Ever since the devs wrecked their own in-game economy, the game has fundamentally changed into a space fantasy-themed sandbox, and it killed the magic for me. Everything is free now, no need to "explore" or "survive". Every level of play exists on the same server, so people who set everything to easy love to spawn super rare/expensive items and force-gift tons of them to people still stupidly trying to play the old way (i.e. exploring and surviving).

Thing is, I even liked the idea that the grind could be reduced through settings, but the devs went way too far and took anything out that resembles stakes. There was never much of a skill curve, and now there is no longer any progression or even a shared experience as a community. There's no tension or immersion, it's a sandbox tech demo, not a game. That is plenty for some, but a rug pull for others who started playing by the old rules long ago.

I came back in the last couple weeks to try out the new stuff. It was interesting at first, but you eventually see everyone is running around in endgame gear and throwing resources at each other. I wondered why I was investing any time at all, so I got all the stuff myself and was done. I guess that's not "the right way to play", but I prefer to use my precious time on something more challenging than space-themed photo booth. I suppose I got my money's worth over the years, but I cannot recommend this to anyone who wants to play an actual space exploration/survival game that is emotionally and mentally engaging. (Don't let my total hours played fool you, I idle my games a ton).

Buy it on super sale to take a few nice screenshots and get ~1hr of "Neat!" reactions, just know there is not much below that shiny surface. Every game system is pretty superficial, and had only really mattered because you could show off some unique thing you found and worked on. Without that dynamic, there is no sense of wonder or appreciation at the time someone put in, nothing that really outlasts the novelty.

Ever since the devs wrecked their own in-game economy, the game has fundamentally changed into a space fantasy-themed sandbox, and it killed the magic for me. Everything is free now, no need to "explore" or "survive". Every level of play exists on the same server, so people who set everything to easy love to spawn super rare/expensive items and force-gift tons of them to people still stupidly trying to play the old way (i.e. exploring and surviving). Thing is, I even liked the idea that the grind could be reduced through settings, but the devs went way too far and took anything out that resembles stakes. There was never much of a skill curve, and now there is no longer any progression or even a shared experience as a community. There's no tension or immersion, it's a sandbox tech demo, not a game. That is plenty for some, but a rug pull for others who started playing by the old rules long ago. I came back in the last couple weeks to try out the new stuff. It was interesting at first, but you eventually see everyone is running around in endgame gear and throwing resources at each other. I wondered why I was investing any time at all, so I got all the stuff myself and was done. I guess that's not "the right way to play", but I prefer to use my precious time on something more challenging than space-themed photo booth. I suppose I got my money's worth over the years, but I cannot recommend this to anyone who wants to play an actual space exploration/survival game that is emotionally and mentally engaging. (Don't let my total hours played fool you, I idle my games a ton). Buy it on super sale to take a few nice screenshots and get ~1hr of "Neat!" reactions, just know there is not much below that shiny surface. Every game system is pretty superficial, and had only really mattered because you could show off some unique thing you found and worked on. Without that dynamic, there is no sense of wonder or appreciation at the time someone put in, nothing that really outlasts the novelty.