Astroneer is an third person open world space exploration game...

And it feels minimalistic and easy-going. In this game you play as an Astroneer, an astronaut of the future with the task to explore distant worlds and discover the mysteries of the universe. It is an interplanetary sandbox affair, where you can gather resources from the surface or underground in various biomes. Raw resources can be refined, and some can be combined to make composite materials. These help you build machines and structures for your base, but many require power. Harness the available wind and solar energy with turbines and panels, respectively. If you're prepared enough, you can build a shuttle to travel to other planets in the star system. (On a side note, I don't know why but my EXO Request Platform Astroneer video tallies the most views on a single video I've uploaded).

Gameplay

The gameplay is quite peaceful and slow-paced. There are no enemies to fight, just a simple resource gathering and base building gameplay loop; as far as I remember the only ways of dying were being targeted by some harmful plants, fall damage, oxygen loss. The inventory/ backpack management is quite fun when it centers to the screen when focused, and items move around in a quick but floaty way when dragged. Something a bit tiring was the need for oxygen tethers every few metres, while their range is alright you need them to even explore. I suppose it's an easy solution for hospitable planets. I never found battery issues since I'd build generous amounts of wind turbines and solar panels for my base and backpack. Collecting resources is quite satisfying, I found drilling fun but terrain building difficult, also high level drills are required for certain types of rock. The game had some unique broken structures in the wild but landscapes are mostly plain, with resources deposits, shrubbery, mountains, and caverns. This probably sounds closed-minded but I prefer combat-based games rather than resource management.

Audio Visual

The game looks pretty, and colours are soft. I like how interacting with items using the cursor provides clicking sound effects, and also snap nicely, if perhaps strongly, to tiles in the backpack or power cables connecting to ports. Controlling the character is a bit weird a I think the camera can move independent of the cursor, which allows greater freedom of control but I have no muscle memory for it. The ambient soundtrack in the background is thematic but forgetful. I didn't really understand the objective (there isn't really one - which is fine for a sandbox game) but I did like trying new things out. I remember it was necessary to have the worklight when going to dark areas because the suit headlights were not very useful for visibility. I liked how cables and gauges lit up to indicate where oxygen or electricity was flowing through. Materials have interestingly shaped formations, and it's convenient they pack into stacks when mined. When they are inserted as reactants in a furnace, they visually diminish which is a great indicator of quantity. I remember waypoints being awkward and I couldn't find my home base at one point after venturing out.

Pros

• Nice visuals
• Cool space technology
• Multiple world exploration

Cons

• Terrain building awkward
• Needs more UI elements
• Tethers at all times

Conclusion

Astroneer is a creative space exploration game that I would enjoy watching but not playing. I score it 5/10.

Information

• Release date: 2016
• Developer: System Era Softworks
• Platforms: PC, Xbox, Playstation, Nintendo Switch