The development team is responsive, thoughtful, and genuinely in love with making their games.

At first Icarus had a real-life timer that would countdown even when you weren't playing, had real-life obligations or unforeseen events that kept you from finishing a mission you started, as a result many lost their progress and character, basically a permadeath mechanic. Conceptually a good idea but the real-time countdown regardless of whether you were playing or not was simply unacceptable for the amount of grind the game asks of you and the grind real life often asks from so many of us.

Now the timer stops when you logoff/lose power/have real life obligations etc, the grind has become less intense, and the amount of content is staggering. Overall the missions are entertaining, some are monotonous and filled with tedium which I find less enjoyable, particularly when the game bugs out or a scripted event doesn't play out as intended(usually fixed with quitting and reloading the save).

The building aspect of Icarus has been my most favorite part of the game, the art style, the snapping, the options & variety, and how it's all implemented and how much it allows for creativity is very rewarding.
Mounts have been added which have made moving across the map much faster and better for quick startup of a new camp by using tamed creatures to carry cargo.

You may also play nearly the entire game(each zone) in open world mode, which you can also tweak to presets of difficulty options allowing you to find your best fit.

Additionally with Icarus being an Unreal Engine game, community content has already become quite promising and with a developer that doesn't discourage that creativity- Icarus is sure to last well beyond its life-cycle. I've enjoyed making mods for Icarus and am super happy with how easy it is to mod and how respectful and encouraging Rocketwerkz is towards the modding community and creators.

Looking forward to what Rocketwerkz has in the works for Icarus in the future content releases they've already planned, the content released thus far has not disappointed me in the slightest.

Edit: It's been quite some time since release, and Icarus just keeps getting better, the amount they've added both via DLC and for free via updates has been such a wonderful surprise from a developer that could've moved on by now having left an amazing game, but Rocketwerkz just keeps adding and polishing.
The list of developers I feel truly love what they do is quite short, and Rocketwerkz is very near to the top of that list.

TLDR: Buy this game.

The development team is responsive, thoughtful, and genuinely in love with making their games. At first Icarus had a real-life timer that would countdown even when you weren't playing, had real-life obligations or unforeseen events that kept you from finishing a mission you started, as a result many lost their progress and character, basically a permadeath mechanic. Conceptually a good idea but the real-time countdown regardless of whether you were playing or not was simply unacceptable for the amount of grind the game asks of you and the grind real life often asks from so many of us. Now the timer stops when you logoff/lose power/have real life obligations etc, the grind has become less intense, and the amount of content is staggering. Overall the missions are entertaining, some are monotonous and filled with tedium which I find less enjoyable, particularly when the game bugs out or a scripted event doesn't play out as intended(usually fixed with quitting and reloading the save). The building aspect of Icarus has been my most favorite part of the game, the art style, the snapping, the options & variety, and how it's all implemented and how much it allows for creativity is very rewarding. Mounts have been added which have made moving across the map much faster and better for quick startup of a new camp by using tamed creatures to carry cargo. You may also play nearly the entire game(each zone) in open world mode, which you can also tweak to presets of difficulty options allowing you to find your best fit. Additionally with Icarus being an Unreal Engine game, community content has already become quite promising and with a developer that doesn't discourage that creativity- Icarus is sure to last well beyond its life-cycle. I've enjoyed making mods for Icarus and am super happy with how easy it is to mod and how respectful and encouraging Rocketwerkz is towards the modding community and creators. Looking forward to what Rocketwerkz has in the works for Icarus in the future content releases they've already planned, the content released thus far has not disappointed me in the slightest. Edit: It's been quite some time since release, and Icarus just keeps getting better, the amount they've added both via DLC and for free via updates has been such a wonderful surprise from a developer that could've moved on by now having left an amazing game, but Rocketwerkz just keeps adding and polishing. The list of developers I feel truly love what they do is quite short, and Rocketwerkz is very near to the top of that list. TLDR: Buy this game.