Helium Rain

About

"Helium Rain" is a single-player space simulation game that allows you to manage and expand your own space corporation. You'll explore, trade, and battle your way through a vast, procedurally generated universe, with real-time physics and advanced AI. Your choices will shape the fate of your company and the political landscape of the galaxy.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 203 reviews

story7 positive mentions

grinding11 negative mentions

The game captures the essence of space with its dark, vast, and immersive environment, making players feel like they are truly in space.
Docking and flying mechanics are enjoyable, with a sense of satisfaction in successfully navigating and docking with stations.
The scale of the game is impressive, with massive planets and tiny stations, enhancing the feeling of being in a vast universe.

The tutorial is poorly designed, taking place in the live game world and offering contracts that players cannot complete, leading to confusion.
The user interface can be clunky and unintuitive, making it difficult for players to manage their fleets and trade routes effectively.
Some players find the game tedious, especially in the early stages, as it requires patience to progress and can feel repetitive.

story
57 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
82%
5%
The game's story is minimal and largely serves as a backdrop for its sandbox and simulation elements, with players primarily engaging in contracts and missions that lack depth and narrative development. While the setting of colonists struggling for survival in space is compelling, many reviewers found the overall plot to be weak, with few engaging storylines or mission variety. Players seeking a rich narrative experience may be disappointed, as the game focuses more on economic mechanics and gameplay freedom than on storytelling.
- “The setting is also sensible for the near future; a bunch of colonists stranded in a system far away from home, struggling for survival in the void around a bountiful gas giant, is a much better story to show the desolation of space than galactic empires warring for power.”
- “The story is set up as much as it needs to be, and you're free to make your own thereon.”
- “This has some depth, has some interesting lore, the missions make sense, the economy actually reacts to what you do, and there's no need to worry about other players griefing and trying to ruin it for you.”
- “There is no 'story'; this is not 'Wing Commander', 'Starlancer', 'Freelancer', or 'The Darkening'.”
- “It's weakness was a totally devoid plot and story.”
- “Without detailed lore and storylines, it just feels empty and lifeless.”
gameplay
45 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
62%
9%
Gameplay in this game is a mixed bag, with many players noting that while the graphics and initial mechanics are appealing, the experience often devolves into tedious menu navigation and automation, detracting from the excitement of space exploration. Critics highlight that the game lacks depth in trading and combat mechanics, leading to a sense of emptiness, especially in the mid to late game where complexity becomes a chore. However, some players appreciate the unique economic and diplomatic elements, suggesting that with further polish and improvements, the gameplay could reach its potential.
- “Gameplay favors realism, so think more naval battles than flashy, zippy Hollywood space fights.”
- “This game is brilliant; the tutorials are integrated seamlessly and are almost effortless. The gameplay is both relaxing and rewarding, and the graphics are excellent thanks to Unreal Engine 4.”
- “The gameplay is really well polished, and it is quite easy to do things once you have learned how to from the many tutorials explaining the various aspects of the game.”
- “However, you quickly realize that the entire gameplay shifts from piloting your ship to just picking up cargo with your other ships, fast-forwarding or hitting the 'J' (skip day) key to finish trading, then hauling it to another area of the map to unload and sell, all this without ever leaving the menu. I've spent 2 hours never actually seeing outer space.”
- “The moment-to-moment gameplay on display here is as empty as the vacuum of space and as barren of any joy as the actual sectors you will be traveling to and from in this game.”
- “All in all, after your operation acquires enough complexity, gameplay becomes too much of a chore to put up with, at least for me.”
graphics
35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
34%
9%
Overall, the graphics in the game are widely praised for their beauty and polish, with many reviewers noting a stunning aesthetic that enhances the gameplay experience. While some mention that the graphics are not overly demanding and could benefit from more complexity or variation, the visuals are generally considered impressive and well-executed, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere. However, a few critiques highlight that the graphics alone may not compensate for gameplay shortcomings.
- “The visuals and audio for combat are a real joy.”
- “The graphics, worldbuilding, and even the scientific rigor are outstanding.”
- “This game nails the lonely deep space colony feel 100% with the graphics, art, and music.”
- “The space visuals are somewhat starker and colder than, for example, those of Elite Dangerous, but the quality is very similar if not the same.”
- “Game graphics are just weird and unappealing. It's not the objects themselves; I think it is a lighting issue. Everything feels so dull, like the city of Batman.”
- “Slightly light on the graphics side of things, but even Elite Dangerous evolved graphically, so with dedication and systematic updates and expansion, Helium Rain could become a serious contender in the space sim sector.”
music
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
38%
19%
The music in the game is generally described as beautiful and atmospheric, effectively enhancing the lonely space experience. However, some players find it repetitive and short, leading to a desire for more variety, while others appreciate its calming and contemplative qualities. Overall, the soundtrack complements the game's visuals, though opinions vary on its excitement level and longevity.
- “Graphics and music are amazing.”
- “Wonderful lonely space atmosphere and soundtrack.”
- “It is a truly beautiful game, the music suits the atmosphere very well, it is calm and a bit contemplative.”
- “My personal preference is I need a more exciting game with less sleep-inducing music.”
- “The game is quite boring and with the crappy music I almost fall asleep at the keyboard.”
- “Playing this game feels like watching 2001: A Space Odyssey; not that the music or assets are similar, but your brain and eyes will feel the same.”
atmosphere
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
69%
8%
23%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its calming and immersive qualities, characterized by a lonely yet relaxing vibe that enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the unique ship designs, atmospheric soundtrack, and the game's hard sci-fi setting, although some note a lack of narrative depth. Overall, the game's atmosphere is seen as a strong point, making it a compelling choice for those seeking a chill space simulation experience.
- “The atmosphere of Helium Rain gives off a bit of a lonely and relaxing vibe.”
- “Wonderful lonely space atmosphere and soundtrack.”
- “It is a truly beautiful game; the music suits the atmosphere very well, it is calm and a bit contemplative.”
- “E, Rayleigh and Mie scattering in planets with atmosphere would improve realism a lot, and dirt and contamination on the glass surfaces, similar to what you see when peeking outside into a docking mechanism when a bright reflection or the sun scatters the light on the surface of the panels.”
- “I’ll still play Elite: Dangerous for the combat, atmosphere, and immersion of the spaceships, and EVE Online has its niche as the MMO for space economies, but Helium Rain has established itself as my go-to option for single-player spaceship economy tycoon empire building.”
- “Still a bit light on overall story and atmosphere, but this is definitely one to watch.”
grinding
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is a mixed bag; while some players find it tedious and repetitive, particularly with manual docking and resource management, others appreciate the complexity it brings as the game progresses. Those who enjoy grinding may find it rewarding, but many feel that the clunky UI and repetitive tasks detract from overall enjoyment. Overall, patience is required to fully engage with the game's mechanics.
- “You can't even grow your space uber empire because ships cannot pick up VIP people on contracts unless you are manually docking at the station, which means going through the tedious repetition of docking then traveling to another station to disembark the guest.”
- “It's really quite tedious running loads of materials all over the place when the AI is supposed to be doing that.”
- “I appreciated the slow, precise docking procedure...until about the tenth time, after which it became tedious.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
Overall, the game's stability is generally praised, with many users noting it runs smoothly and is mostly bug-free, especially on Linux. However, some players have reported frustrating bugs related to ship controls and criticized aspects of the game design.
- “The game is (almost) bug free.”
- “It plays smoothly, isn't the buggy horror show that the recent X-series games have been, and scratches that itch perfectly.”
- “The game already feels mostly finished and it runs great with no stuttering, performance issues, or crashes.”
- “Oh well, yet another buggy game.”
- “The ship controls are buggy and frustrating, and the game design is lazy and unimaginative.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Overall, the game's optimization is mixed; while some players report smooth performance and no crashes, others experience significant issues like micro-stuttering during combat that detracts from the experience. Despite these frustrations, many appreciate the game's graphics and its ability to run well even on lower-end hardware.
- “Beyond my one complaint, the game runs smoothly and is extremely addicting.”
- “The game already feels mostly finished and it runs great (no stuttering/performance issues, and no crashes).”
- “The graphics are cool and look good, yet it runs smoothly on my potato laptop.”
- “This isn't realistic for us, in part because of the business aspect - not exactly buying-a-house grade sales - and because of the very intricate nature of the game, where every new element tends to wreak havoc on quality, balancing, or performance.”
- “I really like the game, but I cannot recommend it due to extremely frustrating micro-stuttering occurring only in combat.”
- “When that happens, performance takes a nosedive.”
replayability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game offers minimal replayability, with many users feeling that a single playthrough is sufficient.
- “One playthrough is enough since there is close to zero replayability.”
- “The game lacks any meaningful choices, making it feel repetitive after the first run.”
- “Once you've completed it, there's little incentive to go back for a second playthrough.”