch week, or more if you get it in one of bundlesKnown IssuesThere are a number of issues that I'm currently working on fixing. You should expect an update in the near future that fixes most if not all of these. And please keep reporting bugs so I can fix them.Insulated Wires are not actually longer than Copper Wire. Will be fixed in the next update.Belts can't be placed under water and then brought out to above the water and vice versa.Splitting certain railway tracks with another track causes them to freak out.Train derailment sometimes glitches through the terrain and the wagons are lost.Unable to join LAN game through…
- Release Notes v0.3.13 - 26 May 2026
Release Notes v0.3.13Improved render performance with LOD for concrete foundations and belts.Improved render performance by not rendering items on belts that are far away.Fixed a crash when interacting with locomotive after a station on the schedule was removed.Removed research speed technology in favor of using modules in the research labs.
- Iron Log #32 - Early Access Launch Countdown - 21 May 2026
Hey everyone,A couple weeks ago I announced that Belts of Iron is coming to Steam Early Access on May 28th. As of today that is just 1 week from now! So if you haven't yet, please consider giving the game a Wishlist. I created a launch countdown timer for those who want to see exactly when the game will be be available on Steam - https://www.tickcounter.com/countdown/10143799/early-access-launch These last couple of weeks have been mostly filled with reaching out to press and content creators while still pushing out some last minute updates.v0.3.12 Adding a world grid and improving blueprints to make them easier to create, manage, and share with others.v0.3.11 Added new Assembler animations and updated the saved games UI.v0.3.10 Was mostly bug fixing with UI updates to the electrical network details and launch pad. Lastly I want to reiterate that entering Steam Early Access is just the…
- Release Notes v0.3.12 - 19 May 2026
Release Notes v0.3.12When scanning for resources the location of deposits should not overlap one another as much.Rails, stations, signals, and loaders can now be used in blueprints.Add toggle for world grid \ when placing foundations.Blueprints can now include icons and descriptions.Blueprints can now snap to world grid making them easier to align.Changed the following recipes:\ Plastic: 1 -> 2\ Slag: 2 -> 4, Time: 3 -> 2\ Steel: 10 -> 8, Time: 8 -> 12\ Crushed Stone: 2 -> 3\ Crushed Stone: 2 -> 3\ Water: 120 -> 30, Acid: 120 -> 30\ Acid: 50 -> 30\ Rocket Engine: 16 -> 8, Pipe Valve: 50 -> 45
- Release Notes v0.3.11 - 13 May 2026
Release Notes v0.3.11New Assembler animation and particle effects.Fixed a bug where placing splitters could snap to a belt behind another machineUpdated Saved Games Menu to show more information.Allow players to quit without saving. There is a confirmation dialog if you haven't saved recently.Added setting to change autosave interval.Fixed a bug that prevented some buildings from being placed on foundations in seemingly random locations.
- Release Notes v0.3.10 - 12 May 2026
Release Notes v0.3.10Added more details to electrical network graphs including machine counts and total energy use for each group.Updated Launch Pad UI and increased power usage to be more appropriate for an end game building.Steam turbines now remember their speed between saved games.Accumulators now remember their charge level between saved games.Fixed a bug where removing the last machine in a power network would not remove the power network leading to a random crash later.Fixed a bug where Accumulators did not show on blueprints.
- Release Notes v0.3.9 - 6 May 2026
Release Notes v0.3.9New factory modules system! Use Logic Circuits or Execution Units to boost the speed of machines at the cost of higher energy use.Logic Circuit & Execution Unit stack size changed from 50 -> 10.Removed mining speed technology 2-4 in favor of using modules in mining drills.Fixed a bug with train path signals not working correctly.Added level of details to trees and rocks to improve graphics performance.
- Belts of Iron - Coming to Early Access on May 28th! - 4 May 2026
Hello factory builders! I'm excited to announceBelts of Iron is coming to Early Access on May 28th!Entering into Early Access is just the beginning. I am committed to making this a truly great factory game. Throughout Early Access I plan on expanding endgame content, adding more quality-of-life improvements, and continue optimizing so you can build the biggest, most efficient, factories possible!There is already a ton of factory building to be had, and I can't wait to see what you all create.When exactly will the game be available?May 28, 2026 at 1:00PM EDT / 17:00 GMTHow much will the game cost?The price at launch will be $14.99 (USD) with a 10% launch discount. What does this mean for the demo?The demo will continue receiving updates that affect the core game. Including bug fixes, optimizations, and quality of life features. I have no plans of discontinuing the demo but it probably wo…
- Iron Log #31 - New demo, who dis? - 30 April 2026
Hey everyone,It's time! There is a new demo version on Steam, free to play of course! There are a lot of major changes so starting a new game will be required. If you want to continue on an existing save I'm making a branch available to continue playing called "pre-0.3".So what's new? Mostly quality of life improvements and general bug fixes will be noticeable in the demo. A lot of new buildings and technology has been added to the full version which will be released soon! Here's a list of what to expect in the updated demo compared to the current demo version.📦 Building & Automation QoLBlueprints can be saved and loaded between sessionsSplitters/mergers auto-connect when alignedRecipes organized by category + show crafting buildingPower usage graphs available when inspecting power polesDrag-to-place power poles when connecting wires💧 FluidsFluid indicators on machines showing where t…
- Belts of Iron Update 0.3 - 21 April 2026
Hey everyone,Over the last couple of months I’ve been working on adding a ton of content and general improvements to the game and now I’m happy to share they are stable enough to release to new and current owners of the game.Here is a full list of what’s changed. But if you’ve been following along or on the experimental branch there isn’t much new for you here.🚆 Trains & LogisticsManual train driving added (in addition to automation).Train collisions, derailments, and player damage can occur.Rail signals (block & path) added for preventing collisions.Fluid Wagons added for transporting liquids.Cargo Wagons now show contents of inventory.🏭 New Buildings & SystemsChemical Plant (Advanced fluid processing)Solar Panels + AccumulatorsLarge Storage ContainerBucket Miner (Late game mining drill)Tier 4 BeltsSteel Power PolesFluid Valve (can limit flow rate)💧 FluidsFluid indicators when build…
- Iron Log #30 - Multiplayer optimizations - 20 April 2026
Hey everyone,Welcome back to another dev log for my indie factory automation game, Belts of Iron! Over the last week I've been testing the game in multiplayer while fixing a lot of bugs and improving network performance. It seems like the experimental branch is stable enough now to move to the main branch. I plan to release an updated demo version in the near future.But first I want to talk about networking since I've been looking at it a lot lately.Multiplayer Networking OverviewMultiplayer games have two primary ways to sync data so all players see the same thing and know what other players are doing. First is a typical client-server architecture which has clients (players) sending requests to the server and the server sending (replicating) the state of the world to all clients. The requests from players include actions such as moving, placing a machine, changing a recipe, swinging th…
- Iron Log #29 - Choo choo 🚂 - 7 April 2026
Hey everyone, I want to start off by saying thank you to everyone who’s supported the game in one way or another. It is incredibly exciting to see people playing and talking about it. Two YouTube creators dropped videos recently that were so fun to watch! I am sharing these videos at the end of the dev log if you want to check them out. The game has come a long way in a year and I’m grateful for all the support 💙. Can’t wait to see what it looks like in another year. Development A few weeks ago I released a private experimental build on Steam with some big changes. If you missed it you can read more about it in the last dev log. Members of the Discord have been a huge help finding and reporting bugs. Since then I have been working on a big update to trains. It’s taking a little longer than I expected but I hope it’ll be worth the wait. Let’s take a look at what’s to come in the next up…
- Iron Log #28 - Experimental Branch - 16 March 2026
Hey everyone, I am working towards releasing the game on steam in early access. I need to add more content and give players an end goal. Even though we all know the real goal is to optimize and do it again more efficiently. That said I'm exited to share some of these new changes with you all and give players access to an experimental branch on steam or separate download on itch.io. This experimental branch/build will be updated constantly over the next few weeks while I fix bugs and then it will merge into the main branch/build. If you want to experience the new content right away please go ahead! Steam branch code conveyorbelthell Resource Deposits Resource deposit spawning has been revamped so that you’ll find a lot more clusters of the same type near each other. My intention here is to make it more rewarding to have dedicated mining outposts. Previously the single deposits were too s…
