First things first. Not all DLC for this game are created equal. If you want the most complete Surviving Mars experience, my personal recommendation is to grab the base game and the Green Planet terraforming DLC, as they have the most polish and are arguably the best bang for your buck. My review posted on this page will only go over the base game. Also note that while I own all the DLC, I do feel that Surviving Mars can stand just fine on its own without any DLC at all.

Now, Surviving Mars. With about a dozen different mission sponsors ((think of it as your starting civilization)), scenarios ((called "challenges" in the game)), hundreds of potential landing sites, a handful of plotlines to follow, and many more parameters that you as the player can control going into a playthrough, this game is especially well-balanced towards any playstyle and I feel has a great deal of replayability, something I am always looking for in any game.

I feel this game has a draw for both casual and hardcore gamers alike. It is totally possible to turn off disasters and slowly build your colony at your own relaxed pace over the course of a week or so until you complete the game. Conversely, it is also possible to pick one of the harder mission sponsors in a disaster-prone area and try your best to survive the onslaught of cold waves, meteors and the like. The game is tailored to fit your playstyle, whatever it happens to be, and I feel this adds some longevity to the game, as you can play it differently the next time you come back to it.

Some parameters are more interesting than others, such as Chaos Theory which completely randomizes the tech tree, possibly giving you access to late-game tech early, while simultaneously taking away some more basic functions until later in the game. This was a worthwhile challenge to complete and felt really rewarding at the end of it all. Each playthrough will also have its own collection of "Breakthrough" technologies, most of which you will want to aim towards getting as soon as possible. Most of the Breakthrough techs are massive alterations to the way your game plays, sometimes even entirely changing the way the game operates. In the last run I just completed I still managed to discover a Breakthrough I had never seen before and I had an absolute blast with it.

The game offers multiple plotlines called "Mysteries" that add a primary story for your playthrough to follow. You can choose which mystery you want to play with, turn it off, or randomize it. Random events and other happenings, such as from Planetary Anomalies you can send rockets to investigate, also serve to change things up and make each playthrough unique. I happened to discover a new side-plot just recently that really drew me in with the last playthrough. The writing for the game is especially thoughtful and in an age where I have mostly fallen out of story-based games, it still manages to captivate me.

I seem to grow attached to every colony I build, all of them seem to have their own unique character and charm to them. I enjoy completing each playthrough of this game I start, and even if I end up putting this game back down for months at a time, I am always happy to boot it back up again.

The OST is hands-down one of my favorite game soundtracks of all time. Something about it is just intoxicating and relaxing, focus-sharpening and very much fits into the action of the game itself. The composer really knew what they were doing. I find myself listening to the OST even during periods of time where I'm not actively doing a playthrough or sometimes not even playing games at all. I would purchace a physical CD or vinyl were I ever to stumble across it.

TL;DR Surviving Mars and Green Planet DLC are both 10/10. Surviving Mars can stand on its own just fine, though. Good draw for both casual and hardcore gamers alike depending on playstyle. Great music keeps you going through the challenges, and lots of replayability keeps you coming back again and again to discover more.