Don't Starve Together 2026 Roadmap

[JoeW]

Today, we’re bringing you the 2026 Roadmap for Don’t Starve Together. We are releasing this a bit late because we also want to address the recently announced “Don’t Starve Elsewhere” and how it relates to Don’t Starve Together scheduling. 

Reminder: This roadmap is only a communication of our schedule as we currently have it planned and may change.

Last year, we saw the Year of the Depths Worm event, we finally released the skill trees for Walter, Wendy, and Wortox, and a Crossover update with Balatro. We completed the lunar Rift arc across two updates and moved forward with the shadow arc. We also had some good holiday event updates as well. For a full list of game updates, you can check out our forums over here: https://forums.kleientertainment.com/game-updates/dst/

Early last year, we made some adjustments to how we plan our updates, and we intend to continue that throughout 2026. We have been working toward updates that are wholly designed with a focus on current goals, rather than designing an update based on a story arc theme and what we can get in during the allotted scheduling period.

You will notice that this year we are a bit more conservative with our plans, as we are allowing for more room to adjust scheduling should we need more time for an update.

This is what we currently have in our scheduling plans. As in previous years, it is always possible that some of this may change based on shifting priorities during development. 

• Year of the Clockwork Knight
• 2 (or more) content updates
• 2 (or more) Skill trees
• Usual Game events
• Interactive Lore
• 3 intermission shorts

What we’re doing and why. 
With the 2023 Roadmap, our updates had an emphasis on endgame content. We did spend some time improving the readability of the game for new players, but it’s been a little while since we spent some real time focused on the meat of the game.

I hesitate to call this coming year a QOL focus, because we’re not so clearly defining it that way internally, but we’re going to spend a lot of time strengthening the core of the game - the parts that you spend the most time with and areas where we could clearly improve.  

So what does that mean? 

This roadmap covers two things: our long-term content plans and our scheduling. The above addresses our scheduling until the next roadmap, and the following addresses how our updates will be arranged going forward.

- Skill Spotlights
Skill tree updates are going to be more focused, and we’re going to keep things limited to one or maybe two characters for an update. Players have come to expect a lot from these updates now, and we want to make sure we do our best to try and deliver on that. 

- Early/Mid-game content
Mostly mid-game here, but we know there is plenty of room for us to work, and many of you have been asking for it. 

- Retouching previous updates
Because of our constant update schedule, we’re often more focused on finishing up and moving to the next thing. We want to go back and see what we can do for previous updates to address balance, older skill updates, and bug fixes.

- The future of Don’t Starve Together
With the announcement of Don’t Starve Elsewhere, we know there is going to be concern about what it means for Don’t Starve Together. 

Don’t Starve Elsewhere has been in development for several years now, and we are not winding down Don’t Starve Together. We aim to support both games concurrently. The update cadence will be slower, as it has been; there are no planned changes to the operation of the game beyond what was already done last year. If that changes, we’ll let people know. 

Going forward, lore is going to cover overall “Don’t Starve” lore and not just DST. We’re going to continue interactive lore stories, Intermissions and update trailers. 

- What about my skins?
We don’t have a direct answer for how exactly we are going to address this right now. We know that we would like to allow you to use your skins purchased in DST. Early on in the development of Don’t Starve Elsewhere, we chose not to let skin compatibility be a design constraint for the game. DSE is a new game, so we chose not to limit character design by compatibility with DST skins. However, it has been clearly in our mind that it’s something we want to solve.

We’re not exactly sure how this is going to work out just yet, but as soon as we know, we’ll let you know. Rest assured that your support is appreciated.

We aren’t ready to say more about Don’t Starve Elsewhere for now. But we’re very excited that you finally get to see it. 

That’s it for now! Have fun out there!

[Roadmap Image Download]

[Dr. Safety]

10 minutes ago, JoeW said:

This pic goes hard. The empty throne plus Charlie's rose fading away in Maxwell's hand has me eager to see what becomes of the shadow queen.

[Boneshrimp]

Thank you for the valuable yearly information, JoeW

[StarvingAngler]

A flower isn't beautiful because it lasts. Every rose fades with time.

[Milordo]

11 minutes ago, JoeW said:

 

- Early/Mid-game content
Mostly mid-game here, but we know there is plenty of room for us to work, and many of you have been asking for it. 

- Retouching previous updates
Because of our constant update schedule, we’re often more focused on finishing up and moving to the next thing. We want to go back and see what we can do for previous updates to address balance, older skill updates, and bug fixes.

Ruins 🙏

(Even Caves it's okay btw)

[SpuddyBuddy]

I know I'm not in the majority on this, but I actually wouldn't be too bothered if skins weren't in Elsewhere - be they backported from DST or entirely new to DSE. Aside from some personal nitpicks the new designs are so nice, and I feel the current run of skins would look quite out of place alongside the new art. Honestly, the most I would want out of skins in DSE is maybe ones based on different areas of the game? Like how the cast canonically switched from their Forge designs to their Gorge designs upon switching realms - albeit at our own choosing instead of at the whim of the game.

[StarvingAngler]

Pretty sure that's a movie quote, felt relevant to the post picture and Charlie arc

[Master_NiX]

Is WX update delayed or it is bound to release in few hours?

[Dr. Safety]

1 minute ago, SpuddyBuddy said:

I know I'm not in the majority on this, but I actually wouldn't be too bothered if skins weren't in Elsewhere - be they backported from DST or entirely new to DSE. Aside from some personal nitpicks the new designs are so nice, and I feel the current run of skins would look quite out of place alongside the new art. Honestly, the most I would want out of skins in DSE is maybe ones based on different areas of the game? Like how the cast canonically switched from their Forge designs to their Gorge designs upon switching realms - albeit at our own choosing instead of at the whim of the game.

Yeah I'm not gonna be heartbroken if the skins don't carry over. I don't really expect them to and I hope that the community doesn't expect them to either. That's a really big ask and there are so many skins in the game. I can maybe see the case for proof of purchase skins, but that's probably the extent that I could see arguments for. 

WenericMember had a good idea, which was that owning DST would grant you skins of the characters original outfits. We see that they all get a makeover in Elsewhere, so it would be nice to let DST players look more like the DST versions, just with an updated artstyle

[Vixen Doe]

is anyone else terrified abt what's going to happen to charlie or is it just me. because i'm scared 

[Malfario]

 

14 minutes ago, JoeW said:

I hesitate to call this coming year a QOL focus, because we’re not so clearly defining it that way internally, but we’re going to spend a lot of time strengthening the core of the game - the parts that you spend the most time with and areas where we could clearly improve

I couldnt be happier hearing this, i think thats been my biggest concern as a player when thinking the future of the game, strenghtening the core of the gameplay is exactly what i wanted, seen the core apsects of the game lifted and updated, there are a million thoughts crossing my mind right now for what this will mean for the game, how a stronger foundation of the main mechanics will exponentially increase the scope of what can be done on dst, how much variety there will posibly be on the diferent stages of the game at last, how we finally will be able to move to more complex, dense and deep systems like we did on "Reap what you sow", and probably an even better cohesion between all the moving parts of this wonderfull game.

Again, i am filled with joy and hope reading this, absolutly fantastic news to hear. Much love to all the team

 

PSD: Would like to ask, as i read future updates will shift focus to early and mid game content, which i praise, defently needed, I wonder if this also means the content attached to the rifts will be none existing, wanna be clear, i am not asking if there will be rift updates, i understand thats not the focus on the close future, but if whithin this early to mid game content updates there will be aditions to the rift worlds, like more mutated bosses or new items from that stage ?

[StarvingAngler]

2 minutes ago, Vixen Doe said:

is anyone else terrified abt what's going to happen to charlie or is it just me. because i'm scared 

In the Constant, no one truly dies, but some fates are worse than death

Yeah, I don't see this ending well, Wagstaff might've gotten off easy

[CyberSkink]

Thank you, Klei!

[BiddoBams]

Thanks guys Looking forward to what you manage to conjure up this year!

[Swiyss]

What about wx78 update?

[Dinosaur Meat]

I'm so thankful for you guys 💙

[JeezSorry]

But will it starve?

[-Nick-]

37 minutes ago, JoeW said:

Going forward, lore is going to cover overall “Don’t Starve” lore and not just DST. We’re going to continue interactive lore stories, Intermissions and update trailers. 

I do hope some unfinished/underdeveloped lore bits like Hamlet and Gorge could be somehwhat revisited in Elsewhere! Both places have very interesting lore yet left largely unexplained/in a odd state.

I think better connections between the lore of those places and some of the lore in DST would be very much appreciated!

[IscoFish]

 

44 minutes ago, JoeW said:

- What about my skins?
We don’t have a direct answer for how exactly we are going to address this right now. We know that we would like to allow you to use your skins purchased in DST. Early on in the development of Don’t Starve Elsewhere, we chose not to let skin compatibility be a design constraint for the game. DSE is a new game, so we chose not to limit character design by compatibility with DST skins. However, it has been clearly in our mind that it’s something we want to solve.

I feel like the "issue" with the skins is a bit too complex for a simple solution, i suppose something klei could try is to factor in the skins players have in DST into whatever "spools" may be in elsewhere & just giving players that amount of it.
Kind of a band aid solution tho, I'm sure something better can be thought of

Edited 21 hours ago by IscoFish
compressed comment a lil

[Jakepeng99]

This looks exciting, always has been some older stuff left in the shadows that needs touched up again. 

[NPCMaxwell]

I know the doll's design is probably supposed to refer to the original haunted Annabelle ragdoll (with orange hair and so on), but if Charlie gets bound to the doll in replacement to the throne and the rose (assuming), it annoys me that the doll does not resemble Charlie at all (I would have at least expected /BLACK tied up hair/ I can't stand characters becoming unrecognizable although I like the broken proclaine doll theme getting carried further.)

----

apart from that I am excited for the updates coming slower from now on ^^ And about the parallel of DSE and DST and the more stories, especially the ones focused on the other creatures of that world. (like in those intermissions). The "voiceacting" in the cartoons of the characters and the creatures are so adorable.

Edited 21 hours ago by NPCMaxwell

[Jakepeng99]

49 minutes ago, JoeW said:

- What about my skins?
We don’t have a direct answer for how exactly we are going to address this right now. We know that we would like to allow you to use your skins purchased in DST. Early on in the development of Don’t Starve Elsewhere, we chose not to let skin compatibility be a design constraint for the game. DSE is a new game, so we chose not to limit character design by compatibility with DST skins. However, it has been clearly in our mind that it’s something we want to solve.

I’d like the game to have a fair monitization so it would stay strong and independent, though as others I don’t mind them not being focused or being ported over.

The one main benifit of skins was that players could change stuff they didn’t look the like of personally (I know people who would beg for dreadstone armour skins because they want something that looks more like armour). I also liked Wurt and Wormwood skins which were basically different forms or states of the character.

9 minutes ago, IscoFish said:

 

I feel like the "issue" with the skins is a bit too complex for a simple solution, i suppose something klei could try is to factor in the skins players have in DST into whatever "spools" may be in elsewhere & just giving players that amount of it.
Kind of a band aid solution tho, I'm sure something better can be thought of

I had a suggestion, where you can use your spools to buy skins exclusive to DSE in the rewards section and vice versa.

 

[VaskalRascal]

Answered everything I wanted to know. My main concern was older skill trees, happy to know they're going to be getting looked at!

[AtomBomb]

Love the updates announcement and new skins already, but can I just say how AWESOME that Wilson's outfit looks? 

 

As a Wilson main I'd pay good spools for that!

[POOH_LY]

Super hyped for the new game. I didn't even think we'd get a new DLC, let alone a whole new game! Don't Starve is the most fun when you're thrown into an alienated environment. I'm going to add that into the list of games I'm waiting for.