Last year, Keen Software House celebrated the seven year anniversary for their extraterrestrial sandbox game Space Engineers. Since then, the creators have been working nonstop on a Year of War, kicking off with the first of updates, Warfare 1. In celebration, we here at HorrorBuzz wanted to try it out!

PLOT

Space Engineers falls into the same survival-esque vein as games like Rust or Subnautica, just in a different landscape, as to be expected. While there’s so much to do within the game, Space Engineers at its core is focused on exploration and creative engineering. 

Players enter the world from a wide variety of locations, and ultimately need to survive. While spawning in with a handful of tools helps give a kick in the right direction, it’s up to the player to invent and construct even better tools to help get the jobs done better.

GAMEPLAY

There’s an assortment of game modes for players to choose from. Whether you’re a fan of more linear gameplay with specific goals to achieve, you prefer the full-on lone survivor route, or you just want to build what your heart desires, the choice is yours. 

I definitely prefer the survival mode unless the creative mood strikes, and that’s where I spent the majority of my time. Finding the balance between ease of exploration, and also managing my limited resources really gets me addicted.

The combat system has also been upgraded with this most recent update, making it smooth and easy to defend your territory when the need arrives. All of the indicators and animations were improved and I had no trouble fighting when I had to.

PROS

Space Engineers truly does an excellent job of giving the player tons to do, even if they don’t quite know what the task is at the time. Between exploring, inventing, a newly improved combat system, and multiple ways to play, you couldn’t find yourself bored even if you tried.

Using a realistic physics engine also plays in its favor, as players must also think strategically in order to create what they have in their mind. Of course flying around with a jetpack might be easier, but is it worth using all your resources for now? Or a massive machine to help transport materials would make your life easier, but is it rational at the moment?

CONS

I’m a huge fan of survival games, but Space Engineers is certainly much more than that. In my humble opinion, the crafting and, well, engineering system is far from beginner-friendly, and I’m not sure I’d even be considered a beginner. The sheer amount of tutorials are definitely necessary and lend a helping hand, but I still found myself searching for how-to’s on YouTube.

VERDICT

Keen Software House is adamant to continue adding content and improvements to Space Engineers as the Year of War continues, so I’m excited to see where they take it from here as so much potential is possible. 

Available on both Steam and Xbox One for only $19.99, I definitely think players on either platform will definitely find that the vast amount of content makes the game more than worth the price. 

Rating: 8 out of 10 Tumbling Space Pods