Coral Island - Release time, gameplay, and everything we know so far

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Screenshot of Coral Island
October 11, 2022: Coral Island releases later today on PC/Xbox Game Pass and more. Check out our new Coral Island characters list to see who you can date.

Are you a fan of farm and life sim games? Then let us introduce you to Coral Island. Mines, mermaids, and much more await in the game's early access, coming later this year. Stairway Games' whimsical life simulator has been in development for quite a while, and was originally announced a few years ago before securing a successful Kickstarter campaign.

Coral Island features friendship, farming, and furniture, among many other things to keep us occupied during our time on the island. Your task is to breathe life back into the surrounding town, while building up your own crop-filled farm, forging relationships with the inhabitants in the meantime.

If you're a fan of laidback gaming, we suggest the best free farming games on Android, or the upcoming Slime Rancher 2. Of course, things get a bit more heated with our AFK Arena tier list.

When is the Coral Island release date?

Coral Island will release into Early Access via Steam on October 11, 2022. Though this won't be the full game, there'll be plenty to do including ranching, crafting, and combat. There's a museum awaiting your donations, and critters like fish and bugs just waiting for you to catch them.

Your playable character will be customisable, as will your house and farm. What better way to show your personality to the 70 unique characters you can create friendships and relationships with?

How far along is Coral Island's development?

At the moment, Coral Island is awaiting its release into Early Access, but developers have updated with how the game is coming along.

We don't know how long the game's Early Access period will be, and the 1.0 version of the game is due to be out around a year after the initial release. To prevent things from getting stale, there will be content updates through the process.

The 1.0 version will include completed storylines, the ability to marry and have a family with suitable NPCs, a new biome, new festivals, and Merfolk characters! The multiplayer update has been scheduled for an update after the game's launch.

Screenshot of Coral Island
click to enlarge

Which platforms will Coral Island be on?

For now, Coral Island is only planned for release on PC via Steam. Rumours suggested that a Nintendo Switch version will come a few months after release, though this is not currently confirmed. Coral Island may come to other platforms in future, so stay tuned. We'll have to wait and see!

What is Coral Island?

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Coral Island is a laid-back farm simulator game involving farming, fishing, and mining, with a robust social system. There are over 50 plantable items to nurture and harvest across the four seasons, and plenty of animals to take care of. Not only are there sheep and cows, but also the mysterious Luwak that creates a decadent type of coffee bean.

The game has already received praise for its wide cast of NPCs. The cast of townsfolk involves characters of all walks of life, giving a well-needed breath of fresh air to the previously stagnant genre. Some are dateable, and some are just friends, but there are all kinds of people to meet on Coral Island.

That's it for our look at Coral Island! While you wait for the game to release, feel free to check out the latest news on The Sims 5, for another much-anticipated simulator game.

For more articles like this, take a look at our Hubs and Coral Island page.