tinyBuild and developer Fantastic Signals have released a new gameplay deep dive for The Lift, offering a closer look at the upcoming first-person supernatural handyman simulator during the Future Games Show Summer Showcase.
The presentation featured commentary from studio director Ivan Slovtsov and highlighted the game’s unusual blend of narrative-driven exploration, repair mechanics, and paranormal phenomena. Alongside the new footage, the developers announced a closed playtest scheduled to begin on June 14, with registrations now open through Steam.
Set within a sprawling research complex known as the Institute, The Lift casts players as an engineer tasked with restoring a once-celebrated scientific facility that was abandoned following a mysterious incident. The game combines renovation and maintenance work with exploration and storytelling, gradually uncovering the secrets behind the catastrophe that transformed the facility.
According to the developers, gameplay focuses heavily on hands-on interactions. Players will undertake a wide range of repair jobs, from simple cosmetic fixes to larger engineering projects involving complex machinery. Every interaction is designed to feel tactile and responsive, with animations, sound effects, and environmental feedback intended to create a satisfying, almost ASMR-like experience.
The Institute itself serves as both the game’s setting and its central mystery. Inspired by Soviet-era science fiction, the facility is filled with strange technologies, unusual characters, and reality-bending anomalies. Players will use the titular Lift as a mobile base while traveling between different sections of the complex, each featuring unique environments, challenges, and story elements.
Repair work extends well beyond standard maintenance tasks. Players may find themselves restoring generators, vending machines, satellite dishes, and sentient reactors, while also handling more unconventional jobs such as collecting fuel from robotic bees or cleaning up anomalies that distort reality. Many repairs require diagnosing faults, routing cables, managing power systems, and assembling circuits to bring machinery back online.
Exploration plays a major role alongside renovation. Hidden locations, side quests, and memorable characters are scattered throughout the Institute, encouraging players to investigate every corner of the facility while piecing together the truth behind the incident that left it abandoned.
Fantastic Signals is inviting players to test the latest in-development version through a closed Steam playtest beginning June 14. Participants will have the opportunity to provide feedback and help shape the game’s development ahead of release.
The Lift is currently planned for launch in 2027 on PC via Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. The game is available to wishlist now on all announced platforms.
