MANIFEST
A hard-SF freight tycoon in which you dispatch torch ships around a moving solar system from a screen laid out like a flight deck.
Links go to the official store or developer page. Last verified Nov 3, 2026.
Where to play
Every platform this game is on. Links are checked against official sources; we never host or mirror games.
- View demo on SteamSteamDemo · Free demo (since 4 Sep 2026); full game: April 2027Free
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Desktop · Steam
About MANIFEST
MANIFEST is a hard science-fiction freight tycoon set in one solar system, with the planets moving round the Sun while you work. You are the dispatcher of a small shipping company based at one of the system's ports: consignments with deadlines come up on the board, and you pick the ship and plan each flight, choosing how hard a fusion torch ship burns before it flips and brakes into port. Burning hot arrives early but drains fuel and wears out the drive; as the planets move, a lane that paid well last month can become the long way round. Every ship is an individual, often second-hand, whose drive, thrusters and hull wear down when pushed, and every ship has a named captain who gets better at the cargo they carry and may leave if kept in the wrong job. Solar flares, port strikes and salvageable derelicts interrupt the routine, and as you grow you take on operating rights at ports, bigger hulls, refits and leased ships. It is all run from a screen designed like a flight deck, with warning-lamp keys and alarms. The solo developer's Steam AI disclosure says most of the implementation is written by AI coding tools, working from the developer's design and under the developer's review; no model runs inside the game. A free demo has been on Steam for Windows and Linux since 4 Sep 2026; the full game is listed for April 2027. English only.
Screenshots and art
MANIFEST key art · Steam store artwork
How it was built
Partially verifiedThe developer's Steam AI disclosure says most of the implementation is written by AI coding tools, working from the developer's design and under the developer's review. The in-game UI labels, notification lines and guide steps were written alongside the code by the same tools, then reviewed and edited by the developer; the devlogs and store text were drafted with AI help. Inside the game there is no image art: the UI is drawn by code and the logo is text art, while the store capsule and header art are AI-generated. Sound effects are a licensed Bluezone pack plus a few Kenney CC0 clips, and the seven ambient music tracks are licensed from Pixabay; the developer knows of no generated audio but cannot attest to how the Pixabay tracks were made. No model runs inside the game and nothing is generated at runtime. No tool or model is named.
One person designs the game and reviews the work; per the Steam disclosure, AI coding tools write most of the implementation and the UI text. The interface is drawn in code. After playtesters said the original look “looked AI-generated”, the developer began moving the UI, starting with the flight-planning screen, from glowing translucent panels to a restrained style inspired by aircraft avionics, and called the new look unfinished (devlog, 11 Sep 2026).
- Engine / framework
- Not disclosed
- Languages
- Not disclosed
- Team size
- 1 (solo)Developer ReportedSteam
- Development time
- Not disclosed
- Development cost
- Not disclosed
- AI-written code
- Not disclosed
“Most of the implementation is written by AI coding tools, working from my design and under my review.”Verification notes: The AI claim rests on the developer-written AI disclosure on the game's Steam page (re-read on 4 Nov 2026; the same text is on the demo's page), which says most of the implementation is written by AI coding tools from the developer's design and under the developer's review; no tool is named, so the tool is undisclosed. Solo: the store description says the game is “in active development by one person”. On 4 Nov 2026 the Steam store API lists the full game (app 5004290) as coming soon, dated “April 2027”, with no price, and a free demo (app 5188890, Windows and Linux) released 4 Sep 2026; English is the only language. The demo's store page showed 1 user review on 4 Nov 2026 and the full-game page none; because that review belongs to the demo, no review figure is recorded. The disclosure mentions an itch.io page for the store art; we did not find it. The 11 Sep 2026 devlog is a Steam news post on the game's page. No website or social account is linked.
Development history
A free demo is released on Steam for Windows and Linux.
OfficialSteamDevlog: the UI is being redesigned in an avionics style after playtesters said it looked AI-generated.
DeveloperManifest Dev (Steam news)
Game performance
Each figure measures something different — concurrent players, owners, downloads and sales are never interchangeable and are never added together. Labels show where each number comes from.
Steam
Applies to the demo (Steam app 5188890), which the store page describes as the current build, updated often. No price is listed for the full game. Windows and Linux.
Not publicly available: Concurrent players, Steam reviews, Positive Steam reviews, Estimated owners, Copies sold, Gross revenue.
Reviews & rankings
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Sources
| Source | Type | Published | Accessed |
|---|---|---|---|
| MANIFEST on Steam (store page incl. AI Generated Content Disclosure) Steam | Store page | Not confirmed | Nov 3, 2026 |
| MANIFEST Demo on Steam (store API entry) Steam | Store page | Not confirmed | Nov 3, 2026 |
| Making Manifest look like a flight computer Manifest Dev (Steam news) | Devlog | Sep 11, 2026 | Nov 3, 2026 |
