#Evaluate: SteamWorld Construct
Table of Contents
Evaluate: SteamWorld Construct
This entry is finished by a special developer The Station, whose earlier work was additionally known as The Station. So, SteamWorld Construct is a little bit of a departure for each the developer and for the collection as a complete.
SteamWorld Construct (PC [Review], Change, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Sequence X|S)
Developer: The Station
Writer: Thunderful Publishing
Launched: December 1, 2023
MSRP: $29.99
The world is ending, so among the surviving robots are following the instruction of a disembodied robotic eye and digging into the bottom to try to discover rocket elements to allow them to go away. Fairly than do it themselves, nevertheless, they’re constructing a settlement immediately over the deserted mine to allow them to appeal to different robots that they will ship to their deaths within the chilly, unfeeling earth.
SteamWorld Construct feels closest to the survival city-builder style to me, however solely when it comes to controls and the administration of sources. There actually is not any survival right here. There’s no actual fail state, and even for those who suck actually badly at issues, you’ll most likely all the time be making progress. Actually, SteamWorld Construct has its personal taste, which works each in its favor and in opposition to it.
Beneath that, there’s additionally a mining and exploration sport the place you direct your robots to dig via blocks of earth to try to discover sources and different aims. Dungeon Keeper saved coming to thoughts as I performed it, and there’s perhaps a splash of that in right here within the sense that you just hole out areas and may construct rooms. A number of the blocks you order your robots to destroy additionally comprise ore, so there are not less than aesthetic similarities if little else.
Actually, the objective right here is to construct up your city, so you may get higher mining gear, so you may dig deeper and get extra sources on your city, so you may get even higher mining gear and get to the underside. It’s an efficient solution to entangle the 2 modes of play. You’re continuously switching between the city and your mine, which is helped by a management scheme that makes it simple to get round. It feels good.
The principle move of city constructing has you first plop down employee homes and have them extract sources to make merchandise that can appeal to extra employees. In any case their wants are met, you may improve them to the following class of residents and repeat the method with an increasing number of sophisticated manufacturing strains. You’re continuously constructing and reinforcing provide strains so you may match an increasing number of robots into your society and meet milestones to unlock the following stage of substances and manufacturing.
In the meantime, underground, you’ll be placing your new gear to make use of. It’s worthwhile to make sure the mine is secure, that you’ve sufficient employees, and you could create infrastructure for useful resource extraction. Finally, you’ll run into monsters and different hazards underground and must take care of them, however I’m pretty sure your robots can’t completely die. They’ll get eaten or destroyed in battle, however I believe they both get fastened by mechanics or changed. As I mentioned earlier, it’s a tough sport to fail at. You may actually play it worse, however I don’t assume it’s potential to be so dangerous at it that you just get caught. Show me improper, I assume.
Alongside this can be a storyline that performs out in cutscenes. It’s… fantastic. I didn’t discover it annoying, however I didn’t discover it compelling both. On my second playthrough of the sport, nevertheless, I used to be pleased to have the ability to flip it off totally. That’s an excellent choice to have.
That is going to sound unusual and ironic, however the main subject with SteamWorld Construct is that it’s too mechanical and robotic. Progress is totally linear, which is extraordinarily unusual for a metropolis builder. With how troublesome it’s to fail, if a fail state exists in any respect, there’s little or no dynamism to the entire expertise.
What this implies is that one playthrough performs just about the identical as one other. It’s a metropolis builder that completely must have a story overlaying every part since you aren’t making certainly one of your personal. The robots beneath your care would possibly as nicely not exist. They don’t have lives or schedules. They’re merely instruments; a quantity that lets you understand how shut you’re to reaching the following milestone.
After your first playthrough, any subsequent method to the sport would possibly as nicely be a speedrun. You might have the abilities in place, you’ve solved all the issues, and also you’ve seen the story. There isn’t a different playstyle to experiment with, and also you’re simply doing every part once more, however perhaps extra effectively.
As somebody who loves city-builders and administration video games as a complete, SteamWorld Construct feels alienating. It’s a city-builder for individuals who don’t like city-builders.
Whereas that’s an enormous downside for a style entry, it’s not as damning because it is likely to be. SteamWorld Construct is an extremely polished sport. And whereas the shortage of friction provides to the inhuman really feel of the sport, it’s laudable. The graphics and music are so nicely executed that I actually can’t think about them being improved in any manner. Whereas the sport itself feels so robotic, the aesthetic reveals a whole lot of character. It’s like human flesh over a metallic endoskeleton.
What I imply to say is that if an especially inflexible city-builder doesn’t sound like an issue to you, or even when it sounds interesting, then SteamWorld Construct is price attempting. I can actually say that I didn’t hate the time I spent with it, even on the second playthrough. It simply feels empty once I assume again on it. I don’t assume it’s going to stay with me. However there are far worse issues for a sport to have than being too robotic.
[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]
