About the Game
Needle in a Haystack is a co-op game for up to 6 players about doing exactly what the name suggests.
There’s a needle hidden somewhere among millions of pieces of hay. You know it’s there. You’ve brought your friends to help. This should be manageable.
Troll your friends
Dig together, spread out, or spend far too long arguing about which part of the pile looks promising. There’s plenty of work to share, although bringing more people doesn’t necessarily mean anyone is being particularly helpful.
It’s a game you can settle into while talking with friends, right up until somebody does something that needs explaining.
Get a little carried away
Earn money as you search and spend it on equipment that opens up new ways to tackle the pile. Put together a sensible setup, experiment with what you’ve got, or throw money at an idea your group is absolutely convinced will work.
There’s a lot you can pick up, move around, and throw. You’ll probably find a use for most of it. Whether that use has anything to do with finding a needle is another matter.
Collect them all
Collect all the different needle types and add them to your collection. Each with their own crazy look.
Leave room for distractions
The haystack isn’t the only thing worth paying attention to. There are discoveries tucked away, things happening around you, and plenty of opportunities to abandon a perfectly good plan.
We’d rather let you stumble into those yourself.
Take the search seriously or make an afternoon of it. Just remember where you put the needle if you actually find it.
Screenshots
14 imagesVersion Information
Steam Patch Notes
Official update history
- Single-player option when creating or loading a game. You can switch a save back to online when loading it.
- The Reset Haystack button now appears in the campaign. It unlocks after you find a needle.
Balance
- Daily quotas grow slower in long sessions.
- Robot Arm now costs $2,250.
- Jetpack now costs $3,000.
- Clutchers and Robot Arms reach farther at every level.
- Drones and Robot Vacuums stay unlocked even if you recycle your Robot Arms or Clutchers.
- Contracts now always show their full reward. After you complete a contract, new ones appear on the board after a short countdown.
Machines
- Fixed the Bale Press stacking hay into the sky or jamming.
- Fixed small hay cubes jamming the Joiner.
- The Conveyor Detector now holds nails until you pick them up.
- Drones now wait on their own platform while looking for hay, instead of hovering over conveyors.
Tools
- The shovel and pitchfork now only scoop the hay you're aiming at.
- The vacuum now picks up dropped hay clumps.
- Fixed structures sometimes being picked up without holding E.
Fixes
- Mr. Tidy is visible again.
- Returning Martin to the giant gnome now pays you, and throwing him at it works too.
- Martin's tip now says "Return Martin to his family."
- The leaderboard sign shows the right mode and updates faster.
- Saves that failed to load are now repaired where possible.
- Invite Friends no longer appears in single-player games.
- Faster loading and smoother performance.
Thank you all for playing and for the honest feedback. This update fixes the biggest problems you reported.
Fixes
Fixed players freezing in place when someone joins a game in progress
Fixed the needle sometimes never appearing near the end of a haystack
Fixed machines that could not be placed back after being picked up
Conveyor belts and machines now connect properly when placed next to each other
Fixed hay getting stuck on ramp conveyors and falling through them
Fixed the Reset Haystack button sometimes doing nothing
Players inside the haystack are now moved out safely when it resets
The rubber duck in the claw machine can now actually be grabbed and dropped into the prize chute
The end music now follows your music volume setting
Clearer error messages when joining a crew fails
The balloon no longer has a left click action
Balance
Contracts give fairer rewards and scale with your progress
Each contract can only be completed once per run
Hay amount contracts now scale with how fast you are earning
The generator contract now asks for 5 minutes instead of 10
Each haystack now holds 1 to 2 needles
The claw machine is easier
Late automation takes a bit longer to progress through
Drones collect less hay per trip
The contract complete sound is quieter
More fixes and improvements are on the way.
Current Release
Build 25674729
Uploaded Oct 02, 2026
System Requirements
How to Install
NeedleInAHaystack.exe to play
Troubleshooting tips
• Run Redist/_CommonRedist installers if game won't start
• Add folder to Windows Defender exclusions
• Run as administrator
Download
Direct link available
Needed when extracting (WinRAR / 7-Zip) — not a site login.
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View AllDownload Needle In A Haystack for PC with a direct link or via torrent. Get the full version of Needle In A Haystack for free. Needle In A Haystack is a Casual released by NoGlyph.