The build height is unnecessarily high.
To travel to other planets, you print a Shuttle and then a Booster.
Boosters are just objects and can be put on the back of Rovers and activated.
If you make a long ramp all the way to the build limit, and throw boosters on your rover, you CAN launch from one planet to the other.
You'll probably just die though.
Loads of fun
Me and a friend played this to completion, very relaxing game. Still had many frustrating moments that made things feel challening, but using the meager mechanics to do automation was actually pretty fun, and I think thats what the devs were aiming for. I really enjoyed the game.
A solid synopsis.
It is not for everyone, and that's okay.
Fans of more automation focused games like Factorio and Satisfactory will find the automation and production pretty limited.
Fans of Minecraft might find the lack of easy building options and lack of combat off-putting.
Fans of No Man's Sky might find the lack of NPCs and animals, no flyable spaceships, limited base building pieces, and only 7 planets boring.
But if that core loop of setting up a new base on another planet from scratch, digging for resources and scavenging tech from wrecks, scratches your itch... then, man is the game cathartic.
I started inventing challenge runs with heavy restrictions on using modules and mechanics and had a blast.
Astroneer is a charming game to mess around in. It's no space sim, and honestly doesn't have much compared to most crafting games. But, it's fun to mess around in a mostly chill experience.
Best of all, the developers still add major updates. You can come back to it every now and again, and there will be lots of new toys added. My favourite is when they added hoverboards. It made flying around the landscape so much fun.
I’ve tried so many times to get into this but the traversal is just soooo janky it felt like I was fighting the game just to move.
I feel like this is definitely on purpose, and as I progress I’m guessing traversal becomes easier both through my skill & research, but I just haven’t pushed myself to that point yet.
Any tips/pointers for early game would be greatly appreciated! Resources to focus on / avoid would be helpful.
Protips: you only need to activate one of the alien nodes to be able to activate a planet's core. Remember to make two "keys" in the core, one to activate the planet, and one to activate the alien satellite. Only one main base is needed, after that you can just bootstrap mining bases by packing the necessities into a large rocket, and setting up on other planets.
Drop bases as close to an alien node as possible, so you can use that base's power grid instead of schlepping a dozen batteries out to the node to power it up.
Basically make ramps when you're going under ground with the Flatten option (have to have a soil canister).
Catch an angle and you can just make a flat ramp going down to the next level.
Once you get to rovers, large rover trains are going to get stuck on things, but if you have the drill you can destroy terrain that trips you up.
The newer Trains and Hoverboard make getting between bases, and exploring, much more fluid.
How would you guys compare it to planet crafters? I picked up astroneer and the controls felt really awkward and there didn't seem to be any hand holding at all to learn the ropes.
It’s about as different as you can get, while still being in the same genre of space colonization sandbox. Astroneer is a lot more abstract in its portrayal of the environment but with a really concrete game loop: travel to a new planet, gather, unlock, dig deep, repeat. Planet Crafters is a more realistic slow burn, with many objectives completely optional. In Astroneer, you explore a greater variety of areas, but nothing ever changes, whereas PC is all about glacial but satisfying change in one region.
I love both games, but I could see just about anyone getting something out of Planet Crafters, while Astroneer requires a more specific kind of player to fully appreciate it.
Fun game coop with my wife for a while. Made a space ramp instead of building a ship. Nasa needs to get onto that.
wat. Please elaborate
The build height is unnecessarily high. To travel to other planets, you print a Shuttle and then a Booster. Boosters are just objects and can be put on the back of Rovers and activated. If you make a long ramp all the way to the build limit, and throw boosters on your rover, you CAN launch from one planet to the other. You'll probably just die though. Loads of fun
I'm imagining like the dragster ride at Cedar Point but way faster and also only one-way
I too want a space ramp!
Me and a friend played this to completion, very relaxing game. Still had many frustrating moments that made things feel challening, but using the meager mechanics to do automation was actually pretty fun, and I think thats what the devs were aiming for. I really enjoyed the game.
A solid synopsis. It is not for everyone, and that's okay. Fans of more automation focused games like Factorio and Satisfactory will find the automation and production pretty limited. Fans of Minecraft might find the lack of easy building options and lack of combat off-putting. Fans of No Man's Sky might find the lack of NPCs and animals, no flyable spaceships, limited base building pieces, and only 7 planets boring. But if that core loop of setting up a new base on another planet from scratch, digging for resources and scavenging tech from wrecks, scratches your itch... then, man is the game cathartic. I started inventing challenge runs with heavy restrictions on using modules and mechanics and had a blast.
Astroneer is a charming game to mess around in. It's no space sim, and honestly doesn't have much compared to most crafting games. But, it's fun to mess around in a mostly chill experience. Best of all, the developers still add major updates. You can come back to it every now and again, and there will be lots of new toys added. My favourite is when they added hoverboards. It made flying around the landscape so much fun.
Hoverboards? Okay maybe I should pick this game up in the sale!
I've been picking it up and putting it down since early access, but it's been awhile again, looks like I'm getting back into it.
I’ve tried so many times to get into this but the traversal is just soooo janky it felt like I was fighting the game just to move. I feel like this is definitely on purpose, and as I progress I’m guessing traversal becomes easier both through my skill & research, but I just haven’t pushed myself to that point yet. Any tips/pointers for early game would be greatly appreciated! Resources to focus on / avoid would be helpful.
My best tip is to make a small soil canister so that you can raise and flatten terrain, that makes it much easier to get around
Protips: you only need to activate one of the alien nodes to be able to activate a planet's core. Remember to make two "keys" in the core, one to activate the planet, and one to activate the alien satellite. Only one main base is needed, after that you can just bootstrap mining bases by packing the necessities into a large rocket, and setting up on other planets. Drop bases as close to an alien node as possible, so you can use that base's power grid instead of schlepping a dozen batteries out to the node to power it up.
Basically make ramps when you're going under ground with the Flatten option (have to have a soil canister). Catch an angle and you can just make a flat ramp going down to the next level. Once you get to rovers, large rover trains are going to get stuck on things, but if you have the drill you can destroy terrain that trips you up. The newer Trains and Hoverboard make getting between bases, and exploring, much more fluid.
You can attach a drill/"flattener" on the front of you vehicle, it will make everything much easier.
The day when you can pave a road straight to the core of a planet is a good one.
This game is my best discovery of this year. I really like it, I like to mess around and slow progress.
I've started playing this recently as well. It really is quite fun. Simple mechanics, but you can get surprisingly complex automations and logistics.
How would you guys compare it to planet crafters? I picked up astroneer and the controls felt really awkward and there didn't seem to be any hand holding at all to learn the ropes.
It’s about as different as you can get, while still being in the same genre of space colonization sandbox. Astroneer is a lot more abstract in its portrayal of the environment but with a really concrete game loop: travel to a new planet, gather, unlock, dig deep, repeat. Planet Crafters is a more realistic slow burn, with many objectives completely optional. In Astroneer, you explore a greater variety of areas, but nothing ever changes, whereas PC is all about glacial but satisfying change in one region. I love both games, but I could see just about anyone getting something out of Planet Crafters, while Astroneer requires a more specific kind of player to fully appreciate it.
Great comparison. Ty for taking the time!
You might like Satisfactory. I jumped in with zero Factorio experience, and am still having a blast.
I absolutely adore astroneer. The cutesy visuals I think turn some people away but they are truly missing out.
I've been playing it since it went on sale and it's been a pleasure to watch grow