Welcome to another edition of Paula’s Game Ramblings. If you like these random thoughts, you can find the other ramblings here.
Joshua, my builder, has hit a wall, quite literally. He has become overwhelmed with stress and low morale, abandoning his position building the new coal power plant. He is now running through the colony, angrily punching random blocks and banging his head against them. Every so often, he stops to try to regain his composure, but it’s clear Joshua is struggling as he quickly resumes his destructive behaviour.
When running past the colony’s previous power generator, which resembles a giant hamster wheel, Joshua even manages to lash out at it and breaks it. Eventually, Joshua makes his way to the massage room, and I’m very happy to see that instead of kicking the table, Joshua decides to lie down for a stress-relieving mechanical back rub. With Joshua’s stress meltdown temporarily managed until the next time, a new problem arises: Jean, another colonist, has started stress vomiting; oh no, the duplicants may get their mops and bucket out and clean up the mess.
Life in Oxygen Not Included
You may be wondering what is going on; well, that’s a little story of what happened in Oxygen Not Included or ONI for short, my latest gaming obsession.
The game was developed by Klei Entertainment and was released back in 2019. I’ve been aware of ONI since it was released but never really paid much attention to it until recently. During the Steam Summer Sale in June, I noticed the game was reduced to £6, so I bought it. Ever since then, Oxygen Not Included and the Duplicants have gotten their tentacles into me, and I can’t stop playing the game.
The game offers a complex simulation and deep strategic gameplay. Oxygen Not Included is a colony management and survival game in which you are responsible for guiding your colonists, known as Duplicates (dupes), through life in an underground asteroid with different biomes.
Lots and Lots to Do
Managing resources like oxygen, since there is none included, managing food, toxic gases, power, and water is crucial to ensure the survival of my colony. The game’s appeal lies in its intricate web of interconnected systems. For instance, generating oxygen also produces heat, so the heat needs to be managed to prevent other issues from arising, like all my plants for food dying. This level of complexity means that every decision I make has consequences.
As my colony expands, I unlock the ability to research and automate various tasks, discover ways to harness renewable energy (like creating massive amounts of steam by pouring water onto magma. Oh, what fun!), and eventually launch rockets to explore other worlds.
Building a sustainable colony isn’t just about survival: it’s about strategic planning, managing stress and morale, and ensuring the physical well-being of my Duplicants….mostly. The game’s intricate simulation of physics, including fluid dynamics, heat distribution, and gas diffusion, adds layers of complexity that make the gameplay deeply engaging.
Constructing and Expanding My Base
Another highlight of the gameplay for me is the joy of constructing and expanding my base, designing rooms, and optimising systems for both functionality and aesthetics. The game’s progression, where I gradually tame the asteroid while constantly bracing for the next looming disaster, fuels that addictive “just one more day” feeling.
It’s the same drive that keeps me hooked on games like Civilization VI. Oxygen Not Included definitely gives me that same thrill, which is why I’ve already sunk over 100 hours into it in the last few months.
Can’t Always Blame The Dupes
When things go wrong in ONI, it’s not because my duplicants didn’t follow orders. In fact, they often follow them too well, digging themselves into traps, sealing themselves off and then suffocating or working so hard they forget to eat or get any sleep.
The dupes aren’t the brightest sparks in the fuse box; in fact, they are rather daft but very endearing. While they work hard, they also have their own personalities (traits) that can affect your base. For instance, each dupe has a toilet speed and a bladder rate, and because of this, accidents can happen as a dupe doesn’t make it to the bathroom on time. Other dupes vomit when stressed or through a fit, just like Joshua did; some dupes, when not stressed and very happy, decorate my base for me, which in turn keeps the other dupes happy.
There are also dupes with bottomless stomachs who will eat all the colony’s food when they get stressed; it’s a full-time job just keeping my eye on what the dupes are up to; it’s like kindergarten at times. It’s especially rewarding when I see the dupes happy: if I happen to have a dupe with a Balloon Artist trait who, when they get overjoyed, hands out balloons to other dupes.
All this is helped along by Oxygen Not Included‘s unique art style and humour, which contribute significantly to its appeal. The charming, cartoonish visuals of the game are not only endearing but also functional. Moreover, the game doesn’t take itself too seriously, as shown by the quirky behaviours of the Duplicants and the humorous descriptions (emotes) throughout the gameplay. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a SPOM (Self-Powering Oxygen Module) to build to keep my dupes alive for a while longer; after all, Oxygen is Not Included.
Do you like our content? Support LadiesGamers on Patreon!
Check out our Tiers and Benefits and join us.