Prepare to Enter the Hauntingly Domedic House in Hauntworks
Indie developer Elbow Elbow Games is opening the doors to its delightfully twisted management sim Hauntworks with a free Steam demo launching on August 28. Players will be able to experience the game’s entire first act, offering around an hour of gameplay before its Early Access release on October 30, 2026.
Hauntworks puts a darkly comedic spin on the management genre. Instead of running a business, you wake up dead and find yourself employed by the mysterious Bureau of Liminality, which assigns you a haunted mansion and five demanding Patrons to satisfy. Your job is to terrify guests and harvest their reactions, including screams, laughter, vomit, and shattered sanity, which become resources for elaborate production chains.
As your haunted estate grows, you’ll recruit monstrous employees to keep operations running, though their enthusiasm may prove fatal for unsuspecting visitors. All the while, you’ll need to build a gateway out of limbo before government investigators uncover the growing pile of bodies hidden behind your successful attraction.
The demo includes the full first act, introducing the Patrons, expanding your manor, and culminating in your first encounter with the Bureau’s investigators. It will be playable on both PC and Steam Deck, with the game also set to appear during Steam Next Fest this October.
With its clever humor and refreshingly bizarre premise, Hauntworks looks like one of the most memorable indie management sims to keep an eye on this Halloween season.