Cities Skylines may be criticised for lacking melodrama, but it has the detail and density that let you control every small aspect of your developing metropolis. Mass Effect, on the other hand, is a grand space opera from BioWare in which the fate of the entire universe is at stake. Ixion, a new survival-based city building game available right now on Steam, disproves the notion that they are a bad match by having you carefully manage your space station in order to keep humanity alive.
To cut it short, Earth, as seems increasingly likely in our own, non-videogame reality is done for, destroyed by natural disasters, pollution, and who knows what else. As the Administrator of Tiqqun space station, your job is to design, build, and maintain a liveable habitat for your remaining pocket of survivors as you eagerly search for somewhere new that humanity can call home.
But space is no picnic. Electrical fires, hull breaches, and the threat of other survivor factions, who – to paraphrase H.G. Wells – regard Tiqqun with envious eyes, mean you’re constantly battling for your life, and your incipient society’s survival. Your choices drive the story of Ixion, as you struggle to balance the imminent needs of your people with the resources required for finding other Earth refugees, and building a better future.
It looks fantastic, too, a spectacular mix of harsh industrialism and florid sci-fi colours – think the original Alien meets Cyberpunk 2077. Ixion is out on Steam today, December 7. If you like city builders, and love a challenge, pick it up.
You might also want to try some of the other best building games, or maybe some grand strategy games, if you think you can handle all that power. Alternatively, check out our guide to the best RTS games, if you’re feeling a bit more action than planning.