Mars Base
- October 17, 2022
- Khuong Le
- 10h median play time
Get on SteamWelcome to Mars Base, humanity’s foothold on the Red Planet! Join the expedition as an interstellar botanist and make history: turn barren soil into fertile farmland, grow food for colonists’ tables, and unearth the secrets of Mars! Are you ready to science the “crop” out of everything?
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Playstation 5
Windows
PlayStation
Reviews
- The game features a charming pixel art style and a vibrant Mars theme that many players find appealing.
- There are fun mini-games and a variety of activities that can keep players engaged, offering a relaxed gameplay experience.
- The developers are responsive to feedback and are actively working on updates to improve the game.
- The game suffers from significant technical issues, including crashes and unintuitive controls that hinder the overall experience.
- Many players find the lack of guidance and clarity in quests frustrating, leading to confusion about objectives and gameplay mechanics.
- The game feels unfinished and lacks depth, with repetitive tasks and limited NPC interactions that fail to engage players fully.
- story16 mentions
- 19 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game has received mixed feedback, with players noting a lack of clarity in quest tracking and insufficient explanations for objectives, leading to confusion and frustration. NPCs are described as lacking depth, with limited interactions and repetitive dialogue, which detracts from the overall narrative experience. While there are some story elements and quests to engage with, many players feel that the storyline is not compelling enough to sustain long-term interest.
“There is no marriage or romance, but there is a small story to figure out while you play.”
“I’m not very far in the story as I only played 30 minutes, but I can see myself playing this game a lot.”
“You will also be given quests by the settlers with no time limit or way to lose.”
“The NPCs are soulless cutouts; all of them have like one quest (a few as of yet don't even have quests) and then they just repeat the same 1-2 lines every day. This is unfairly compared to Littlewood, where each NPC has a distinct personality, their own wants out of the town, and you can hang out with them, flirt with them, etc.”
“Some things are insufficiently explained (like a quest I didn't know was aimed at the park building). Sometimes I keep opting out of a quest because I'm trying to make the dialogue display faster and click the decline option. Sometimes I feel punished for talking to someone because I get a 5-step set of instructions I can't opt out of.”
“The little scraps of story are something, but not really compelling thus far.”
- grinding10 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed experience, with some enjoying the gradual progression from basic tasks like soil extraction to more complex activities such as farming, fishing, and combat. While the game offers a unique sci-fi twist on the farming sim genre reminiscent of classics like Harvest Moon, the need for repetitive tasks to unlock new features can feel tedious for some. Overall, it’s recommended for those who appreciate light farming mechanics within a survival context, especially if they enjoy a Mars aesthetic.
“Turns out I needed to sleep another couple of nights before the farmer showed up to give me the blueprint for the greenhouse, which was where I ended up farming.”
“What starts out as little more than extracting soil from Mars turns to farming, then fishing, then combat, then cooking, and so on.”
“A huge tip is to go hard on corn farming as you will need it for a majority of the buildings.”
- graphics9 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming pixel art style, reminiscent of 16-bit console games and classic titles like Pokémon. Players appreciate the retro aesthetic and vibrant character portraits, which contribute to the overall enjoyment and replay value of the game. Overall, the art style is considered a highlight, particularly for fans of nostalgic graphics.
“It has a great art style, fun mini games, and excellent replay value.”
“I've been looking forward to this game and first things first, I absolutely love the graphics in this game.”
“I'm finding it intriguing so far with graphics reminiscent of the 16-bit console era.”
“It kind of brings back Pokémon-type pixel art graphics but in an outer space setting.”
“It's cute, graphics-wise, at least if you like pixel art.”
“I got some mild enjoyment out of it, and if you'd like a Mars aesthetic for a farming game, maybe buy on sale and check it out.”
- gameplay6 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay is centered around a planting mechanic and town-building elements reminiscent of games like Littlewood, offering a fun and addictive experience, particularly for fans of the Mars theme. However, players have expressed a desire for customizable key bindings and a more streamlined quest management system, as navigating menus can be cumbersome. Overall, while the gameplay loop is engaging, it may lack the depth and polish found in similar titles.
“The Mars theme is right up my alley as I love anything to do with Mars, and so far the gameplay has been fun and addicting.”
“Now I haven't completed the game yet, but I can see where the Littlewood suggestion came from; it has a very similar gameplay loop of starting a town from nothing, building up your town by using your energy on daily tasks, and slowly unlocking more features as time goes on and your town grows.”
“Gameplay was also good, but I would've loved to be able to change the key bindings as I'm used to the WASD + IJKL keyboard-only play for games like this.”
“One of the basic mechanics of this game is planting, and I kept thinking I was doing something wrong when I tried to figure out how to plant.”
“In and of itself, it isn't a bad thing. The gameplay loop is very similar to Littlewood, but it lacks the push Littlewood had.”
“After a few extra hours of gameplay, I finally found a way to reread my active quests while on the go. Not a quest menu per se, but they are listed next to the characters' description. However, going there is like a whole journey through the different menus, reminding me of when we had to open 10 different folders just to play solitaire in the '90s.”
- music3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its relaxing and enjoyable nature, even appealing to players who typically mute in-game music. Reviewers express excitement about discovering more tracks as the game evolves, highlighting the effective integration of music with the overall experience.
“The music is great too; I'm looking forward to finding more tracks as the game expands.”
“The music has also been a good choice, coming from someone who normally mutes the music in the games I play.”
“Overall, I’m enjoying the chilled nature of the game. The music is very relaxing, and I love the pixel art.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game boasts a captivating art style and enjoyable mini-games, contributing to its excellent replay value.
“It has a great art style, fun mini-games, and excellent replay value.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the vibrant and unique character designs, which contribute to the overall charm of the game.
“I am in love with the cute character designs and colors; they give the game vibrance and uniqueness.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Users have reported occasional texture glitches, particularly when planting taller crops in front of smaller ones, causing them to blink on and off when approached. Overall, stability appears to have minor issues but does not significantly detract from the gameplay experience.
“There's also a few texture glitches where if you plant a tall crop like corn or wheat in front of a smaller crop, it blinks on and off when you are near it.”
