AMERICAN JUNK
Inherit a derelict Midwest factory from your late father.
Scavenge the rust belt. Wire power grids. Build increasingly
absurd American products. This is your birthright.
Your Dad Died.
You Inherited His Mess.
Somewhere between Detroit and nowhere, there's a factory. Broken belts, dead power lines, rust on everything. Your dad ran it. Now it's yours.
Scavenge real Midwest cities — Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Detroit — for materials. Rebuild the grid. Install a Smelter, a Stamping Press, an Assembler. Figure out how they connect. Watch the first belt move. Feel unreasonably proud.
Then craft increasingly absurd American products: hot dog launchers, electric guitars, fireworks, cowboy boots — and eventually, whatever the Bald Eagle Launcher is. That's the dream. That's the whole factory.
Build. Scavenge. Automate. Repeat.
Factory Building
Lay your own floors, raise walls, install doors. Design a production floor from scratch — every machine placement is a decision.
Power Grid System
Wire generators to machines with a flood-fill grid. Overload a circuit and risk a fire. Manage load like a responsible adult. You won't.
Deep Crafting Tree
40+ machines, 100+ recipes, clear tier progression from raw iron to post-modern absurdity. Each unlock feels earned.
Conveyor Logistics
Automate material flow with conveyor belts. Build the pipeline of your dreams. Stare at it for twenty minutes. Add one more belt. Perfect.
Rust Belt World
Explore real Midwest cities inspired by Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Detroit. Scavenge abandoned sites. Meet NPCs with very strong opinions about your factory.
Bald Eagle Launcher
We're not going to explain this. You'll have to get there yourself. It's the end goal. It's what the factory was always for. God bless America.
See the Factory Floor
The game is in active development. Real screenshots dropping as we build.
OVERVIEW // screenshot coming soon
EXPLORATION // screenshot coming soon
INTERFACE // screenshot coming soon
MANAGEMENT // screenshot coming soon
CLOSE-UP // screenshot coming soon
Totem Works, LLC
Totem Works is a small independent game studio making pixel art games that are playful, handcrafted, and built with serious attention to detail.
American Junk is our debut title — a love letter to Midwest factory towns, sandbox games that reward patience, and the beautiful absurdity of making things in America. One scrap at a time.
We're building in public, sharing development updates, and making exactly the game we want to play.
The Basics
What is American Junk?
American Junk is a sandbox factory builder set in the Midwest rust belt. You inherit your late father's derelict factory and rebuild it by scavenging the town for scrap, wiring together a power grid, automating production with conveyor belts, and manufacturing increasingly absurd American products.
When does it release?
American Junk is in active development. A playable demo is in the works and will launch alongside the Steam page so you can wishlist the full release at the same time. Release dates haven't been announced yet — follow the dev log (below) for updates.
What platforms will it be on?
Web browser for the free demo, and PC (Windows) at full launch via Steam. Mac and Linux support is being evaluated. No console plans at this time.
How much will it cost?
The web demo is free. Pricing for the full PC release hasn't been locked in yet; it will be posted here once we do.
Is there a demo I can play right now?
Not yet. We're polishing a demo and launching it alongside the Steam page so you can wishlist the full release at the same time. Follow the dev log below or the social links at the bottom of the page to be notified when it drops.
Who makes American Junk?
Totem Works, LLC — a small independent game studio founded in 2024, based in the USA. We're a tiny team making pixel-art games that are playful, handcrafted, and built with serious attention to detail.
How can I support the game?
Wishlist on Steam when it goes live, follow us on social media (links at the bottom), and tell a friend who likes factory builders. Press and content creators: see the Press Kit section for assets and a contact.
Follow the Build
Dev updates, pixel art progress, and the occasional unhinged factory screenshot. Come watch it happen in real time.
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