Planet Nomads

66%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,802 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • gameplay
Planet Nomads Game Cover
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Planet Nomads is a sci-fi sandbox game that allows you to build and manipulate structures in a procedurally generated alien world. Survive by gathering resources, crafting tools, and creating technology to protect yourself from the planet's dangerous wildlife. Experience a blend of survival, engineering, and exploration as you navigate through different biomes and uncover the mysteries of the planet.

  • Mac OS
  • PC
  • Windows
  • Linux
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

66%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,802 reviews
story56 positive mentions
optimization40 negative mentions
  • The game offers a unique building and crafting experience with a variety of vehicles and structures to create.
  • The graphics and environment are visually appealing, providing an immersive experience.
  • The developers are responsive to community feedback and regularly update the game.
  • The game suffers from performance issues, including low frame rates and lag, especially during vehicle operation.
  • Many players have reported bugs and glitches that can disrupt gameplay, such as vehicles flipping over or getting stuck.
  • The lack of multiplayer and a more engaging storyline has disappointed some players, leading to a feeling of emptiness in the game.
  • story356 mentions

    The game's story is often described as underdeveloped and lacking depth, with many players feeling it was hastily added and doesn't significantly enhance the gameplay. While some find the premise intriguing, involving a crash landing and exploration of alien ruins, the narrative is primarily conveyed through scattered logs and tablets, leading to a disjointed experience. Overall, players seeking a rich, engaging storyline may be disappointed, as the focus tends to lean more towards survival mechanics and crafting rather than a compelling narrative.

    • “The story is something to do with your ship of thousands of scientists crash landing on this planet, killing everyone but you.”
    • “The questline/storyline feels a lot like Subnautica, with the story unfolding through a series of data pads.”
    • “There is a kind of overarching storyline, there is good reason to build multiple bases as well as mobile units, and there's good reason to do lots of exploring.”
    • “There is a semblance of a story, but it feels like it was shoehorned in after the fact and doesn't really add a whole lot to the game.”
    • “Completing the story is just meh.”
    • “The story feels like they just rushed it with repetitive content and little to bad voice acting just to get it out of early access.”
  • graphics292 mentions

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the vibrant colors and immersive environments, while others criticize the low poly models and performance issues that detract from the overall experience. Many users note that despite the potential for stunning visuals, optimization problems lead to lag and graphical artifacts, making the game feel unfinished. Overall, while the graphics are considered good by some, they fall short of expectations set by promotional materials and suffer from technical shortcomings.

    • “The game's graphics and sound design are also impressive, with detailed environments and immersive sound effects that make the game's world feel alive.”
    • “The graphics are beyond breathtaking, the sound quality and background noise is completely immersive and epic in its emotional grip on the player while traversing the planet, harvesting resources, toiling endlessly with block placement and design and surviving all the perils the planet has to offer.”
    • “Graphics are stunning, immersion is great, I only hope the devs will continue updating it as it is already beating the no man's sky... totally recommended!!!!”
    • “The biggest problem I have with this game is the visuals; they seem to lean towards a realistic look in their textures, but with the low poly models they’re using for the scenery, it feels like something out of a game from the early 2000s.”
    • “Keep in mind that graphic settings were already dumbed down to only medium settings (150+ fps) throughout my gameplay, and with those settings the scenery is absolutely atrocious and the draw distance around your ship/rover is only the very immediate 50-100m vicinity.”
    • “Even with a GTX 1060, the graphics are stuttering, the cockpit view is jumping without any command, existing nearby objects are not visible... and so on.”
  • gameplay274 mentions

    The gameplay of this title is a mixed bag, with many players noting a steep learning curve and numerous bugs that hinder the experience. While the vehicle building and crafting mechanics show potential and can be enjoyable, they are often marred by glitches and a lack of direction, leaving players feeling aimless after initial exploration. Overall, the game offers a light sandbox experience that may appeal to casual players, but it currently lacks depth and polish, making it feel more like an early access title than a fully realized game.

    • “A light sandbox, not too complicated, good for just chilling and casual gameplay.”
    • “The gameplay is functional, and vehicle building has surprising depth and interactivity.”
    • “Finding the perfect balance between the power, weight, features and design of the vehicles, coming up with new inventions and never-ending improvements of the existing ones, all that while exploring and taking care of food and resources, made me sink in hours and hours of immersive gameplay.”
    • “There are broken and incomplete gameplay elements involved in this product.”
    • “No story, actual gameplay is missing; you can only craft things and roam the world without any purpose whatsoever.”
    • “The vehicle mechanics are still buggy and have not improved at all.”
  • optimization150 mentions

    The game's optimization has been widely criticized, with many players reporting severe performance issues such as stuttering, lag, and crashes, even on high-end hardware. Despite some users experiencing decent performance, the overall consensus is that the game is poorly optimized, particularly in terms of physics calculations and rendering, leading to a frustrating experience. Many hope for future updates to address these optimization concerns, as the game currently feels unplayable for a significant number of players.

    • “The performance is surprisingly good for an early access game and plenty of settings in the options to make the game work on my computer.”
    • “There are several options you can adjust to get the performance you want.”
    • “The game has room for a lot more features, polishing, and optimization which I'm certain the creators know.”
    • “Love the game but sadly the stuttering and lag with larger ships/vehicles really ruins it.”
    • “I have a high performance computer and I still, after all this time and turning it way down, have constant lag and crashes to desktop.”
    • “Memory leaks, poor thread optimization, performance problems render this title unplayable on a 9900k with 2080ti.”
  • stability148 mentions

    The game's stability is a significant concern, with numerous players reporting persistent bugs, glitches, and crashes that detract from the overall experience. While some users note that the game runs smoothly at times, many others experience frequent freezing, especially during autosaves, and issues with vehicle physics that can lead to frustrating gameplay moments. Overall, the game feels unfinished and unstable, reflecting its early access status, and many players express disappointment over the lack of developer support for fixing these issues.

    • “This game runs great and as it should.”
    • “It runs great, the story mode helps you learn.”
    • “The physics are glitchy and vehicles and structures can catapult into the air when dismantling or fall through the floor and vanish into the earth. The winch, which is a really needed tool as vehicles flip over easily, also glitches out and rarely works properly.”
    • “The game starts off smooth, but after being in it for 15-20 hours, the UI glitches, random death can occur, falling through your ships/vehicles may happen, and the game will simply crash.”
    • “It's great until you start getting somewhere, then it just becomes buggy and laggy.”
  • grinding108 mentions

    The reviews highlight a significant focus on grinding in the game, particularly in the early hours, which many players find tedious and repetitive. While some appreciate the relaxing nature of voxel mining and the potential for automation, others criticize the lack of engaging content and the cumbersome mechanics involved in resource gathering and base building. Overall, the experience of grinding varies widely among players, with some enjoying it as part of the sandbox experience, while others feel it detracts from the overall enjoyment and narrative engagement.

    • “You can actually explore in this game, because every second is not grinding.”
    • “The first 5-8 hours are nothing but boring grinding and running up-and-down for new part receipts.”
    • “I don't mind grinding or a few hours of crafting, but when there is really no rhyme or reason to it other than to mine and craft some more, then what do you really do???”
    • “In any case, this game is tedious and clunky, and it takes forever to build a base.”
  • music44 mentions

    The music in the game is generally described as peaceful and relaxing, enhancing the calm atmosphere and immersive experience. While many players appreciate the soundtrack and some even purchased it as DLC, there are criticisms regarding repetitiveness and certain irritating sound loops, particularly in specific gameplay scenarios. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's ambiance, though it could benefit from more variety.

    • “The music is peaceful and relaxing, and fits the game's calm demeanor rather well.”
    • “Planet Nomads is immersive because of the beautiful environments, top-notch soundtrack, and the ease of play.”
    • “The environment and music are stunning, and gameplay is really fun.”
    • “I can't count the monolith area as music because it's not, and it's an irritating sound.”
    • “Also, the music loop that plays when you aggro an animal drones on and on, and you'll quickly want to turn it off.”
    • “And the music gets repetitive after a while.”
  • atmosphere22 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its vibrant visuals, diverse and beautifully designed flora and fauna, and immersive sound design that enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the unique charm of the world, which combines elements of exploration and crafting, creating a captivating environment that encourages hours of gameplay. The atmospheric weather and the ability to travel between planets further contribute to a sense of wonder and solitude.

    • “The fauna and flora is diverse and beautifully drawn (and deadly!) For me, the best reward is exploring the atmospheric, beautiful planet (nice soundtrack, too!) I stayed in the game for hours on my first playthrough.”
    • “Sound design coupled with music forms a very atmospheric ambience.”
    • “It took me some time to delve into the crafting atmosphere as I am more of an RPG player.”
    • “Taking off from the surface, flying directly into space and being able to enter another planet's atmosphere and land on that planet.”
    • “Maybe it's the atmosphere, maybe the balance, maybe the solitude - it just feels right.”
  • humor20 mentions

    Players find the humor in the game to be a delightful aspect, often stemming from quirky bugs and the creative possibilities within the physics engine. The combination of amusing gameplay mechanics, such as unexpected character respawns and the ability to manipulate objects in humorous ways, contributes to a lighthearted experience that encourages players to explore their creativity. Overall, the game's charm lies in its ability to generate laughter through both intentional design and unintentional glitches.

    • “The game itself is quite funny.”
    • “Funny game..got it recommended and after a while I got attached to it :) actually much more entertaining than expected...so recommended ;)”
    • “It is very funny, the only limit is your creativity :)”
  • replayability16 mentions

    The game offers significant replayability, particularly for players who enjoy building and experimenting with different strategies, as evidenced by the ability to tweak planet settings and explore various gameplay styles. However, some reviewers noted that the limited content, such as a small number of animal species and monotonous biomes, can diminish long-term engagement after the initial playthrough. Overall, while there is potential for replay value, it may not be sufficient for everyone.

    • “There is a good sense of progression and a bunch of replayability if you enjoy building things and beating the game in different ways.”
    • “Good replayability thanks to the ability to tweak the planet settings: after the first playthrough, I started a second planet: much bigger, mostly ocean, scattered islands with dramatic mountains and deep valleys, and the gameplay got a new twist and inspired further experiments with waterborne vehicles and bases.”
    • “I have played many survival and crafting games, and I have to say this game is quite well designed and nicely balanced. I have been hooked for 3 days now, and I see lots of replay value potential!”
    • “In regards to replayability - when I finished the story and was teleported back to my end base on the planet, I suddenly felt that there's nothing more left.”
    • “There are only six animal species on the planet, not many levels of gear to progress to, the biomes and terrain get to be pretty monotonous... but the real replay value is in the variety of ways you can build and manage your resources; can I build a chopper without leaving spawn?”
    • “So I still can't recommend the game, as it only has little content and not much replay value :(”
  • emotional10 mentions

    Players express a mix of emotional experiences with the game, highlighting its breathtaking graphics and immersive sound design that enhance the emotional journey of exploration and survival. However, the lack of multiplayer interaction can lead to feelings of loneliness and frustration, making the gameplay emotionally draining at times. Overall, while the game has the potential for deep emotional engagement, it can also evoke feelings of isolation and disappointment when played solo.

    • “I wanted to like it... I played it a lot... but without other people to play, explore, and work together, the game is emotionally draining at best and depressingly lonely at worst.”
    • “The graphics are beyond breathtaking, the sound quality and background noise are completely immersive and epic in their emotional grip on the player while traversing the planet, harvesting resources, toiling endlessly with block placement and design, and surviving all the perils the planet has to offer.”
    • “"All terrain" wheels aren't, and trying to go up a tiny, gradual hill in an overpowered buggy will make you want to cry.”
  • character development2 mentions

    The reviews indicate that the game lacks significant character development and a deep, rich story, suggesting that players seeking these elements may be disappointed.

Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

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Play time

23hMedian play time
100hAverage play time
10-100hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 42 analyzed playthroughs

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