Space survival craft ’em ups can be pretty grim places, what with the lack of oxygen and constant threat of being eaten alive by the resident fauna and all that, but for some developers there’s nowhere more hostile than the mothership from which they all originate. Throw a dart on Steam, says Joe Tirado, head communications honcho for Astroneer, and you could probably hit a bunch of other things [like ours]”. It’s partly why Astroneer adopted such a bright and bubbly exterior during its run in early access, he adds. Originally, however, it was going to be a very different game indeed.
If Peggle-era PopCap (Gawd rest its consumed soul) had survived into the era of survival, I reckon they’d have made something a lot like Astroneer. Where other sci-fi don’t-die-’em-ups are soundtracked by the angry buzz of e’er-encroaching death, Astroneer’s is all endorphin-inducing rising notes, delightful popping noises and the happy whirr of toylike tractors.
Slowly asphyxiating to death in an unforgiving alien wasteland has never been so joyful.
The game you like isn’t as good as the game I like. When you like the game you like, you are made to look a fool!
Find out why in this week’s Steam Charts.