Facepunch Studios is implementing significant changes to its game creation platform, s&box, the successor to Garry's Mod. These adjustments come in response to a wave of negative reviews upon its April launch, criticism of AI-generated content flooding the user-generated game collection, and a subsequent drop in player engagement.
Creator Garry Newman has acknowledged the need for a shift in focus, moving away from prioritizing the engine and developer experience towards improving the overall player experience. "Our focus has been on the engine and the development experience. That’s what we love, that’s what turns us on—but we’re not selling an engine, we’re selling a game," Newman stated this week. "So we need to do much much better on the game, we need to shift our focus to what players are experiencing, not developers."
Newman detailed plans to enhance the sandbox mode with more NPCs, vehicles, and customization options. He also addressed the issue of content discovery, admitting that the platform's current approach of presenting a vast library of user-generated games has overwhelmed players. "My idea of a Netflix for games doesn’t work. It’s not feasible. It’s not how people discover games. You can’t land people on a menu of 60 games and say, 'have fun'," he explained.
To combat the proliferation of low-quality content, s&box is introducing a 'greenlight type system' for user-generated games. Developers will now need to apply to the Play Fund pool, moving away from the previous automatic distribution of funds based on maps and player counts. Newman indicated that the new policy aims to discourage "clickers, idler, slop and UI based games," and that several games and maps that did not meet this new standard have already been removed.
The platform is also set to become free-to-play before the end of 2026. Players who have already purchased s&box will receive exclusive Steam inventory items as compensation, with the value of these items varying based on the original purchase price.
In a visual change, the distinctive sausage-character model, colloquially known as "The Citizen" or "Terry," has been retired from the main menu and avatar editor, though it remains available for games that previously utilized it.
These strategic shifts aim to revitalize s&box, which some observers felt lacked the spirit of its predecessor. Whether these changes will be enough to regain player trust and rebuild the community remains to be seen, but the move towards greater content curation and player-focused improvements marks a significant departure from the platform's initial rollout.