Recent reviews by TDC - TestingDontClick

I used to love this game. However, as of late, the Devs have been making wide-sweeping changes to the original released code-base that completely break existing game dynamics. This is a game where you can spend over 1000 hours enjoying a single run, and when you have to completely redesign your base to suit dev whims in the middle of a very long run, it's just. not. fun. anymore. Especially when they sneak little things into the patch notes for suggesting that everyone who used an elevated ladder to access a vacuum storage block was "exploiting" something.

Klei should have made Oxygen Not Included 2 instead of trying to merge all of their new changes into a game that used to be great. I just can't trust the developers to allow me to actually play their game, especially after today's update that completely destroyed all of the quality of life mods that I was using, and all were working completely fine up until this surprise update pushed by the devs. I don't think that trust is going to come back.

Edit: Steam seems to think I ought to revise my review since I've played over 100 hours since I posted it. I shall elaborate.

I make it a policy not to ever buy Early Access games. I've been burned too many times by companies failing to deliver. I waited until Klei fully released this game before purchasing it. What Klei is doing is turning their fully released game back into an Early Access game. They are transferring "features" from their Early Access DLC back to their fully released base game. These features have not been fully tested, and it is ruining my ability to enjoy playing this game.

I'm doing everything that I can to continue patching this back together so that I can continue playing. There have been some mods released that reverse some of the damage done by the Breath of Fresh Air update, but there's still things that I loved that are ruined. Map Generation changed completely, so all the fun heat bleeds from magma channels are gone, and all of the old seeds on ToolsNotIncluded are totally invalidated. The new Resources tool is garbage, and I have no idea why the old tool was completely replaced. You can't see what you have anymore at a glance, it's an absolute chore now to look up the quantity of anything and worse if you want to locate anything on the map.

The density of Steam (in-game) has been altered twice in the past month, which completely changes how some types of engineering contraptions function, and changes the danger level of Steam explosions below your base. It is VERY significant. Altering this value willy-nilly without so much as an apology is so cheeky, and it's just further proof to me that Klei is just not interested in ensuring that the player's experience is consistent. I'm beginning to feel "bullied," quite frankly.

I fibbed a bit in my initial review. I do still love Oxygen Not Included. It is an absolutely amazing simulation game. It is art. I use it as a form of individual artistic expression. But it is absolutely infuriating when the purveyor of my artistic supplies keeps changing how my art functions. It is for this reason that I still recommend that you stay away from this game. Yes, I have over 4000 hours of playtime. It is a fantastic value, and I've enjoyed playing it immensely. I don't know if Klei is going to do something tomorrow that makes me want to uninstall it. And that will always be hanging over my head whenever I play it from now on.

Quite engaging - I find the territorial world building aspect to be a refreshing twist to the standard CCG archetype.

Most fun I've had in a CCG for ages. Very friendly towards those that want a genuine Free To Play game - playing through the single player campaign will give you plenty of cards to start building decks to play with. There's also decent free to play decks that work quite well and are fun to play while you're amassing your collection. Online player base is young but growing, and the strategies that develop for shifting cards between different zones can get very entertaining and intense. I've scraped out a win a couple of times with 1 out of 100 health left. For newbies, just play through the single player stuff until it's done/boring and then build a deck and see where it takes you. Good luck, and have fun!