Occupy Mars: The Game Preview

Developer Pyramid Games and publisher PlayWay are mainly known for their simulator titles, so I was definitely excited to try out their latest game that may be a little out of their comfort zone with Occupy Mars: The Game. This open-world survival game gives players the not-so-simple task of colonising Mars, and whilst it isn’t perfect, there is a lot of fun to be found here, providing you have the patience!

A free “prologue” demo for Occupy Mars was released all the way back in 2020 (that feels like a lifetime ago, don’t you think?), and though it did show some promise, there was an abundance of issues that gamers were fairly vocal about. Fast-forward three years, and the Early Access version has finally dropped, and whilst the team at Pyramid Games has implemented a lot in that time (check out their roadmap here), they are committed to continuing the updates and new features.

But let’s look at what the game has available at present. I decided to start out with the Campaign mode — after the game helpfully told me that the tutorial on the main menu would mostly be covered in the opening sections — but I knew it wouldn’t be long before I delved into the Free Play mode. The campaign sees you playing as an engineer that has just landed on Mars after their predecessor had to be shipped back to Earth following a work-related injury (where there's blame, there's a claim!). After checking in with the doctor and having my supervisor assign me some simple tasks, it was time to get to work!

This mode feels more akin to the developers' simulator titles, as it’s a more linear experience, with each objective pointed out clearly to the player. It’s a good way to get started in Occupy Mars, though, as I definitely felt I had more time to understand the many facets of how the spacesuit works and didn’t have to worry about things like running out of oxygen or dying of hunger. It may feel a little slow — or even tedious — for players itching to jump straight into the survival aspect of the game, but I appreciated that the developer included a more relaxed game mode.

As mentioned earlier, Occupy Mars also has a Free Play mode, which strips back the story and sees your character stranded on Mars, Matt Damon style. Players are much less restricted here, with the game allowing you to craft your ideal utopia from scavenged resources. Although I did enjoy the mission structure of the campaign, Free Play let me unleash my creative side to construct some rather impressive bases. It plays a little like Subnautica (just swap out the ocean for a sea of sand) as you’re constantly exploring and expanding, making it both enjoyable and rewarding to play. Managing your oxygen levels (both your base and spacesuit) felt like a bit of a challenge, especially when combined with the hunger and thirst metres. But what would a survival game be without underestimating how many resources you’ll need before setting out to explore, only to lose a ton of progress because of it?

There’s a decent amount of customisation here as well, in particular, the options you’re given when starting a new Free Play run. From the obvious difficulty level to how much equipment you start with and the intensity of harsh weather effects (these can really harm you if you’re not fully prepared), it all goes a long way in altering just how challenging the game can be. I liked that I was able to make the survival portion of the game feel more manageable or ruthlessly punishing, depending on my mood.

Graphically, there’s a lot to like about Occupy Mars. Obviously, you’re not getting a wide range of biomes and vibrant colour palettes on such a barren wasteland of a planet, but it’s still nice to take in the sights, especially with the great lighting and shadow effects. The internal areas of your base are as high-tech and futuristic as you’d expect them to be, and lots of small details, such as a mess of wires hanging overhead, or space debris coating the external portions, really go a long way in adding to the atmosphere.

The audio has its high and low points. Similar to shows like Cowboy Bebop and Firefly, the Wild West-like themes are surprisingly fitting for what is essentially an endless desert planet, suitable for the unexplored frontier of another world. The voice acting — coupled with the non-existent lip-synching — is not so great, but it is serviceable enough to point you in the right direction for your next set of tasks.

Whilst a noticeable improvement on the 2020 prologue demo, Occupy Mars still features many bugs that did hinder my enjoyment. Loading times can be painfully long, yet other times rather quick, and the FPS drops were frequent enough — especially in the campaign — that I purposefully turned down my graphical settings to the lowest in order to rectify this. It did not. I’ve played many games that have an “unstuck” option in the menus, and I hope this is something the developer implements in the future due to just how often I got stuck in walls or stairways.

Despite the numerous bugs and technical issues, Occupy Mars: The Game could become a truly must-play survival crafting title once the full release drops. With an already good number of patches under its belt, it’s clear that Pyramid Games is dedicated to creating an engaging game that may not revolutionise the genre but does more than enough to keep players wanting to pop on their spacesuits and go for a rover ride across the sandy dunes of Mars.