Craftlings looks to occupy some beautiful place between Terraria and Lemmings

GamesCity BuilderCraftlings looks to occupy some beautiful place between Terraria and LemmingsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

Adorable strategy games where you herd a bunch of tiny idiots are in short supply these days, so let me tell you how exciting the trailer for Craftlings, debuted today at thePC Gaming Show: Most Wanted, has made me: Very excited. As a child of the Lemmings generation still very much in love with modern pixel art, this one’s just for me, specifically, but it can also be for you.

The trailer shows off the eponymous little big-nosed dorks as they cut down trees, build stuff, climb ladders, and just generally swarm all over the place making a tiny civilization across distinct biomes—one a bit alpine, the other a dry desert, and one quite snowy. They build bridges, float resources in balloons, and ride lifts between separate levels of their odd little ant-farm-like world. It’s a jolly hive of productivity.

In Craftlings you can expect to deploy little guys, first equipping them with tools to mine resources, then constructing new buildings with their own jobs. Building up the settlement and expanding lets you get a more complex, robust economy of merchants and chicken coops and alchemists—one capable of supporting warriors to defend your craftlings from monsters like skeletons, dragons, and perhaps even skeletal dragons. The trailer even shows a ballista being fired at some manner of giant octopus, or perhaps a kraken.

Craftlings is a “resource-management puzzle game,” publisher Raw Fury describes, where you’ll “build settlements across several diverse biomes. To do this you’ll assign tasks, gather resources, set up automated production lines, and upgrade your Town Hall to unlock new building types.”

There’s an undeniable appeal here if you loved Lemmings games, but also if you’ve previously enjoyed the kind of side-on strategy from publisher Raw Fury, such as Kingdoms.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

More about city builderI played a whopping 23 city builders in 2024, and here are my 5 favoritesBest City Builder 2024: Manor LordsLatestI tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at baySee more latest►

More about city builderI played a whopping 23 city builders in 2024, and here are my 5 favoritesBest City Builder 2024: Manor Lords

More about city builder

I played a whopping 23 city builders in 2024, and here are my 5 favoritesBest City Builder 2024: Manor Lords

A city near a waterfall

I played a whopping 23 city builders in 2024, and here are my 5 favorites

Best City Builder 2024: Manor Lords

LatestI tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at baySee more latest►

Latest

I tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bay

Nitro Concepts CES 2025 booth with a sim racing rig that offered wind simulation from twin fans near the wheelbase.

I tried a sim racing rig that generates ‘wind’ at CES 2025 and it’s claimed to help keep VR nausea at bay

See more latest►

Most PopularAll Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codesAsus reveals three new Slash Travel Bags for carting around your ROG Ally—however, none of them are particularly fashion forwardToday’s Wordle answer for Friday, January 10We may not have a roadmap or balance patch just yet, but at least Path of Exile 2’s bugfix patch notes are funnyDeus Ex: Mankind Divided writer didn’t like the ending either: ‘Nothing is resolved’It seems like Square’s finally consistently taking the PC ports of Final Fantasy seriouslyLike a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii looks more like a zany RGG take on Black Flag than I dared hopeThe most important tool in Remedy’s new co-op FPS is the shower: ‘Saving water is essential’If you missed it over the holidays, this noir Half-Life 2 mod turns you into a hardboiled detective in Prohibition-era ChicagoPath of Exile 2 players are calling foul on Elon Musk’s high-level hardcore character after he streams his struggles with core game mechanicsAlan Emrich, the game designer and writer who coined the term ‘4X,’ has died

Most Popular

All Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codes

Asus reveals three new Slash Travel Bags for carting around your ROG Ally—however, none of them are particularly fashion forward

Today’s Wordle answer for Friday, January 10

We may not have a roadmap or balance patch just yet, but at least Path of Exile 2’s bugfix patch notes are funny

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided writer didn’t like the ending either: ‘Nothing is resolved’

It seems like Square’s finally consistently taking the PC ports of Final Fantasy seriously

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii looks more like a zany RGG take on Black Flag than I dared hope

The most important tool in Remedy’s new co-op FPS is the shower: ‘Saving water is essential’

If you missed it over the holidays, this noir Half-Life 2 mod turns you into a hardboiled detective in Prohibition-era Chicago

Path of Exile 2 players are calling foul on Elon Musk’s high-level hardcore character after he streams his struggles with core game mechanics

Alan Emrich, the game designer and writer who coined the term ‘4X,’ has died

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals