With the studio’s proprietary Liquid Engine, which powered not only the original Frostpunk but also This War of Mine, no longer in development, the team has long sought a new foundation to carry forward the legacy of the first game. While Frostpunk 2 continues to forge ahead with free major content updates, a console launch, and DLCs, this newly announced project marks a return to the franchise’s roots, offering both newcomers and longtime citizens of New London an evolved take on the harsh, morally challenging survival experience that started it all.

But Frostpunk 1886—so titled to honour a pivotal moment in the timeline of the universe, when the Great Storm descended upon New London—is no mere visual overhaul. It builds upon the core of the original, expanding it with new content, mechanics, laws, and—perhaps most excitingly—an entirely new Purpose path, offering a fresh experience even for the most seasoned players.

Game Director Maciej Sułecki walks you through what’s coming: refined mechanics, a major visual upgrade powered by Unreal Engine, and most importantly - a vision that goes far beyond a simple remaster.

Check out the above trailer and get a look at a dev update highlighting some of the many improvements coming to this bigger, better Frostpunk experience:

• Smarter, more expressive citizens driven by improved animations and motion capture; in this city, every shiver counts.
• Richer slices of daily life across New London, building deeper emotional connection to the lives you’re responsible for (no pressure)
• A redesigned lighting system to sharpen the brutal beauty of the Frostland and let the cold truly bite.
• Overhauled building textures to make our fragile, flickering civilization feel even more tangible and lived-in.

When it launched back in 2018, Frostpunk melted the hearts of critics and was praised for its bleak beauty, agonizing moral choices, and its uncanny ability to make reviewers admit publicly that they’d just enacted child labor “for the good of the city.” Many even placed it on best-of-the-year lists, calling it one of the most memorable city-builders ever created.

Now, with Frostpunk 1886, 11 bit is rebuilding that legacy from the frozen bedrock up.

“Keep in mind that we’re still about two years ahead of release, so there is much more on the way,” said Game Director Maciej Sułecki.

Reimagining Frostpunk in Unreal Engine also allows the game to become a living, expandable platform, bringing with it long-awaited mod support—a community request that was previously impossible to realize due to technical limitations of the original engine—as well as the possibility to add future DLC content.

The title marks the start of a new era for 11 bit studios—one focused on delivering in-house projects more frequently than ever before.

Frostpunk 1886 is set for release in 2027.