One of the most popular recent games like Stardew Valley to hit Steam is now finally leaving Early Access after two years, its full release accompanied by a massive update.
Dinkum first launched into Early Access in July 2022, marking almost three years since its initial foray onto Steam. Since then, it's managed to rack up nearly 20,000 reviews and a stellar "Very Positive" rating, proving the booming market for Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley-esque life sims continues to thrive. A variety of updates have also come from solo developer James Bendon along the road to this month's full release, too.
One of the biggest, however, looks like it's set to drop alongside 1.0 on April 23, featuring an overhaul to the game's multiplayer system, new airborne vehicles, crafting recipes, and more. Most exciting of all, though, is the fact that other patches are underway following Dinkum's full release as Bendon reveals he's "only getting started" with 1.0. Further details are yet to come, but patch notes should unveil more "as we draw closer" to the launch.
As a longtime genre stan and dedicated Dinkum player myself, I personally can't wait and would recommend the game to anyone keen on cozier titles – especially as Animal Crossing: New Horizons isn't receiving anymore updates and Nintendo hasn't announced a new entry. If you're a fan of bug catching, building, crafting, decorating, exploring, fishing, or any other life-sim-aligned essential, 1.0 offers the perfect excuse to jump into Dinkum.
Itching for more? Check out some of these other upcoming indie games if so.
