Astroneer Review
What is Astroneer
Astroneer is an exploration game. You are thrown into a new planet to explore and discover. Most of the game is spent gathering resources and crafting components to help you explore further. It feels like a survival game, but spend most of the time in the wonder of the new world.
It follows the good tropes of other games of the same genre, base building, and a progression. While there’s no food or hunger system, you do have to watch your oxygen at all times. Your suite comes with about as much oxygen as an uncompressed jug of milk. You’ll spend a lot of time placing down tethers, lifelines, to increase how far you can go.
In orbit of an Ice world
Diegetic game design
This means that elements of the UI exist in the world. All of your buttons, info screens, options exist in the world. Your inventory is physically located on your back, including your power and oxygen.
As you interface with the world, you’ll see the objects zoom in for the UI elements. Something you don’t often see in games. It’s not awesome, it’s just different, just unique.
It’s not just the interface either, the sound design is really where the game shines. The way the machines click, whir, and fill add to the overall enjoyment of the game.
I could do without the music though, it’s not awful, but it’s not great either. The music is entirely forgettable. Normally when you see that the soundtrack is up for sale as well, you expect the music to be good. In this case, the music is entirely forgettable.
A new world to explore
The mystery deepens
The game doesn’t have a clear storyline, but you get a good sense of the world the longer you play, other wrecks and alien artifacts to explore.
The game does something strange I can’t explain. The gameplay loop with the sounds and interface helps immerse you into the world. Soon the progression becomes clear, and you can see where you need to get to and how to get there.
The mystery part comes in lost time, the game doesn’t look all that engaging, but time can just disappear.
One of the many caves you will explore
Multiplayer and combat
First off, there isn’t any combat other than very dangerous plants. It will be as simple as uprooting them and there can be a lot of them. Just need to watch out.
Like most games, it’s a lot better with multiplayer. Spending a lot of time gathering resources and helping each other out can be a lot of fun.
A bit of time has been put into creating some activities to do with your friends, things you can find and craft like goalposts and balls.
Like an open world, you can make your fun doing what you like.
Astroneer stumbling into a mushroom forest
Tips
- Save up for a ship/engine as soon as you can, the resources you need are on other plants.
- Horde as many resources as you can, you’ll use a lot.
- Pick up Disposable oxygen filters for emergencies.
- Arm your terrain manipulator to pick up objects far away.
- If you’re falling from a great height, seek a wall to slide down, it will interrupt your fall safely.
- When going to a new planet, be sure to bring a power source, soul centrifuge, and oxygen.
In Conclusion
If you like exploring and progressing in an open world, Astroneer can scratch that itch. While the graphics are simple, if it looks appealing, you’d likely enjoy it.
