SteamWorld Build Review - The Final Verdict

[Music] [Music] the steam World franchise has been around since 2010 starting with steamworld tower defense for the Nintendo DSi however steam world dig made a longer lasting impact introducing in us to its brand of randomly generated levels platforming and Mining in 2013 image and form games wasn't content to stick to the same genre following it up with the excellent steam World Heist a turn-based strategy game meets tactical shooter a return to platform and goodness seemed a given and thus we got steam world dig 2 a massively improved followup that offered a much tighter experience however lo and behold the developer was off again in another genre this time a deck building turn-based RPG with medieval fantasy twists in Ste steam World quest why is this all relevant because steam World build once again Ventures into a relatively untapped genre for the series a city Builder with a Twist this time the station is the developer I admittedly had concerns that steam World build was aiming for a completely different vibe that assu the older games quirky space Western atmosphere however it capably delivers a steam World Experience through the guise of a city Builder instead of Simply Plastering quirky robots into the genre and calling it a day the world of steamworld has seen better days and it's only a matter of time before it dies out leading a group of robotic settlers Jack clutch sprocket and his daughter ASD looked to the stars for Hope with the help of the mysterious core they set about building a town and investigating the mine for old Tech which turns out to be pieces of a rocket however it's clear that core has some less than noble intentions and with asid capable of hearing the old signal which she describes as a sad song there's more going on than meets the eye along with Jack AST and core are a mly cast of robots from the greedy gun Brit Gilden wire to the precarious traitor my favorite is probably Clark piston an enforcer who says yep to anything and everything regardless of the situation each character brings something unique but given the nature of the game I missed that Central protagonist who could serve as a narrative anchor for the experience a believable robot that grew into the extraordinary hero that you could embody and who struggles become your own in Steam World build it feels like watching other character stories unfold instead of actively experiencing them which isn't bad given the strong voice acting the characterization could be more nuanced but the writing maintains a humorous easygoing tone without losing the plot when starting you only have a few wooden planks a rundown train station and a shotty mine entrance setting up several worker residential houses generates income and you can set about repairing the train station you will need more workers which means more wooden planks which means constructing a Forester to chop down nearby trees and a lumber mill to make planks a general store and service shop are also required to satisfy the needs of your workers and from there it's one big spiral of upgrades resource management and town planning the workers also require cactus water and charcoal to keep going necessitating a farm and Kiln eventually you'll want to upgrade them to Engineers who can construct tools for better pickaxes their needs are even more complex as they'll require spare parts purified water a surveyor office a saloon a Burgermeister and so much more everyone needs access to the train station and warehouses must be in place to manage the influx of deliveries for different establishments what starts as a quaint town quickly grows into a sprawling City and then suddenly the aristot are moving in demanding waxing shops diesel Robo Cuisine and hats of all things even they have their uses though helping to invest in carbide drills for digging tougher rocks in the mines and steam furnaces to boost the efficiency of nearby refineries from the outset steam World build sounds like a robust but streamlined City Builder but that's only one part of the gameplay loop after fixing the mine you can switch to a randomized location with materials to mine and walls to knock down it's a different dynamic as you need to build quarters for miners to dig through walls while adding Prospectors to manage materials like scrap and iranium mechanics are necessary for setting up machines that can automatically mine scrap and iranium along with dirty water and oil for the needs of those up top the mines offer more Direct Control to the player as you instruct miners where to dig but you have to construct pillars to prevent cave in and bridges for crossing Gap mined resources like uranium and scrap are returned to the surface while gold nuggets can be used to hire more miners Prospectors and mechanics of course you also want to set up a surveillance station and a radio tower to search for Rocket Parts blueprints for new technology and chests with materials and Buffs for the mining crew are also discovered if you look around enough it's very reminiscent of steam world dig 2 where you would return to the surface after mining materials and acquire upgrades to delve even further in this case the resources are a key part of the town's progress allowing for the development of sheet metal and Plastics new facilities emerge as you complete milestones and the needs of your populace become more complex the train will also periodically arrive in town bringing three new items to purchase they offer benefits for buildings like leving more service tax at restaurants and saloons expending on a warehouse's simultaneous deliveries and much more though you can only equip these items on one building at a time you'll often need rubies which you can discover in the mine and heaps of cash to purchase them as a appealing as this is the offer can get pricey it's sometimes a toss up between investing in your own town and mine or delaying these upgrades to afford an item sometimes an absurdly expensive item appears and it's completely out of your reach the station does allow for setting up trades and offloading any excess materials that you have for money or even trading for resources you're short on clicking on the random metal tumble weeds that pop up periodically can also help as they randomly disperse money tools rues and other goodies still some tuning to the item prices would be nice of course when you finally have a handle on everything steam World build throws at you it goes all Dungeon Keeper the second floor of the mine introduces enemies from creeps that emerge when mining certain sections to giant worms that can eat your Miners and mechanics you'll need to invest in an Armory for traps and turrets hire guards to protect your Miners and much more it's a brilliant wrinkle to everything you achieved on the first floor adding some hazards and obstacles now that you know how to find rocket Parts you may think that steam World build gets overwhelming what with a multifaceted town and several floors of a m to manage not only is it easy to pick up but the overall pacing is very tight gradually rolling out new features and mechanics before increasing the challenge or throwing something else into the mix on balance difficulty while rearranging buildings to facilitate the ever increasing population or exploiting other resources to make up for deficiencies I rarely faced any problems sure I immediately pushed to pause and swap over to a mine floor when the cave-in notification popped up but more due to General paranoia than any immediate danger don't ignore potential cave threats by the way perhaps because of how streamlined the game can be some quality of life features are sorely missed seeing many types of certain buildings is a little iffy instead of quickly highlighting them on the map or tracking them in a separate window you click on say an engineer residential this will highlight the buildings it has access to allowing you to single out specific types problem solved right but what if you click on an engineer residential that doesn't reach the surveyor's office then you won't know where the ladder is you can alternate between resource nodes like iranium dirty water oil and whatnot in the mines before placing a machine by hitting tab but you can't jump to the next building of the same type in town using a similar method granted it's just another click on a building having its needs met but a way to view a building type and how many of it exists especially given how important coverage can be would be appreciated hot keys for different functions would also be appreciated what if I want to immediately Place some worker residentials down and upgrade them to Engineers or quick select and cycle through different decoration types to Spruce the place up just a little bit around town something as simple as independently selecting game speeds and pausing instead of cycling between the three options feels rudimentary for a game like this how much these omissions will matter depends on you they amounted to minor annoyances instead of major hurdles during my playtime at least when placing buildings you can see their relative distance to the required needs and the coverage provided the interface is also good at notifying you about issues without overloading the player with information in terms of performance steam World build is simply impeccable the highest settings pose no slowdowns as the city grows the mine expands and you switch between them with gusto zooming in is also a smooth and seamless and while your various robot denisons don't have teeth they boast distinct animations and mannerisms your average worker mosies down the street while the delivery Bots Rush about resulting in a constant Buzz of activity the buildings are also beautifully animated whether you're watching a cactus water Farm or the making of plastics completely with unique sound effects the complexity in architecture and character models isn't going to rival the genre's Titans but it's in line with the franchise's Aesthetics while looking unique and appealing in its own right there are five different maps in Steam World build each offering some interesting details and themes depending on the points of interest you often need to build around them getting creative with the city planning especially when the rocket construction site opens up still I appreciate the dilapidated drive-thru with the big screens and the roller coaster rides surrounding the monument with some very familiar face as for the music it has that wild west twinge to it with mostly relaxed tones that don't overpower The Experience meanwhile in the minds there's a buzz a feeling that something is waiting past the next Rock and the music reflects that there aren't many tracks that stand out on their own like steam world dig 2 however the soundtrack is still enjoyable though complimenting the experience without wearing on you after extended sessions steam World build may not get as much attention with the year winding down it probably doesn't do anything that you haven't seen before but it combines several interesting strategy planning sub genres into a compelling hole the sheer robustness of the experience will appeal to different kinds of citybuilding fans whether you want to challenge yourself and manage resources especially since the toughest difficulty doesn't refund materials on destroying buildings or chill out and vibe to the story it's ideal for those who get a kick out of Min maxing and perfecting their cities and those who want to watch their residents go about their day admiring their little quirks despite some mild annoyances with the lack of hot keys and the interface steam World build is a worthwhile addition to the franchise and a pretty good City builder in its own right there were times I plan to sit down for an hour and progress steadily and ended up immersed for several hours at a time managing different needs and guiding miners on their next Expedition its actions may not offer the same thrills as Steam world dig or Heist but the atmosphere and charm more than make up for it hey did you know that we had gaming bolt upload new videos every day stick around drop a like subscribe and hit that Bell and let us know what kind of content you'd like to see in the future with with a comment below

Channel: GamingBolt

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Id: 2CAH6fWJWI4

Length: 11min 13sec (673 seconds)

Published: Mon Nov 27 2023