The Crust

About

"The Crust" is a single-player game with an intriguing story and outstanding game mechanics that allow you to mine lunar resources, automate production, and explore the moon's secrets. However, be prepared for grinding, poor optimization, and numerous bugs. The game also offers resource trading with Earth, colonist management, and research advancements.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

+34

73%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,194 reviews

story154 positive mentions

stability114 negative mentions

The game has a cool premise and engaging story, combining elements of factory building and colony management.
The soundtrack is fantastic and adds to the immersive atmosphere of the game.
The developers are very active in addressing bugs and implementing updates, showing commitment to improving the game.

The game is riddled with bugs and crashes, making it frustrating to play at times.
The drone AI is often unresponsive and does not follow assigned priorities, leading to inefficiencies.
The pacing of the game can be slow, with many timed missions that feel overwhelming and difficult to complete.

story
784 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
77%
3%
The game's story is generally seen as intriguing and enjoyable, featuring a corporate agent stranded on the moon after a disaster, tasked with rebuilding using drones and automated systems. However, many players find the narrative execution flawed, with confusing mission structures, tight time constraints, and a lack of emotional depth for supporting characters, leading to frustration during gameplay. While the story has potential and offers interesting choices, it often feels like an over-glorified tutorial plagued by bugs and balancing issues, detracting from the overall experience.
- “A story that involves basically a corporate agent (you) stranded on the moon by a devastating impact event and rebuilding from there using drones and automated manufacturing... cool right?”
- “The story mode is mostly voice acted with the odd cutscene here and there, a fun little story mode with an overarching threat to motivate you to keep optimizing/producing.”
- “The cutscenes and story add an engaging narrative layer that pulls you deeper into the game’s world.”
- “The game has a story that is basically an over-glorified tutorial that makes you repeat yourself; the atmosphere feels clunky and not very well thought out, as well as not letting you feel like a pioneer but rather a person put in charge of an over-explored moon, and you're just there to pick up the scraps people leave behind with annoying hauling missions.”
- “The state of the missions in the story is bad... I do not know how the rest of the game is, because the story needs constant resets due to the deceiving narration messages and objectives at times.”
- “The story has you making critical choices without any info on what the various options are going to mean, with missions that are downright impossible to complete without save/load.”
gameplay
352 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
68%
6%
The gameplay of this early access title is characterized by a mix of engaging mechanics and strategic planning, offering a unique experience reminiscent of popular factory and colony simulation games. While many players appreciate the depth and potential of the gameplay, they also highlight significant issues such as bugs, incomplete mechanics, and a need for better balance and user experience. Overall, the game shows promise but requires further refinement to enhance the overall enjoyment and functionality.
- “The gameplay mechanics are robust, with a strong focus on strategic planning.”
- “The attention to detail in the lunar landscape is incredible, and the gameplay mechanics are both challenging and rewarding.”
- “The gameplay loop is very addictive and compelling.”
- “Game needs a lot and a lot of QoL improvements and has really so many stupid mechanic decisions, that either someone is really inexperienced in this genre of games or lazy or again was forced to push the game too fast.”
- “The gameplay can slow down as you advance over time.”
- “I hope they fix this stuff because the theme and idea are cool, but the overall gameplay loop is boring.”
music
172 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
43%
2%
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim, with many players praising its atmospheric quality and ability to enhance the overall experience. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as one of the standout features, often describing it as phenomenal, immersive, and fitting for a space-themed setting. However, some users noted concerns about copyright issues and a limited number of tracks, which could lead to repetitiveness during gameplay.
- “The visuals, combined with the ambient soundtrack, perfectly capture the sense of isolation and ambition on the moon.”
- “The music in this game is worth playing it for; it sets the tone and pace nicely and the sound quality speaks to the quality of the rest of the game.”
- “The soundtrack alone is worth it; it creates the right atmosphere and is particularly great.”
- “First of all.. who the heck made this music?!”
- “Very good game if you like resource management has its annoyances like not being very clear on how to do things. One more thing is there are a grand total of 4 music tracks, so be prepared to hear the same stuff going round and round like a broken record. Hope they add more in the future as this is one reason I keep putting it down as it gets annoying.”
- “Well, the music kinda sucks.”
graphics
144 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
51%
7%
The graphics in the game are generally described as clean and visually appealing, effectively capturing the game's atmosphere, particularly the sense of isolation on the moon. While some players find the visuals decent and well-designed, others note that they lack detail and are not particularly impressive, especially on lower-end PCs. Overall, the graphics are considered good for the genre, with smooth animations and a solid aesthetic, though they may not stand out as groundbreaking.
- “The visuals, combined with the ambient soundtrack, perfectly capture the sense of isolation and ambition on the moon.”
- “The graphics are really impressive and make you feel like you're actually there.”
- “Everything is clear, the graphics are crisp, and it seems to snap into position very smoothly.”
- “Do not try to play it on lower end PC, the graphics are just terrible.”
- “Graphically, the game lacks a lot of detail.”
- “Graphics from early 2000s and very short discovery tree.”
stability
118 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
97%
The game currently suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous bugs and glitches reported by players, particularly in its early access state. While some users find enjoyment in the content and potential, many express frustration over frequent crashes, unresponsive mechanics, and the need for workarounds to progress. Overall, the consensus is that the game is too buggy for a smooth experience, and potential buyers are advised to wait for further development and fixes.
- “So much content already, and while not entirely bug-free, I've yet to encounter one that breaks the game in any way.”
- “That said, it is an EA game, it is not bug-free, and it is not complete... I believe many of the negative comments are related to higher than EA expectations.”
- “Game is unforgivably broken and buggy.”
- “However the main issue is that, despite frequent patches, it remains a buggy mess, even for an early access game.”
- “If you are deciding to buy an early access game to enjoy the playthrough without a need of finding ways around roadblocking buggy features and new crashes on new releases, this game is too early.”
optimization
92 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
56%
24%
Overall, the game's optimization is a mixed bag; while some players report smooth performance and stability, particularly on mid-tier systems, many others highlight significant issues, especially in late-game scenarios where frame rates drop considerably. Frequent updates from developers aim to address these performance problems, but players still encounter bugs and a lack of quality-of-life features that hinder the overall experience. As it stands, the game shows promise but requires further optimization to meet the expectations of factory management enthusiasts.
- “The automation and factory optimization is super neat, and the tech tree is fun to progress through.”
- “But the developer hits up every week a performance patch, bug fixes and improvements to make the game stable and fun to play.”
- “Performance is stable, with only one crash in 13 hours of play, and the developers are quick to address any issues.”
- “The endgame performance is also not good, my frames started to drop and I have a high-end machine.”
- “At this stage, it is very unoptimized, with some works yet to be done (especially bugs and colonists management, and late game optimization).”
- “Optimization is bad... the game lags so much mid-game... after each update, save file is trash.”
replayability
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
68%
11%
Overall, the game's replayability is a mixed bag; while some players appreciate the randomized map features and the potential for optimization, many express frustration with the lack of variety and persistent bugs. The recent updates have improved playability, but several reviewers still feel that the game lacks sufficient replay value, particularly in sandbox mode, which mirrors the tutorial campaign. As the game is still in early access, opinions on its replayability may change as further updates are released.
- “Replayability certainly exists since the map randomizes the node locations in every new game on sandbox and I think campaign.”
- “This may not be apparent on your first playthrough, but it encourages replayability as you try to optimize your approach.”
- “- good replayability”
- “I don't think that this has any replayability in it.”
- “Sandbox play is identical to tutorial campaign so there is no replayability.”
- “So this drops the replay value to 1...maybe 0.”
atmosphere
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
32%
11%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and haunting qualities, effectively complemented by a brilliant soundtrack that enhances the overall experience. While some players find the narrative and mechanics lacking, many appreciate the lonely vibes and thematic elements that evoke a sense of exploration and disaster on the moon. However, there are mixed opinions on the music, with some feeling it doesn't fully align with the game's atmosphere.
- “The atmosphere is immersive.”
- “Mostly, I really love the atmosphere of this game - it gives off lonely, haunting vibes, which are perfect for the setting.”
- “The sound and music perfectly complement the game's atmosphere.”
- “The game has a story that is basically an over-glorified tutorial that makes you repeat yourself. The atmosphere feels clunky and not very well thought out, as well as not letting you feel like a pioneer, but rather a person put in charge of an over-explored moon, and you're just there to pick up the scraps people leave behind with annoying hauling missions.”
- “In short, this game has similar mechanics to Dyson Sphere Program with less scale, with the atmosphere of Per Aspera.”
- “The atmosphere feels clunky and not very well thought out, as well as not letting you feel like a pioneer, but rather a person put in charge of an over-explored moon.”
grinding
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
4%
92%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, particularly during the mid-game where repetitive tasks, such as filling large containers and managing factory outputs, become overwhelming. The lack of features like copy/paste or blueprint systems exacerbates the monotony, making the overall experience feel slow and cumbersome. While early game pacing is generally well-received, the mid-game grind is seen as a significant drawback that needs improvement.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Some of the big contracts with large amounts of heavy resources get super tedious when you need to fill like 6 large containers for it and then fill them in short order.”
- “Still early days, so early game pacing is great, mid game is grindy and needs a lot of work, and end game doesn't exist yet.”
- “No copy/paste or blueprinting is holding the base building back, gets very tedious manually hooking up wires and building after the first time.”
humor
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by overdramatic music and amusing bugs, such as ice machines operating without power, which players find entertaining. Achievements like "now the fun begins" add to the comedic experience, although some players express a desire to mute a character whose humor they find off-putting. Overall, the game is perceived as funny, especially in the context of its early access status.
- “The music in this game is hilariously overdramatic, as a handful of drones move bricks around the moon.”
- “How funny after finishing the tutorial you get the achievement 'Now the Fun Begins'.”
- “This is an early access game so bugs are to be expected - some of them are quite funny, like the ice machines working when there is no power, but hey - early access says it in the title!”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers express a desire for a more emotionally engaging storyline that incorporates themes of race, survival, and nationalism, rather than the typical corporate conflict narratives. They feel that the current storylines lack depth and fail to captivate players, often leading to a sense of disengagement during gameplay. Overall, there is a call for narratives that resonate on a deeper emotional level.
- “I prefer a more exaggerated and nationalistic storyline that is emotionally engaging, rather than a bland, generic mega corporation conflict.”
- “The story could be more engaging and emotionally resonant for the player, rather than just a basic 'Amazon vs Microsoft' type of narrative.”
- “I appreciate a storyline that evokes strong emotions and connections, rather than the typical corporate rivalry.”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is praised for its straightforward monetization approach, featuring no deceptive microtransactions, which contributes to a positive player experience.
- “An honest game with no BS microtransactions.”