Oxygen: First Breath

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Oxygen: First Breath is a single player survival city builder game with economy and post-apocalyptic themes. It was developed by Turquoise Revival Games and was released on October 7, 2022. It received positive reviews from players.

STORYA natural disaster hit us and brought humanity to the verge of extinction. Only a few survived because of "Large Igneous Provinces", these are volcanoes that don't explode but huge cracks open in the Earth's crust and lava just starts bubbling out, oozing across the landscape, releasing tons of toxic gases. The most dangerous thing about an igneous province is that it can keep up th…

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84%

Audience ScoreBased on 410 reviews

gameplay21 positive mentions

grinding7 negative mentions

Engaging resource management and survival mechanics with a unique oxygen-based twist.
Clear, functional user interface and tutorials that ease players into complex systems.
Atmospheric post-apocalyptic setting with compelling environmental challenges and dynamic events.

Limited content and scope due to being a prologue/demo, ending abruptly before deeper strategies develop.
High difficulty and balancing issues, with strict, sometimes opaque task requirements causing player frustration.
AI and behavioral quirks, such as poor worker movement and prioritization, leading to unnecessary deaths and micromanagement.

gameplay
62 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
61%
5%
The gameplay of Oxygen: First Breath is praised for its engaging and smooth resource management mechanics, combining city-building and survival elements into a compelling, if condensed, experience. While the demo offers a solid tutorial, fluid controls, and a balanced interplay between expansion and crisis management, some find the mechanics somewhat shallow, repetitive, and lacking depth or transparency, limiting long-term engagement. Overall, the gameplay is enjoyable and functional but could benefit from more complexity and content to fully realize its potential.
- “Oxygen: First Breath, developed by Turquoise Revival Games and published by GrabTheGames and UpgradePoint, presents itself as a prologue but carries enough mechanical weight to feel like a complete, if condensed, survival city-building experience.”
- “The gameplay revolves around constructing and maintaining a settlement centered on an oxygen-producing core, which functions as both the heart of the colony and its greatest vulnerability.”
- “This dynamic gives the gameplay a rhythm that alternates between controlled expansion and urgent crisis management, preventing it from ever becoming too comfortable or predictable.”
- “This creates a sense of momentum that is never fully resolved, leaving players with a clear understanding of the mechanics but without the opportunity to push them to their limits.”
- “Some systems also lack full transparency, requiring experimentation to fully grasp how certain efficiencies or penalties work, which can occasionally lead to frustration, especially for players who prefer more clearly communicated mechanics.”
- “It's a minimal city builder theme with a minimal survival mechanic poured on top of it that amounts to you basically building the same fish bowl every time and then just watching until a random event kills all of your fish.”
story
49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
80%
8%
The story is generally considered light and underdeveloped, serving mainly as a backdrop rather than a fully fleshed-out narrative. Many players find it resembles an introductory chapter or sandbox without meaningful missions or campaign depth, lacking the engaging storytelling seen in similar games. While the setting and premise show promise, there is widespread desire for more lore, plot development, and varied quest design to enhance narrative engagement.
- “It is a a thoughtful and engaging experience for players who enjoy strategic planning under pressure, even if it ultimately feels like the opening chapter of a much larger story.”
- “Really good game that I played; I liked the intro, sound, graphics, the animation, and the storyline.”
- “Had some plot twists, and constantly having to move people from one job to the next to get enough resources to face nature.”
- “After a while playing it, you can't find any of your people; they die too quick, there are not enough people to collect what you need fast enough. It takes too many research points to build the tower to find more people around the globe, you run out of energy too fast, and you can't find enough craters to complete the quest in the given time.”
- “Waiting for the RNG of a vent popping up after you can rush a research facility and research the gas extractor but before the quest ends, like one or two days later, and you still have to build the gas extractor. Not to mention you shouldn't need to pre-plan exactly enough resources for a building you haven't even researched yet in order to have those resources ready when it's time to build not one but two extractors that don't do anything other than act as a +1 villager farming coal for you temporarily. Very, very bad quest especially considering it's only the second quest in the game (not counting the tutorials which were nice even if they need a bit of polishing).”
- “To start with, there's no missions or variations or story depth. It's a sandbox style, but without any of the freedoms of a sandbox; while lacking the personality of a mission with story content.”
graphics
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
39%
51%
10%
The graphics receive mixed feedback, with some praising the realistic and beautiful art style, atmospheric visuals, and clear UI, while others find them outdated, amateurish, or not as impressive compared to similar games. Several users note that graphics could improve in the final release, and that good graphics alone are insufficient without strong content. Overall, the visuals are functional and stylistically consistent but vary in perceived quality.
- “The graphics and art of the game are very beautiful, just the way I like it!”
- “Very interesting to see your people have different actions and this game has stunning graphics.”
- “No bugs, graphics optimized, very realistic, I just don't know what bad I can say about this game.”
- “Graphics look worse than C&C Generals.”
- “The graphics are not up to the mark, maybe will be better in its full release.”
- “It would be nice if the game graphics and music were improved in the final release.”
music
17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
24%
58%
18%
The music in the game is generally praised for being relaxing, thematic, and fitting the atmosphere well, though some users find it repetitive or monotonous due to limited tracks on loop. A few critiques mention that certain royalty-free or Halloween-themed music choices detract from the experience. Overall, the soundtrack is good but could benefit from richer performances and more variety.
- “The music is top notch, it's beautiful, it suits the concept of the game perfectly and is still fun to listen to despite listening to it for 3 hours.”
- “Great game with an easy to follow tutorial and a good atmosphere provided by the music and setting.”
- “The sound and design is again largely strong; the music is melancholic without being depressing, very thematic.”
- “Repetitive soundtrack.”
- “I do wish, however, that the music (violin) was a better performance and richer in sound quality produced by the artist.”
- “The music that kept playing was a bit monotonous, but I guess it's because this is merely a trial with only one track on loop?”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
37%
27%
The atmosphere is generally praised for its immersive and challenging depiction of a harsh, inhospitable environment with detailed weather and climate mechanics. While the audio design is competent and complements the setting without overpowering, some users find the overall atmosphere lacking impact. Overall, the game's atmospheric visuals, sound, and setting effectively enhance the experience, balancing tension and calmness.
- “Sudden temperature drops, toxic atmospheric conditions, and geological instabilities all demand preparation rather than improvisation.”
- “The plot, in short, is this and the climate and atmosphere of the game is very well developed, with season mechanics, resource collection, weather afflictions, eventual disasters, etc. Too many details to write here.”
- “Great game with an easy to follow tutorial and a good atmosphere provided by the music and setting.”
- “Decent idea, but simply lackluster, no atmosphere at all.”
- “Gather resources and rebuild civilization while trying to breathe in the thin atmosphere of a dead Earth – what's not to love!”
- “Set in a dystopian future where nuclear war has made the atmosphere of Earth inhospitable.”
grinding
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
88%
Grinding in the game is widely described as tedious and frustrating, requiring precise resource pre-planning and waiting on RNG events that slow progression. Early quests, especially, involve repetitive tasks with little payoff, making the experience feel slow and monotonous. While the game has potential, players hope for less grinding and more engaging content in future updates.
- “Waiting for the RNG of a vent popping up after you can rush a research facility and research the gas extractor, but before the quest ends like one or two days later... and you still have to build the gas extractor. Not to mention you shouldn't need to pre-plan exactly enough resources for a building you haven't even researched yet in order to have those resources already ready when it's time to build not one but two extractors that don't do anything other than act as a +1 villager farming coal for you temporarily. Very very bad quest especially considering it's only the second quest in the game (not counting the tutorials which were nice even if they need a bit of polishing).”
- “Some actions are fairly tedious and need to be balanced, UI also needs a bit of work but overall really fun game.”
- “Hopefully, when it launches, there's more things to do instead of a good amount of time grinding and speeding things.”
optimization
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
14%
43%
The game's optimization receives mixed feedback, with some users noting minor performance issues and clunky management controls that feel inefficient, while others praise its smooth, bug-free performance and well-optimized graphics. Overall, it runs well but could benefit from improved management design for better handling.
- “No bugs, graphics optimized, very realistic, I just don't know what bad I can say about this game.”
- “The game performance is flawless, the gameplay itself is a tight management of prep and putting out fires, it's quite fun to be able to manage the problems you're getting and solving them.”
- “Simple and good controls, the game runs smoothly, no bugs or issues after more than 80 minutes of pure gameplay!”
- “Honestly, the game is entertaining; it's just a run-of-the-mill city builder. However, it feels like a crypto miner or is horribly optimized.”
- “Also, the management of the settlers needs to be improved through more intelligent design and UI elements. It feels far too clumsy to manage everyone every few seconds for optimized handling; it just makes no sense in this part.”
- “Minor performance issues.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
User experiences with stability are mixed: while some find the game free of bugs and glitches with a smooth learning curve, others report persistent bugs and significant imbalance that make gameplay frustrating. Overall, stability appears inconsistent across different users.
- “I have really enjoyed this demo, excellent tutorial, good learning curve, it's like a modern day Banished and in the hours I played I found no glitches.”
- “Tl;dr: still buggy and very unbalanced making playing frustratingly impossible.”
- “Is it a buggy unplayable mess like most games released early on Steam?”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The replayability is limited by a lack of creative freedom, as players are often forced to follow specific paths to succeed. While some games in the genre offer multiple missions, campaigns, or sandbox modes with random or custom maps to enhance replay value, this game does not fully leverage such features.
- “Most games in this genre offer a few main missions or campaigns to choose from, along with a sandbox mode that adds replay value through random or custom maps.”
- “Forcing 'replayability' to find the correct way leaves no creativity or freedom of play.”
- “Most games in this genre have a few main missions or campaigns to pick from and sometimes a sandbox mode on the side for added replay value, either with random maps or custom maps.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by amusing bugs and quirky character behaviors, such as kids standing idle or sending non-existent people on missions. Players find these moments unintentionally funny, adding a lighthearted charm despite the game's lack of combat.
- “Only 'bug' to report... it is hilarious that the kids just stand there doing... exactly nothing.”
- “Funny bug, you literally send non-existent people to the signal tower mission.”
- “You gotta work your population like hoarders gone wild and it's funny, I just wish there was a combat aspect to the game to make it even more interesting.”

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Frequently Asked Questions

Oxygen: First Breath is a survival city builder game with economy and post-apocalyptic themes.

Oxygen: First Breath is available on PC and Windows.

Oxygen: First Breath was released on October 7, 2022.

Oxygen: First Breath was developed by Turquoise Revival Games.

Oxygen: First Breath has received positive reviews from players. Most players liked Oxygen: First Breath for its gameplay but disliked it for its grinding.

Oxygen: First Breath is a single player game.

Similar games include Oxygen, Endzone: A World Apart, New Cycle, Synergy, Flotsam and others.

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