Sandbox Studio has amassed over 12,000 applications in less than a month, demonstrating strong interest from creators as we move toward a broader beta release. Despite this demand, access is limited to over 30 alpha creators who are testing the engine, tools, and publishing process.
The selected group includes experienced Roblox, Unity, and Unreal Engine builders, as well as developers using Cursor, OpenAI Codex, and Claude Code. The Sandbox plans to welcome up to 10 additional creators each week while maintaining direct support, workshops, and rapid response to technical feedback. This controlled pace allows us to focus on testing as the application continues to accumulate pre-beta.
Engine upgrades improve build speed and creator workflow
According to the Sandbox post, the latest engine release brings improvements to the editor, software development kit, asset pipeline, and application programming interface. As part of the update, creators can now reorganize project assets without having to manually repair scene references or actor links.
This update also introduces on-demand viewport rendering, which reduces graphics processing usage when a project remains idle. Additionally, the default performance monitor now shows frame rates and draw calls during development, making it easier for creators to track the performance of their projects.
Build times have also been reduced with a compiler cache that reuses processed textures and GLB files. As a result, later builds can skip unmodified assets, reducing unnecessary processing and speeding development.
Additionally, this release adds separate KTX2 texture compression controls and AI skills to support engine version upgrades. Seven starter templates also received updated lighting, including shooters, vehicles, sidescrollers, and virtual reality formats.
However, this release removes some deprecated systems, so some existing alpha projects may need to be migrated. Therefore, developers will need to adjust how rendering, physics, navigation, and composition systems behave under the updated engine structure.
Game Jam tests Studio tools ahead of public beta
In addition to technical changes, the closed Alpha Creator Game Jam will provide the first large-scale production test of the platform. The contest will run from July 2nd to July 31st and has a total prize pool of $5,000.
Winners will be announced on August 7th after submissions are evaluated on creativity, execution, and gameplay. At the same time, organizers monitor where developers run into problems in production, helping teams identify areas for further improvement.
Meanwhile, the new Creator Portal now centralizes Studio downloads, release notes, and changelogs. This replaces the previous GitHub-based installation process, but access to downloads still requires alpha approval.
These developments support a broader roadmap that includes multiplayer systems, monetization tools, over 10 genre kits, reusable assets, and skill collections. The roadmap also includes Agent Nova, an in-editor AI assistant designed to support creators during development.
Public access is still scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2026. Until then, a gradual rollout will allow developers to improve stability, improve workflows, and address technical challenges before the platform is made available to wider users.
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