I’m building a farm for robocows, which will be made into roboburgers to feed a population of steam-powered humanoid robots. None of this makes sense, but who cares. Games in this charming robopunk series have always placed characterful quirkiness above realism, and they’re all the better for it.
SteamWorld has a history of swapping genres, with the steambots going from space shootouts in one game to fantasy role-playing in the next. This time around we’re served a hybrid of city-builder and dungeon-crawler. Initially you’re tasked with building a settlement for your steambots in a wild west-style desert, setting up production chains in a style reminiscent of The Settlers. A forester produces logs, which are processed by a lumber mill to make boards, which are then used to make buildings, and so on.
Workerbots need access to services to keep them happy: a general store, a repair shop, a farm to provide cactus water for their thirsty boilers. The characteristic SteamWorld quirkiness shines through in these constructions, which stray far outside the norms of the city-builder genre; for example, your progress can be impeded if the upper-class aristobots don’t have access to enough pleasing hats.
It’s wonderfully forgiving, designed to welcome newcomers. Best of all is the inclusion of a “move tool”, which allows you to pick up and relocate any building to another spot at no cost. As your city becomes more and more crowded, it’s a cinch to simply rearrange it all into a more orderly, efficient layout.
The other half of SteamWorld Build is reminiscent of Bullfrog’s classic game Dungeon Keeper. The aim is to dig beneath the surface of the city to excavate six rocket parts, which can be assembled to let your bots escape from the doomed planet. Down in the mines, bots can be recruited as diggers, prospectors and mechanics, carving out tunnels in the dirt and reaping the precious resources to make goods for the city above.
But the diggers soon uncover enemies lurking in the dark, so you’ll need to recruit guards to keep your miners safe, as well as set up automated defences. Game sessions soon adopt a familiar rhythm. Your excavations will be held up by the lack of workers or resources, prompting a switch to focusing on expanding your city. Then your city expansion might be restricted by the lack of a resource that can only be found deeper into the mine, prompting a return to the depths.
If you’ve sunk many hours into something like Cities Skylines, then SteamWorld Build will feel a little simplistic. There are no natural disasters to wreak havoc on your progress, nor is there any need to lay down infrastructure besides building roads. It’s also fairly short, a full playthrough lasting perhaps 12 hours, depending on how long you spend tinkering with your city. There are a few different maps to try, and each unlocks a unique building upon completion, although the differences between areas are superficial.
But it’s all just so damn charming. The animations are superb, and zooming right down into the city to watch your robot citizens go about their business never seems to grow old. The move tool means that the perfect city is always within your grasp, inviting endless adjustments in the quest for maximum efficiency. It’s easy to lose hours in reverie, tending to your steambots’ needs. Who else is going to keep them supplied with roboburgers?
SteamWorld Build is out on 1 December; £24.99
