Astro Colony is an exploration and automation game set in an unlimited randomly generated cosmos. It is made out of completely destructible voxel worlds.
Move stations, dock them, and create a galaxy network unlike any other!
A space adventure game would be incomplete without a wide range of biomes and hundreds of plants!
Construct one-of-a-kind transportation systems out of conveyor belts and pipelines.
Recruit new astronauts and meet their basic requirements such as food and shelter.
To advance colony development, investigate approximately 70 distinct technologies.
Play the game with your pals in co-op mode, or join other hosted lobbies.
Explore a universe filled with surprising happenings and uncover previously unknown lands.
But be warned: danger lurks around the corner!
Thoughts
I already want this game to be successful. It has potential, as others have noted. I’ve been looking for nice colonization/factory games that span more than one planet.
I’ve just had a few minutes to play, but I’ll start by noting that the game seems good. Outside of slight FPS reductions when the hologram build components clash with the environment, the graphics are smooth and optimised.
But some things have already irritated me. I’m writing this now because first impressions are so essential in everything, not just gaming.
When I launch the game, I see that there are no ‘Save,’ ‘Apply,’ or even ‘Cancel’ buttons on the settings screens. While I can discover that pressing back will preserve these settings, it is not obvious because most games do not operate in this manner.
Then there’s the rough grammar, which bothers me. It’s awkward and inaccurate in several places. People who play these games, I believe, desire a game that tests their brains. They want a game that they believe will educate them. I also believe that those players will notice something like that, which may devalue the experience.
Finally, I believe the tutorial as a whole might be better organised. I believe the building function, in particular, needs a better and more explicit description.
My experience with the flow has been ‘turn off the oxygen generator’ -> ‘now utilise it.’ At this point, it’s not clear how to deselect and prevent me from mistakenly making a second one, and after I do, it’s much less clear how to destroy it. I later discovered that the mere capacity to erase something is a technology that requires much investigation!
To improve that experience, I would strongly recommend making deletion a standard option and teaching the building system and its tools front and centre, as they are an essential aspect of the game.
I’m not trying to be nasty here; just my honest thoughts on how to make the game easier to get into. Making a game on your own is difficult.
