Klei Entertainment (it rhymes with ‘play,’ as the studio will repeatedly tell you) is best known for its egregiously masochistic and deeply unforgettable series of titles under the Don’t Starve name. Don’t Starve is a survival entry that lures you in with its morbidly adorable art, ensnares you with its addictive gameplay, and then spits you back out for being a blunderhead and not knowing how to not make trees angry, or not knowing how to light a fire at night. And, as of May 18, 2017, Klei took your oxygen away, too.
Meet Oxygen Not Included, a self-described space-colony simulation that looks as frustratingly delicious as Don’t Starve. It’s currently available in Early Access, where Klei Entertainment doesn’t hesitate to utilize it for gathering feedback to improve it for the future. It has very positive reviews from Steam, where it’s already earned the phrase “fun but not easy” (this should be shocking to no one).
In Oxygen Not Included, you’ll have to manage your colonists and build a subterranean asteroid base. You’ll need all the basics you needed in Don’t Starve (food, water, warmth) plus enough oxygen to keep everyone sane and alive. Could it possibly be more difficult than the Don’t Starve series, where many players, despite hours of nail-biting gameplay, never made it through one cycle of seasons? Sure. Why not?
Klei Entertainment is also engaged in making a title called Hot Lava, an indie that plays exactly as your childhood imagination would have it. Both Oxygen Not Included and Hot Lava are in development, and it may be a while yet before we see either come to fruition. There is, furthermore, a third title quietly in development, called Griftlands. This one is an RPG where “everything is negotiable,” and not too much else is known about it. There’s a lot to look forward to, and in the meantime, we’ll keep our heads down and just try not to starve.
Game Pilgrim 