Survival games can sometimes be very stressed inducing. Not so for Journey to a Savage Planet. Created by Typhoon Studios, this exploration game is about the wonder of being dropped in an alien world. There are dangers, and their are tasks you have to fulfill, but there is no sense of being pushed to grab one thing after another. Not to mention the game is also pretty damn funny.
A member of Kindred Aerospace ( voted the fourth best eight years running!), you are dropped in a strange alien world with one main goal. To determine if the planet is suitable for humans to live on. It seems that the planet AR-Y 26 might just have what it takes. You have to find food, see if the creatures are friendly or not and make a determination. If Subnatica was about an interstellar desert island, Savage Planet is about an alien new world. One that you are being paid to explore.
The game is absolutely gorgeousness. Bright colors are everywhere you look and the planet life looks both alien and familiar. The creatures are strange, almost animal like creatures. No higher intelligence life forms here, at lest none that I have found so far. Most will just study you curiously, but others might attack you if you get to close. Not knowing what is harmless and what is not is part of the fun.
Savage Planet is also funny, due mostly to your AI assistant. Not just simple a database that talks, this AI will actually question your decisions. This game is aware about how survival video games have conditioned gamers to act. If you decide to to eat something on the planet, the AI will point out that doing so is an insane idea. One of the biggest laughs was after I died and came back to life how my AI “documented” my life.
Savage Planet brings back the wonder of exploring. When the first explores found new worlds in our planet, some did it just to find out what was there. There is no ticking clock, no invasion you have to prepare for. Looking around and seeing what this planet has to offer brings a simple joy. It feels like a alien worrld, not just Earth with bright colors.
Journey to a Savage Planet should be played by everyone, but especially those who love a good casual experience. There is something strange about saying a survival game is relaxing, but the developers have created a planet that you will want to visit again and again.
9/10
Available on PS4, Xbox and PC.
