Astroneer - Switch

ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Release Date: 1-13-2022
Critic Score (1-100): 80
Genre(s): Simulation, Sci-fi / futuristic, 3rd-person (Other), Sandbox / open world, Survival, Direct control
Media Type(s): Physical

Explore and reshape distant worlds! Astroneer is set during a 25th century gold rush where players must explore the frontiers of outer space, risking their lives in harsh environments for the chance of striking it rich.

On this adventure, a player's most useful tool is their ability to shape their world, altering the terrain and extracting valuable resources from planets, and moons. Resources can be traded or crafted into new tools, vehicles, and modules to create everything from massive industrial bases to mobile rover bases.

• Reshape terrain as though it were made of Play-Doh.
• Survive on and explore procedurally generated planets that can be entirely deformed and traversed.
• Build vehicles and travel to new planets and moons.
• Snap together components and objects to create custom vehicles and modules.
• 4 player online drop-in/drop-out co-op.

What does this mean? It means that Astroneer is still very early in to its development. We've designed Astroneer from the ground-up to be a game that is developed in Early Access. When you first play the game, you will notice that the core gameplay is there but that we have a lot of work ahead of us. In addition to the features mentioned above, here's what you can expect of a game like Astroneer that is in pre-alpha:

• Core gameplay and features implemented (see above bullet points).
• Bugs
• Crashes
• Lost save games
• Unstable multiplayer experience

If you think our core gameplay is compelling enough to want to support Astroneer while its still in pre-alpha, we'd love to have your support. Otherwise, we recommend waiting until Astroneer is out of PRE-alpha and in an alpha state where the game is more stable and gameplay and content is further along. We're committed to making Astroneer the best it can be and including you this early in to its development is a crucial step that that.

If you're curious about the direction we're aiming to take Astroneer in, be sure to check out our road map.

Astroneer is a single-player and multiplayer sandbox survival game. Set in the 25th century during an age of interplanetary exploration, the game casts the player as an astronaut exploring distant worlds. With limited tools and resources, the player's goal is to survive, gather materials, and establish bases while uncovering the secrets of the solar system. There is no fixed narrative path, but the exploration of alien planets, the discovery of ancient structures, and the pursuit of new technologies provide a loose framework for progression.

Gameplay revolves around harvesting resources and shaping the environment. Using the Terrain Tool, players can dig, deform, and collect soil and minerals directly from the ground. These materials fuel crafting, research, and construction. Oxygen and power are vital survival mechanics: the astronaut must remain tethered to oxygen sources or portable supplies, while all devices and vehicles require power management through generators, solar panels, or batteries. There is no dialogue system or morality component, and no hostile NPC enemies.

The crafting system enables players to create workstations, vehicles, and modular base structures. Printers allow raw resources to be refined into larger equipment, while crafting recipes dictate how new tools and modules are assembled. As the player gathers rarer materials and researches alien artifacts, increasingly complex machines and base systems can be built. Vehicles such as rovers and shuttles expand mobility, enabling exploration of caves, mountains, and other planets.

Progression is tied to exploration and research. Scattered artifacts and alien technology can be analyzed in research chambers, unlocking new crafting blueprints. Players must balance time between mining resources, powering bases, and traveling to new planets, each of which has distinct biomes, hazards, and materials. Survival depends on managing these demands efficiently, as environmental dangers such as storms, suffocation, or falling debris threaten progress.

The multiplayer mode allows several players to share the same world, combining efforts to build bases or explore. The modular construction system supports experimentation, letting players customize the layout and appearance of their installations. Environmental shaping can also be used for functional purposes, such as building ramps for rovers, or purely for aesthetic designs.

*** Data by MobyGames.com ***

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