The game is basically Black Mesa incident but you aren't Gordon Freeman but rather a scientist. Game has a nostalgic vibe with survival and crafting elements. I'm 150+hours and still discovering things, huge value for the price and huge W for the survival crafting genre.
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So I've decided to give a more in-depth and UPDATED 1.0 review of the game after finishing it, this game is truly something special for me and it truly deserves more attention so I will try to illustrate it best way I can for whoever may be interested - as I think it currently is one of the most underrated survival crafting games on the market



- Core Survival Crafting Mechanics: The gameplay loop is highly engaging, offering a well-rounded experience that blends crafting, resource management, and exploration seamlessly. Most things have a use, reason and purpose whether functional or aesthetic.The survival crafting and story/narration progression balance is amazing, as you always may have a story goal to do, or you can just do your own thing/improve your base

- Items: Very well thought out sci-fi items/weapons with cool designs that fit the lore/setting perfectly

- Less Grind: Most survival crafting games have problem with grinding, but it can be toned down here, the crafting progression items (like teleporters placing items automatically from your inventory) help greatly ameliorate it and I never feel like the grind takes ages, inventory and resource management as a result is also way easier and doesn't require as much time (database terminals which query the needed items are a godsend)

- Early Access: Before 1.0 the game was impressively packed with content, providing a substantial amount of features and systems, which already feel well-developed despite being in early access

- Clever Lore and Writing: The setting is unique and intriguing, with the lore cleverly woven into the gameplay. You get to travel back and forth through portal worlds that feels fresh and bizarre, offering new challenges and deepening the mystery behind the game's world. The portal worlds each have their own eccentric lore, contributing to the sense of adventure and curiosity as you explore new dimensions, they also respawn items that you need. The journal provides which worlds spawn what items in 1.0

- Humor and Easter Eggs: The humor shines through in unexpected ways in funny emails and dialogues, over the nose job titles, there are also numerous well-hidden Easter Eggs that add to the fun and discovery of the game. There's some horror/tense elements as well

- Game is survival crafting but feels immersive sim-ish in the way it's designed, despite the linear story

- Amazing Level Design: The Dark Souls 1 inspired map design of the game creates thoughtful pathways, shortcuts, and the feeling of a world that connects itself together

- Hidden Puzzles: The game rewards exploration - keen-eyed players with secret puzzles that can be quite rewarding when solved, further encouraging exploration. You may even find hidden portal worlds...

- Creature Variety and Taming: The range of SCP-like creatures adds layers of complexity to survival and exploration. Only a few can be tamed, however providing additional gameplay depth, for example a creature can be used to generate electricity, another one can be used as an actual weapon you can hold and use

- Base Building: There are hundreds of ways to improve and customize your base, cozy and/or smart design - up to you. IMPORTANT: You do NOT however build the foundation of the base from scratch, it's provided to you as you use the space creatively

-Backpacks: Increase your inventory to some special ones that offer cool buffs, like for example one being a jetpack letting you breeze through the world but having less slots, another one that has radioactive shielding etc.

- Tram System Hub is a great feature, efficiently connecting you to different areas and making it easier to travel

- Lo-Fi Vibe and Nostalgic Influence, Aesthetic and atmosphere evoke memories of classic games like Half-Life 1’s Black Mesa incident, with further nods to SCP lore

- Huge Cooking Variety and Alternatives offering both nutritional benefits, skill buffs and RP value. You can have popcorn pizza night with friends!

- Armor and Weapon Variety: From practical to experimental, the game features a wide array of armor and weapons, many balanced without the typical "meta" dominance - you have a choice to make for enemies are weak to "x" dmg, some stage weapons can be good later too. There used to be a problem with traditional weapons being rather ignored and being locked away by using the biometric arms, but with the Enhancement Bench in 1.0 you can upgrade them and get rid of the limitations, making them more or less viable in any stage of the game

- Trinket System: Where you craft trinkets that give you certain buffs/advantages that you can have 2 on you actively at a time, for example some charge your equipment passively, or give you low gravity

- Project Zomboid-Inspired Trait System: A simple but robust trait system allows you to fine-tune your character’s strengths and weaknesses, adding some replay-ability but I'd stick with 1 world and 1 character if possible as the game is huge

- Viable Jobs System: You can choose from various roles (e.g., chef or gardener) within your team, making every playthrough feel distinct and offering a role-playing aspect, or skill minmaxing, this works best with a team in MP

- Handcrafted Environments: The game’s environments are thoughtfully designed and provide multiple opportunities for base-building in cozy but also strategic locations. Not randomly generated like other games of this type, however it makes up for it with the attention to detail and density

- Dev behavior and updates: The developers are attentive to feedback, working to improve the game and make it enjoyable for all players with consistent roadmap updates. I received some DLCs for free for being a early supporter



- Some Bullet Sponge Enemies are overly resistant to damage, which can make combat feel tedious and unfun, can be adjusted somewhat

- Overwhelming Start: Initial complexity can be overwhelming. A few of my friends dropped out early due to directional confusion/initial curve/fear of grind

- Performance Issues: Certain areas, especially in the labs, experience performance hiccups. Lumen on UE5 is horrible

- Useless map, it's easier to practically learn the path yourself

- Skill grinding is quite bad, slow and unrewarding

- Traits: Some traits don’t feel particularly impactful or balanced. You can choose them for free points rather than a drawback. First aid trait is useless. Some traits on the other hand completely ruin your game, like "Fear of Violence" (can respec tho)

- LOD Issues: The game seems to struggle to load enemies at a distance properly (maybe it's a lofi design decision)

- Crafting System UI: While very functional, could use more categories and filters, as you end up scrolling through hundreds of items

- Lackluster AI, especially the human enemies and their shooting can feel like a game from 2000s

- Hacking: Could be a minigame but it unfortunately isn't, just press the hack tool buttons and hack is done

- No 2x-3x Resource modifiers in settings to further reduce grind

- The Conclusion of the game could've been a bit better/feels rushed, doesn't explain many of the plot threads


While there are a few cons to be aware of, they are relatively minor and don't detract from the overall experience. Abiotic Factor has quickly become one of my favorite survival crafting games of all time. The incredible amount of content, creativity, and fun it offers places it on the same level as classics like Minecraft, but with its own unique twists. It’s especially fun with friends, and I can confidently say it’s my GOTY 2024