VS2.3 Nears Release, Feature Freeze Begins
The next big update for Space Engineers 2 has a name — VS2.3: Drive, Automate & Detonate. Developer Keen Software House announced the milestone on June 11, 2026, alongside big shifts in the roadmap.
They’ve hit the feature freeze phase for VS2.3. That means no new additions — just bug fixes, balancing, polish, and real gameplay testing. You can expect the update to land in late June or early July 2026.
“From this point, the team’s work shifted more toward testing, bug fixing, balancing, improving usability, and making sure the update feels good in real gameplay.”
VS4 Beats VS3 to the Finish Line
Here’s the big surprise. VS4: Coop Multiplayer & NPCs will arrive before VS3: Water. Current target is November/December 2026.
VS4 brings:
- 4-player cooperative multiplayer (player-hosted, no dedicated servers yet)
- Shared world features like contracts, progression, rewards, GPS markers, and respawning
- First implementation of NPCs — simple hostile characters that move, fight, and feel good in the sandbox
The devs are skipping placeholder lore for NPCs. They want to build the foundation first, then add deeper faction stories later.
“We do not want to invent placeholder lore that we may later replace when the proper factions and background are ready.”
Water Gets More Time to Cook
That doesn’t mean water is stalled. The Water Team has solved “tons of water-related tasks” in the last three months. Tomas Drinovsky’s team moved from exploration into production.
But water is “technically demanding,” and Keen would rather delay it than rush it. So VS3: Water moves to a later, unannounced window. The main gameplay team can focus entirely on co-op and NPCs without splitting attention.
