Castello Inc's Steam playtest for Stink Buddies has passed 5,000 players and received around 1,500 survey responses before closing on 6 October 2026.
Stink Buddies has three days left in its first public Steam playtest. Castello Inc already has a long list of changes for the next build. More than 5,000 players have joined the four-player online co-op test since it opened to everyone in September. Around 1,500 players also submitted survey responses.
These figures and development details come from the playtest report. They have not been independently verified through platform data. Searches of Steam's public store and publisher-related pages did not find a separate official Stink Buddies page, a Castello Inc press release, or a Steam record confirming the 5,000-player total, the roughly 1,500 survey responses, or the 6 October 2026 closing date. The third-party results that were available, including general Steam player-count and playtest directories, describe tracking tools and listings but do not verify figures for this game.
A test with a deadline
The current playtest closes on 6 October 2026. Players can still team up as dung beetles, push a giant ball home, and face the first boss, known as the Evil Rabbit.
Castello Inc has not announced a full release date for Stink Buddies. The studio has confirmed that another playtest is planned after more improvements. That means the current feedback shows an active development process, not a finished game or a final launch version.
The reported figures are straightforward. More than 5,000 people joined the Steam test, and about 1,500 sent in survey responses. They describe playtest participation and feedback, not sales or the game's total audience. The available Steam-related search results do not independently verify either figure, so they should be treated as reported playtest metrics rather than confirmed platform-wide data.
Ball handling comes first
The strongest player request involved the game's main physical challenge. Castello Inc responded with an update that changed how the ball moves. The oversized ball is now easier to push and steer, and it is less likely to get stuck.
The update also lets the ball stay in water for longer. It added two enemies, the Snail and the Uang Beetle. The team fixed the coin achievement and dealt with several smaller bugs.
The available search results did not find an official Castello Inc statement, a Steam announcement, or independent media coverage confirming those changes. They should therefore be described as reported development updates, not independently confirmed patch notes.
The changes show where the team is focusing its work. It did not only collect feedback for a future roadmap. It used the live test to address the mechanic most closely tied to the co-op loop. In a game where four players move one awkward object, the handling model matters. It can make teamwork feel deliberate, or leave the group fighting the physics.
What players can expect next
The next test is expected to include a smaller boss at the beginning of the game. Castello Inc has described that as a likely addition, not a locked feature. The studio has not given a date for the second playtest or confirmed everything it will contain.
That cautious wording fits a project still using public tests to refine its core systems. A second test can show whether the ball changes fix the problems players reported. It will not, by itself, prove final performance stability, the full content scope, or launch readiness. The announcement did not provide those details.
Stink Buddies occupies the same broad co-op space as games that turn ordinary tasks into group coordination challenges. Our earlier co-op report covered another upcoming Steam game built around shared logistical problems. Stink Buddies takes a different route, using physical movement and boss encounters instead of warehouse management.
The player-facing picture
Anyone who wants to try Stink Buddies has only the remaining three days of the first playtest. The test centres on four-player online co-op and includes the Evil Rabbit as its opening boss. The latest update adds the Snail and the Uang Beetle as further threats.
The bigger result is the feedback loop. Castello Inc has received a measurable response from its community and has already used it to change the game's defining mechanic. That does not prove the final version will be polished. It does show more active iteration than a static announcement or a single trailer.
Stink Buddies is best viewed as a work in progress with a functioning public test and a developer willing to change its foundations. The five-thousand-player milestone gives Castello Inc useful reach. The 1,500 survey responses give the team specific direction. For players, the current test is a chance to influence a promising co-op concept, not a preview of a finished product.
A public playtest is not the same as a beta that represents launch quality. It is a development build opened to players so a studio can find problems that internal testing may miss and decide which changes deserve priority. Here, the ball update is a clear response to that process. It makes the first Stink Buddies test a meaningful step in development, even though the release timing and final feature set remain unknown.
