The idea of exploring other worlds, more specifically other planets, has always been my biggest dream. Science fiction has been a constant companion since my childhood and especially in video gaming that dream came true on multiple occasions. Star Wars, Mass Effect, Freelancer etc. - just to name a few, fed right into that urge to explore other places. But not just other places, more so other places that have not been ‘claimed’ by anyone.
With having migrated to Germany, I’ve had parents who were not able financially to travel a lot with us kids, so I’ve barely seen anything that didn’t resemble the same’ish landscape of Germany, other than on screen and in virtual worlds. We’ve also never owned any piece of land or a house, so I never understood the concept of that really neither. While people I grew up with told stories of places they had visited and were really familiar with the feeling of being entitled to places, for me it was always rather borrowed and temporary. My interest in the universe and space also made me see things a lot more abstractly and with larger context. It’s extremely superficial that we believe we own anything, on this earth or anywhere else. We have no control over it, it’s borrowed. Just like the places I’ve called home. And I think that’s why I love the idea of exploring exoplanets that are uncharted so much. Not only I know that these places belong to no one, but everyone else does too. It’s a baseline that gives me comfort and blurs the lines of the classism I’ve grown into. No wonder I loved spending time in No Mans Sky so much, a game that gives you the chance to literally visit places no one else has ever seen before, for as long as you’ll play it, you won’t run out of places where everyone would be the same. Start out the same. Exo One feeds into that as well, but on a different level. The places you explore here are absolutely awe-inspiring, they are from a technical standpoint as well as an artistic one. I couldn’t believe my eyes most of the time. But what made it so special to me, was, that those places really felt alien but at the same time kinda weirdly welcoming (as exoplanets per definition should be, duh!). Completely different from one another, but mostly based on very possible variations of planets.
Of course I had to love this game, so I was able to overlook some of its shortcomings: the gameplay could be described as a marble-version of a journey-esque exploration game with tiny wings mechanics. That’s a lot, I know, but these things came to my mind while playing it. The mechanics are juuuuuuuuust good enough to get you over the runtime of roughly 2 hours, the monotony of it (even though very fitting, because the sheer size of these places makes sense) might prove to be too boring for many. The mystery that’s thrown in in very tiny bits serves the game and atmosphere well, but doesn’t do anything drastic to elevate it further.
I’m pretty sure reception for this will be rather mediocre, people will like the visuals and then drop off after a while. I get that too, but I won’t ever skip a chance to explore other planets, no matter how limited my interactions are. It will always give me goosebumps and leave me in awe. And specifically now, in this period, also offers a great escapism, away from one of the most special places in an unthinkably big universe, that we collectively shit on every day.
With having migrated to Germany, I’ve had parents who were not able financially to travel a lot with us kids, so I’ve barely seen anything that didn’t resemble the same’ish landscape of Germany, other than on screen and in virtual worlds. We’ve also never owned any piece of land or a house, so I never understood the concept of that really neither. While people I grew up with told stories of places they had visited and were really familiar with the feeling of being entitled to places, for me it was always rather borrowed and temporary. My interest in the universe and space also made me see things a lot more abstractly and with larger context. It’s extremely superficial that we believe we own anything, on this earth or anywhere else. We have no control over it, it’s borrowed. Just like the places I’ve called home. And I think that’s why I love the idea of exploring exoplanets that are uncharted so much. Not only I know that these places belong to no one, but everyone else does too. It’s a baseline that gives me comfort and blurs the lines of the classism I’ve grown into. No wonder I loved spending time in No Mans Sky so much, a game that gives you the chance to literally visit places no one else has ever seen before, for as long as you’ll play it, you won’t run out of places where everyone would be the same. Start out the same. Exo One feeds into that as well, but on a different level. The places you explore here are absolutely awe-inspiring, they are from a technical standpoint as well as an artistic one. I couldn’t believe my eyes most of the time. But what made it so special to me, was, that those places really felt alien but at the same time kinda weirdly welcoming (as exoplanets per definition should be, duh!). Completely different from one another, but mostly based on very possible variations of planets.
Of course I had to love this game, so I was able to overlook some of its shortcomings: the gameplay could be described as a marble-version of a journey-esque exploration game with tiny wings mechanics. That’s a lot, I know, but these things came to my mind while playing it. The mechanics are juuuuuuuuust good enough to get you over the runtime of roughly 2 hours, the monotony of it (even though very fitting, because the sheer size of these places makes sense) might prove to be too boring for many. The mystery that’s thrown in in very tiny bits serves the game and atmosphere well, but doesn’t do anything drastic to elevate it further.
I’m pretty sure reception for this will be rather mediocre, people will like the visuals and then drop off after a while. I get that too, but I won’t ever skip a chance to explore other planets, no matter how limited my interactions are. It will always give me goosebumps and leave me in awe. And specifically now, in this period, also offers a great escapism, away from one of the most special places in an unthinkably big universe, that we collectively shit on every day.