Featured Image Credit: Astrolabe Interactive Inc.
Topics: Steam, Indie Games
There are a ton of games out in Early Access at the moment that really do bring a pretty complete experience to players, with examples across every genre that should offer great value for money, even if they haven't hit their 1.0 version yet.
One of those games is Aloft, which combines the gameplay elements of a release like Valheim, with the memorable visual aesthetic and appeal that the Horizon series brought to the proverbial party when it released back in 2017.
Aloft is a co-op sandbox survival game set in a world of floating islands, where you'll need to turn one of them into a skyship, which acts as your base in the game.
In the developer's own words, you will, "Navigate the world, discover new islands, gather resources, build your dream home, and take care of your animals, solo or as a group of up to 8 friends.
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Yet within nature’s beauty, a corruption spreads. Root it out and cure the fungi threat that devours all other life. Uncover lost knowledge, brew powerful antidotes, enrich the biodiversity of the islands, and restore balance to the airborne ecosystem."
Aloft's approach to survival is one of more casual enjoyment, rather than blasting the player with a series of status effects that tick down until their eventual deaths. Essentially this amounts to rewarding correct actions you take, whilst at the same time being more forgiving of any mistakes you might make.
The central premise of the gameplay is a very compelling one, allowing you to turn any of the islands you see in the sky into your own personal ship. To do this, you'll have to take advantage of one of the more impressive base building systems we have seen in any game, after which you'll be able to explore the world at your leisure.
Aloft also features a pseudo-electrical system that tales advantage of wind, allowing you to power many of the things that you build. In turn, this allows you to automate much of your production, leading to some pretty advanced homesteads if you know what you're doing.
Each island also has its own ecosystem that you have a duty to protect, so over-gathering is a no-no if you want to preserve the unique wildlife.
The game is currently in Early Access on Steam, though there's no confirmation of a full release date for the game just yet.