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Press release:
ISTANBUL, TÜRKIYE — October 27, 2026. As of this morning, the mines are fully staffed. Coal Duty is out now in Early Access on Steam for $8.99, discounted 20% for its first two weeks through November 10. Built by Istanbul’s five-person Corecrew Games and published with indie.io, it sends a crew of up to five miners into a freshly generated mine every shift with one instruction from above: meet the quota. The instructions from below are less clear.

The demo was about surviving a shift. Early Access is about getting out. Between descents, miners can slip into forbidden zones, do business with the smuggler in the restricted area and put an escape plan together one shift at a time. There is more than one way out, and they don’t all end in the same place.

Down in the shafts, the usual workplace hazards apply. Mines stretch across multiple biomes and three floors of difficulty, and the company gets worse the deeper a crew pushes. Dozens of creatures live down there. Proximity voice chat means a crew’s plan is heard most clearly by whoever is standing closest, and that is not always the crew. Whatever a miner finds and decides not to declare is nobody’s business, right up until the quota comes up short.

This is the start of the contract, not the end. Corecrew expects Coal Duty to spend 12 to 18 months in Early Access, and its roadmap includes new escape routes and endings, new creatures, new biomes, expanded hub activities and more tools and items. Players shape what gets built first through the studio’s Discord, Steam discussions and feedback forms. The price will not go up when the game leaves Early Access, and it is playable in 13 languages from day one.

The State does not confirm the escapes, but the crews can. Coal Duty is available now in Early Access on Steam for $8.99, 20% off through November 10.

ABOUT CORECREW GAMES

Corecrew Games is a five-person independent studio based in Istanbul, Türkiye, formed by former colleagues. Coal Duty is the team’s debut title.

ABOUT INDIE.IO

indie.io is dedicated to bringing exceptional independent games to players worldwide. With a portfolio spanning a wide range of genres, indie.io partners with developers to provide the support, resources, and expertise needed to bring creative visions to life. Developers self-publishing their own games can also use the indie.io Tools Storefront, with marketing and development tools. For more information, visit indie.io.