Sheltered 2
There is a good game waiting to happen here but right now it is still a product that should be in Early Access.
There are TONS of bugs and features that simply don’t function well and the game balance is pretty much non-existent as it stands.
Bug example:
Your Shelter (which you have painstakingly expanded and built onto) is breached or invaded. You use the very rudimentary control scheme to position your survivors right in front of the door as they are cutting through, ready for COMBAT!!!! Then, nothing as the collision detection fails utterly and every invader literally clips through your survivors to go on and loot whatever they want.
– Real player with 111.4 hrs in game
Read More: Best Post-apocalyptic Character Customization Games.
Hooked on this game for a while. Plenty of bugs back then. But a lot of issues have been fixed, although there’s still few remains but worry not, they always working on the game! Beginning part of the game has always been fun to me, as you get used to it. its get easier later unless you are playing on harder diff cause breaches could be brutal if you aren’t careful enough. Overall, pretty chill game to spend few hours in!
– Real player with 98.7 hrs in game
Ashwalkers
Updated for Steam Nominations 2021
As mostly first person shooters player, i sometimes enjoy switching to less intense indie games. Ashwalkers would be one of those.
For me this game became liked a moment i saw it on store. Mostly because of character design and story setting, which is surprisingly similar to one i’ve wrote a couple of years ago. So far this is the closest thing to what could be called “dream game”.
As the gameplay is not challenging, it requires player to calculate their movements since “survival” part is taking an action. Game itself is user friendly, player just need to get used to visual narrative and simple controls.
– Real player with 5.4 hrs in game
For those looking for a game akin to the choose your own adventure books of old, Ashwalkers is phenomenal. Decisions require careful thought be put into them, and the game rewards reading into the choices and texts. Some of the choices endgame that determine the endings felt a bit arbitrary, but after having at least gone down the three main endings (that each have at least 12 permutations) twice I can say I had a fun time for the price of the game.
That game while short does its best to make the time spent feel much longer than it is between the unique art style of both the world and its inhabitants, and the survival mechanics of the game which help add a needed sense of weight to the smaller choices. I had fun carefully deliberating on if I wanted to risk losing one resources for another I was in desperate need of. On repeat runs however this meter watching quickly begin to feel monotonous.
– Real player with 5.4 hrs in game
Desolation Tycoon
The world has ended, but life moves on. Your home is a wasteland scoured by winds blowing in from a caustic sea. Most large mammals are extinct, and insects have filled their roles.
You are a merchant traveling this land in search of profit. Each character you play starts with a randomly generated history and traits. And eventually, each character’s career will come to an end — whether through successful retirement or tragic death.
The game remembers everything you do, and the world is persistent across characters. As a consequence of your actions, civilization will slowly grow and rebuild. Accomplishments accrued across any number of characters will unlock new cities, new crew units, new challenges, and so on.
There is no fixed storyline. Instead, you have a setting, a set of gameplay mechanics, and complete freedom to do with that what you will.
Core features:
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Travel, trade, and defend your cargo from dangers.
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Improve your skills through usage.
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Find and explore places that are worth plundering.
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Build relationships with city notables, and co-operate with them on various schemes.
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Rebuild a persistent world across multiple lifetimes.
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Make trade-offs in encounters that are purely decision-driven, and avoid grindy minigames.
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Enjoy a high-information user interface that doesn’t ask you to remember things unnecessarily.
Example challenges:
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Local climate calamities.
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Giant insects, bandits, and much worse.
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Each character will automatically retire if they live long enough; this does not leave enough time to develop all possible skills.
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Networks of supply and demand are randomized between playthroughs.
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You can’t stay in a trade route rut, because trading with the same cities too much will make it less profitable.
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You and your crew can become injured or sick — and possibly die as a result.
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The locals that you trade and scheme with have minds of their own, and may betray you.
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Performance-enhancing symbiotes may seem like a great idea, but can lead to unfortunate side-effects.
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Oh, and there are also demons. They complicate everything.
This is not an action-oriented game. Time doesn’t pass unless you’re doing something, and there are no real-time challenges. Instead, gameplay is strictly about the making of intelligent trade-offs in an open-world setting with many potential courses of action.
Read More: Best Post-apocalyptic Sandbox Games.
Idle Wasteland
This game is FUN! Too fun… No wait. I mean to say addictive. Or… is the real issue that it seems too needy? Let me get more to the point… This game has everything you would want and expect from a wasteland apocalypse game, and it can be played as an idle game for a while, but the issue I am having is that its constantly squawking with birds and notifications to get me to click inside it for a resource. I could turn off those noises, but then I’d miss some important and rare stuff which will help me progress into the game much faster. Which means more likely that I am over stimulated by this game. I drag my mouse back and forth to collect all the trash piles and bugs that spawn, plus the loot bugs and the 10 minute free ad drone (steam does not allow ads, so its free resources). Then the base crafting timer is about a minute long, so I am constantly back into the game to click it twice, then the other craftables. I feel like I can’t leave it alone until I mute it all completely. What it tells me is that this game is very well designed to cause me to want to monitor it while doing other stuff, but has been designed to make me want to click on every junk pile to gain its scraps.
– Real player with 766.5 hrs in game
Perfect idle game. Something to do for 15 minutes here, 40 minutes there, just enough to knock out some of the daily missions. You feel a sense of making progress, just try not to analyze the fact that only .1% of players beat the game (or only got the hardest achievements)
If you want a game of upgrades, this is it. This game has upgrades on just about everything, and those upgrades come in tiers, and those tiers have higher tiers. I can’t believe I’ve only put in 18 hours in this game. I’ve unlocked sooooo many things and I still feel as if I’ve only just begun my journey through the wasteland.
– Real player with 294.8 hrs in game
Frostpunk
Dear God, yes I recommend. I’m fucking obsessed with this game. It dominates my every goddamn thought nowadays. I don’t think I’ve ever been so obsessed with a game before in my life. If you’re reading this, buy the game. Buy the DLC’s. And somehow contain your excitement for Frostpunk 2.
– Real player with 329.4 hrs in game
The Good:
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Special and creative gameplay will make just enough to enjoy the game in Easy and Normal mode but also very very difficult and hardcore in Hard, Extreme, Survival mode.
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Detailed images, map design make you really feel the “frost” of the game
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Each map has its own story and gameplay.
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Nice background music.
The Bad:
- The gameplay is hard to get used to for newbies (I gave up 3 times because I couldn’t understand the game, but it wasn’t until the 4th time that I felt the fun of it because I believe 11 bit studios can always make a good one).
– Real player with 152.1 hrs in game
Industries of Titan
There are already a lot of excellent (constructive) reviews here already for the 21 June 2021 Steam release but I’ll add my 2 cents here to talk more about the side elements of the game and offer some advice for potential players who are still sitting on the fence.
What do you get when you combine the macro-management aspects of SimCity 2013, with FTL-like micro-management in factory management and combat, then slap on a UI that’s reminiscent of grand strategy games? You get the absolutely fascinating city builder that is Industries of Titan (IoT for short).
– Real player with 115.3 hrs in game
My first impression of the game:
The beginning is a bit confusing. You have different management levels:
1. Production
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Collect raw materials (initially from ruins, later in mines)
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Collect artifacts (also from ruins)
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Produce fuel and electricity
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manage garbage (a lot)
2. Citizens and workers
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Buy and house citizens
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Earn money from citizens watching advertisements
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convert some citizens into 24/7 workers (who then stop watching ads)
3. Build on two different levels
- Inside buildings on a square grid (reminiscent of Tetris blocks :D )
– Real player with 54.8 hrs in game
Sheltered
I have updated this review after I tried the release 1.0 version. My verdict is largely the same.
The game has definitely improved since my impressions from Early Access, and can, if the developers keep improving it here after release 1.0, in time have enough gameplay to make it fun (not quite there yet). At the moment it has some flaws that makes the game unbearable to play for me.
No in-game pause:
One big flaw is the fact that this the inability to pause in-game.
This is a game about survival where you have to manage a lot of things that constantly degrade and break down and the more people you have and the bigger your shelter gets, the more this will require your attention. Sure, it is no problem at the start, but it quickly becomes a problem. Many of the things require attention fast and especially when a lot of things are happening at once does this problem really show itself. Only way to pause is by going to the options menu where you can’t see nor interact with anthing. It is unnecessarily stressing and just makes you frustrated in stead of adding anything to the game.
– Real player with 103.3 hrs in game
Sheltered is a little bit This War of Mine, a little bit Fallout Shelter and a touch of… something altogether different. All in all I really enjoyed this game and felt like I really got my monies worth. I picked up Sheltered during a Humble Bundle survival sale but I would have gladly paid full price for it. The following is a detailed summary of what Sheltered does well and a couple small areas where it falls a bit short.
Graphics - I list this first because visuals are highly subjective. I loved the retro styled pixelated graphics of Sheltered and often found myself impressed by how well the minimalist graphics were able to convey the gritty emotions of a post apocalyptic world. For some this visual style may be a turn-off but I recommend giving the game a chance anyway.
– Real player with 54.8 hrs in game
Caravaneer 2
There are some good bits in this game, but for me, the tactical aspect totally kills it. It is so inbalanced, or rather in favor for AI that it is beyound laughable. Fights will accur as it is part of the game. Now, to keep it simple, you have a Katana, hit enemy who gets 12-20 hit points. He hits you and you suffer 24-42 damage. Even with light armor, makes no difference. Later in the game I had an awesome Armor of Honor (25 damage res), I get hit with a Mosin gun for 40-46 points. I use same gun, or even better M-16 on enemy who has no or light armor (6 damage res) and score 10-12 points. Time after time. BS! Also, remember that it will be almost impossible for you, even later in the game, to hit anything beyond 20-24 tiles, while AI will frequently score hits from 70-80 tiles away. Loads of BS in a bucket of sh-ite. NOT RECOMMENDED!
– Real player with 355.0 hrs in game
I originally played this and the original as Flash games, I even went so far as to download BlueMaxima’s Flashpoint almost specifically for this one, due to how good it was. The economic simulation, layered with a competent, if monotonous, combat system, as well as a fairly engaging story lent itself to a game that tied me up for absolute ages. I plan on playing this for an inordinately long time, and I already have!
I won’t bother with beginner tips, but keep in mind the game has a strong learning curve; I recommend playing “Story” mode if you’re just starting out for all the free goodies and volunteers. Sandbox puts you in a significantly more difficult starting area, and a generally poorer starting position, i.e. Much fewer free goods and starting facilities. Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you’ll come to recognise it’s trade patterns and idiosyncracies, and really start to get a feel for the game.
– Real player with 254.4 hrs in game
Frostpunk 2
Frostpunk 2 is the sequel to the highly acclaimed, BAFTA-nominated society survival game that blended city building, strategy and management gameplay, creating a brand new genre. Its successor takes place 30 years after the apocalyptic blizzard storm, and Earth is still overwhelmed by the icy climate of neverending frost and harsh weather.
You play as the leader of a resource-hungry metropolis where the expansion and search for new sources of power is an unavoidable reality. After the age of coal, conquering Frostland for the oil extraction industry is expected to be the new salvation of what’s left of humanity. However, change does not come easily, and not everyone in this new multi-layered society will welcome this new direction.
Demands and expectations of various factions will raise tensions and evoke conflicts, but will a cold-blooded rule and a Machiavellian approach to politics be necessary? As the everlasting cold continues its grip on the city and outside threats arise, you’ll need to make sure your people are united, driven, and ready for difficult, unavoidable sacrifices!
Jakub Stokalski, Frostpunk 2 Co-Director, had this to say about the grand vision of the game:
“What we aim to deliver to players is an experience that goes vastly beyond that of the original Frostpunk. With a still-growing team of nearly 70 people, we have more manpower available to focus on all aspects of the game from the scale, the production value, and the quality of UX, but our ambition is to do more than a straight-up sequel. What players should expect is a wide universe of choices, the freedom to shape the society and the city however they see fit - and reap the consequences. Frostpunk 2 builds on the conflicts of its predecessor - survival vs human values, life vs the arctic frost. But most importantly, it adds a new layer that is present in many aspects of the game - be it politics, society or technological progress - the conflict between humans and their nature".
Harmonium
A cute, post-apocalyptic game. Mostly text-based but with a pleasant story-book design. But wait a minute – should cute and post-apocalyptic go together? It works like a children’s cautionary tale: it won’t give you nightmares but may touch your ideas about the future.
I enjoyed the story. There is a steady progression to the main character and plot with freedom to ‘explore’; but you’ll need to bring some imagination as much of exploration is done through text narration. The game makes a good distraction for an evening or two. And after you’ve finished all your quests and character development, you can choose to think about how it compares to our own world – or not.
– Real player with 9.7 hrs in game
Alright, I’ll go ahead and give this one a positive - IF it sounds interesting to you. If you don’t like a lot of reading, choose-your-own adventure style, you’ll become bored. That is the meat of this game is the great writing.
You must choose from a list of events to initiate to progress to the next week and they’re all a few paragraphs of what your character is doing. You pick one of those choices, a few paragraphs of the result of your choice play out based on your stats, and then you receive rewards but mostly it’s to progress the week because you put characters in your house to passively generate resources. Resources are what is used to upgrade your furniture and sometimes spent on events. The game is pretty straight-forward about what does what and how to progress the story. There’s not a lot of things you have to keep in mind. There is a finite number of weeks before you must complete the game. Full disclosure, I have not done so yet, however the time limit does not seem too short that you’ll feel the need to hustle. It’s okay to fail events occasionally.
– Real player with 7.5 hrs in game