There was a time when open worlds made up of flying islands really felt like the New Hotness. I suppose The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is the obvious trendsetter, but my mind always goes back to Bossa’s ill-fated aerial MMO, Worlds Adrift. I have fond memories of a preview session where a developer and I tried to rebuild an airship that was speeding through a hurricane. We failed, but we had a great time falling and dying.
More recently we’ve had Lost Skies (another Bossa joint, born from the crushed remains of Worlds Adrift), Bohemia’s Hytales-ish Eternal windand the curiously fungal Upnone of which seem to have escaped the snarling bonds of Earth and touched the face of the Steam Top 20 most played. Still, zeppelin enthusiasts among game developers continue to try to achieve recovery. Here is a trailer for Atmospherewhose early access release date is now October 29.
In Atmosfar, your goal is to “discover the fate of humanity’s last outpost” on an alien planet, but damn, the main thing to know is that you get two broad varieties of airships. First, there’s the Wasp, a chonky hovercraft that comes in three flavors to start. “Deploy a collapsible camp with the Utility Wasp, airlift heavy debris with the Cargo Wasp, or stun your enemies with the Striker Wasp,” the developers explain. explain on Steam. “It’s all about bringing the right wasp for the job.” I’m pretty sure American elections work the same way.
You can’t fit a lot of potted plants and free-standing cabinets inside a Wasp, so the developers also gave us a Cloud Cruiser – an awesome mobile air base that looks like a Marvel Helicarrier, except it’s made by P&O and not Tony Stark. It features landing pads, a hangar, and a lounge where you can hang out with up to three cooperative friends. The interaction between Wasps and Cloud Cruisers reminds me a bit of the beautiful symbiosis between Seamoth and Cyclops in Subnautica.
The islands themselves are very pleasant to contemplate. While I wouldn’t say the aesthetic is surprisingly unusual, it may be my favorite sky island game. They have rounded the mountains, forest canopies and rocky undersides in such a way that they fit elegantly among the crowded clouds. I can’t wait to land somewhere and immediately abandon myself, leaving my wasp parked on a slope.
The Atmosfar Early Access launch will include two regions. The game “will remain in Early Access for at least 9 months, but this period could be extended with more content added if enough Wanderers join us on the flight.” (“Vagabonds” is what they call Atmosfar players. I hate when developers try to characterize their players that way – it’s all Bungie’s fault for calling every Destiny player a Guardian. But you know what, that’s okay. This particular battle with community management is long lost.)
During Early Access, they will add a third and final region, a fourth race of Wasps, and more build options for Cloud Cruisers. Developers Apog are also the creators of a tycoon management game Airport CEOwho I guess is on the same wavelength.
