Colony Ship: A Post-Earth Role Playing Game Preview

Coming to us from developer Iron Tower Studios, Colony Ship: A Post-Earth Role Playing Game is very reminiscent of the earlier Fallout titles from Interplay Entertainment and Black Isle Studios. Fans of the overhead camera and robust dialogue choices will feel very much at home within the confines of the colony ship known as the Starfarer. 

Let’s start at the beginning. It seems an organisation of neo-Christians were not happy with the way Earth was progressing, so they launched themselves into the void of space, intent on reaching a planet they could call their own — Proxima Centauri. You are what is known as a “Shipborn”. Several generations have lived and died before you on the journey towards your destination, and it's likely many more will after you are gone. The vessel that carries you is old, and suffered damage during an event known as the Mutiny several years ago. Not everyone believes in the mission to reach Proxima Centauri, and not everyone shares in their ancestors’ religious zealotry. 

The vessel has become split by the various factions that now inhabit it. There are even towns and cities with their own code of ethics and laws. You live in a place known as “the Pit”, a town built of empty cargo containers, which is considered a slum compared to the rich city known as “the Habitat”. Personally, I love this kind of dystopian and claustrophobic vibe. The fact that social class based on wealth still exists in this environment speaks to humanity’s failings, and the unreachable hope of one day having a better life is very relatable for so many people. 

As you would expect the game gives you an opportunity to customise your character, but it goes a bit beyond what I was expecting. Not only did I get to name my character and choose their appearance and stats, but I was also able to answer several questions regarding my beliefs on the situation aboard the ship before the game started. This added some immersion for me; I was fleshing out what kind of person I was going to be before I really got into things. The game itself is quite dialogue heavy. Stats chosen in character creation and skills learned during NPC and object interaction gave me various choices I would not have otherwise.

Dialogue Skill Checks

Combat, whether against monsters, mutants, or other people is not an easy task. Colony Ship uses a turn system based on initiative. The higher your initiative, the higher in the turn order you will be. Action points (AP) are used to conduct various actions during your turn. This includes moving, attacking, and even reloading. In my first brush with the game's combat system, my companion, a mercenary named Evans, died brutally to a group of mutant frogs. I did not survive for more than a single turn after he went down. Perhaps I was biting off more than I could chew in that case; tough combat usually feels more rewarding when you win. Fortunately, the game creates an autosave as soon as combat is engaged, so you can try as many times as needed. I did kill those frogs eventually, and Evans was okay too. 

Combat

Colony Ship uses Unreal Engine 4; as such, the graphics are pretty slick and provide excellent visuals for the environment Iron Tower Studios has created. The overhead camera gives the player a complete view of their surroundings and the terrible conditions in which the population lives. Sadly, the camera cannot be turned to view these environments from different angles. But you can press tab, and by doing so highlight all interactable NPCs and objects in the area. 

Highlight Feature

Ambient music plays in the background during your exploration of the ship. However, I noticed that environment sounds are missing. Though the game is silent as far as narration and voice-acting (expect a lot of reading), I was still caught off guard not hearing any background conversations, or even generic muttering from NPCs around me. When running around the ship there was no creaking of the hull or even the sound of my boots as I moved on the metal floor panelling. This hurt my ability to further immerse myself in the game. Only during combat did I hear such sounds — the weird gurgling of the mutant frogs that killed Evans, or the firing of our guns as we both tried to stay alive. 

Colony Ship: A Post Earth Role Playing Game has a fantastic foundation on which to improve itself. Throughout my playing, I felt a great sense of accomplishment when a quest was completed. I also felt small and insignificant, even though my world consisted of the confines of the ship. This I feel was accomplished due to you not starting as a powerful individual, not a soldier or demon hunter; but rather just another guy/girl from the slums. 

At the time of this writing, the game is still in Early Access, with the latest update having gone live on 4th August. So far reception sits at “Very Positive” on Steam. Colony Ship: A Post-Earth Role Playing Game will not be released on consoles, but will be compatible with Microsoft Windows, Macintosh, and Linux operating systems. The game launched its Early Access on 6th April 2021. There is not yet a timeframe for a full release.