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RimWorld is leaving Unity. Ludeon Studios announced on October 12, 2026 that Update 1.7 moves the game to Waylith, an in-house engine built by the studio. Ludeon says RimWorld should look and play the same, while its own tests show performance improvements of 2–4× over Update 1.6. Those are developer results rather than independent benchmarks, and actual gains will depend on a player’s PC and mod list.
What is changing in RimWorld 1.7?
Waylith is Ludeon Studios’ proprietary engine. Update 1.7 is the first public RimWorld release described as running on it, replacing the Unity-based technology used by Update 1.6. Ludeon’s announcement, signed “Tia & Ludeon Studios,” says: “We’re announcing update 1.7, which moves RimWorld from Unity to the Waylith Engine, our own in-house engine built by Ludeon Studios. The game looks and plays exactly the same, but in our tests performance is improved by 2-4x.”
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The migration is also intended to support future development. Ludeon says it is building another, not-yet-detailed game on Waylith. No name, release date or launch plan for that project has been announced.
How much faster is it?
The headline figure is Ludeon’s overall test claim of a 2–4× performance improvement when comparing Update 1.7 with RimWorld 1.6. The announcement does not define one universal benchmark that every computer will match, nor does it establish Waylith as 2–4× faster than Unity in other games.
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| Scenario | Ludeon’s reported result | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Late-game colony stress test | 2.2× better performance in 1.7 than 1.6 | General simulation performance, including game ticks |
| 1,500-mod pack | Loaded in 6 minutes instead of 14 minutes | Startup and loading time |
| Overall studio testing | 2–4× improvement | A range covering the tested areas, not a guarantee for every system |
Ludeon lists faster startup, loading with large mod collections, map and world generation, and general ticks per second. These figures are single studio-reported comparisons from 2026. No independent benchmark or separately published study in the available material verifies them.
Why the change matters to RimWorld players
Large colonies may benefit most
RimWorld simulations become more demanding as colonies, animals, pawns, buildings and background systems accumulate. Ludeon’s 2.2× late-game result is therefore the most relevant example for players who experience slow ticks after long campaigns. It remains a developer stress test, not a promise that every late-game colony will run at exactly twice the speed.
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Mod-heavy installations could load faster
The 1,500-mod comparison—6 minutes on 1.7 versus 14 minutes on 1.6—suggests that loading large mod lists is a major target. It is one reported setup, so smaller or differently ordered collections may see a different result.
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Generation and everyday responsiveness
Ludeon also reports improvements to map generation, world generation and general ticks per second. The announcement does not provide separate numerical gains for each of those tasks.
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Saves and mods: what happens when you switch?
Save compatibility
Ludeon says a 1.6 save can load in 1.7, and a 1.7 save can be opened again after returning to 1.6. Keep a backup before changing branches anyway, particularly for a heavily modded colony, because individual mods can introduce their own compatibility problems.
Mod compatibility warnings
The studio says the vast majority of mods should work without changes from their authors. A yellow “potentially unsupported” warning may appear simply because the game version number changed; it does not automatically mean the mod is broken. Ludeon has asked mod authors to test their projects and mark them compatible with 1.7.
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What modders gain
Ludeon says Waylith supports the latest C# language features and should make performance-conscious complex mods and larger visual changes more accessible. More than two dozen modders helped test the engine and provide feedback before its debut. These are statements from the studio, not an independent assessment of the modding API.
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At the time of the October 12, 2026 announcement, Update 1.7 was available through Steam’s unstable beta branch, while the main branch remained on 1.6. Steam branch names and availability can change, so check RimWorld’s current Steam properties before switching.
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- Open RimWorld in your Steam library.
- Open the game’s Properties window.
- Select Betas.
- Choose the unstable or 1.7 testing branch shown by Steam.
- Let Steam download the update, then launch the game and verify your mod order before loading a valuable save.
To return to the stable release, use the same Betas menu and select the default option. Because branch status is dated to the announcement, the main branch may have moved to 1.7 by the time you read this.
Hardware caveat: older PCs
Ludeon warns that a computer more than 10 years old may not run Update 1.7. “May not run” is not the same as a blanket unsupported-hardware policy: some older systems could work, while others may fail to launch or perform acceptably. If you rely on an older PC, test the unstable branch with a backed-up save and avoid replacing your stable installation until you are satisfied.
What the 4× claim does—and does not—mean
- It compares RimWorld 1.7 with RimWorld 1.6, not Waylith with Unity across unrelated games.
- It comes from Ludeon Studios’ tests conducted for the engine launch.
- The 2.2× colony result and 6-versus-14-minute loading example are specific scenarios.
- Ludeon explicitly cautions that individual improvements vary by PC and mods.
- The maximum 4× figure is not a universal guarantee or an independently verified benchmark.
Why Ludeon built its own engine
The announcement presents Waylith as long-term infrastructure rather than a visual overhaul. Players are meant to see the same RimWorld experience, while Ludeon gains an engine it controls for simulation performance, loading, procedural generation and advanced mod support. The studio’s separate, unnamed Waylith project indicates that the technology is intended to serve more than this one update, but there is not enough information to draw conclusions about that game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is RimWorld 1.7 already on the stable Steam branch?
When Ludeon announced it on October 12, 2026, Update 1.7 was on Steam’s unstable beta branch and the main branch was still on 1.6. Steam’s current branch status may have changed.
Will all RimWorld players get a 4× speed increase?
No. The 2–4× range is Ludeon’s own test claim. The studio says results vary with hardware and mods, and it does not promise the maximum for every system.
Quick Recap
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