Beyond These Star’s Early Access Will Have ‘Plenty to Keep You Busy’

Beyond These Star's Early Access Will Have 'Plenty to Keep You Busy'

As a veteran gamer with decades of experience under my belt, I can confidently say that a successful Early Access release isn’t just about the basics; it’s about setting the stage for an engaging, immersive experience that showcases the game’s full potential. Balancing Monkey Games seems to understand this, as they gear up for the Early Access launch of Beyond These Stars in 2025.


How can Balancing Monkey Games ensure a thriving Early Access launch for their game, Beyond These Stars, slated for release in early 2025? This is the question the studio must ponder as they prepare for the upcoming stage.

Game Rant had a chat with developers at Balancing Monkey, specifically Lia Patsakos, Anna Barham, and Emily Latta, regarding their upcoming game titled “Beyond These Stars“. They also shared insights about the company’s strategy during Early Access for this space whale city builder sequel to their previous title “Before We Leave“, outlining how they aim to ensure its success.

Beyond These Stars Wants to Do Early Access Right

As a space-faring gamer embarking on an interstellar journey, I’ve found myself captivated by the unique concept of “Beyond These Stars” – a city builder set atop a cosmic leviathan, a space whale! While it’s still in Early Access, it’s essential that we get a taste of the intricate building and planning mechanics. However, Balancing Monkey is determined to offer more than just the bare minimum.

In our extended version of the original scenario, we’ve been able to expand the storyline of the universe, incorporating elements such as space travel, trade and diplomacy with various alien races, and embarking on a journey alongside a Space Whale – a species that were adversaries in the previous title. Essentially, this new version offers galaxy exploration, fascinating aliens, a quest system, multiple technology paths, unique planets to colonize, numerous buildings and resources to discover, and much more. Despite being an Early Access launch, we believe it’s crucial to provide an immersive gameplay experience with plenty of content to keep you entertained.

Instead of merely showcasing the fundamental aspects of city-building, Balancing Monkey aims for its Early Access debut to offer a comprehensive glimpse into the game’s intended vision, complete with quests and alien encounters. Although it revolves around constructing a society on the back of space whale Kewa, Beyond These Stars is also an expansive space exploration game, enabling players to peer through the galaxy inhabited by the Peeps, your in-game population.

Early Access to Beyond These Stars’ Philosophy

2025 marks the beginning of an Early Access phase for the game “Beyond These Stars,” offering players a genuine glimpse into its nature. This phase highlights the game’s emphasis on non-violent interactions, cultural sensitivity, and space exploration inspired by the philosophies of “Star Trek.” Contrasting games like “Starfield,” “Beyond These Stars” is deeply rooted in this unique approach to space exploration, a vision that resonates with the New Zealand developers.

In the games we create, peacefulness is our primary focus. There’s no room for conflict or harming life, as the player controls. Instead, tension and difficulty arise from maintaining a careful equilibrium among the player’s needs, Kewa’s environment, and other non-player characters (NPCs). You’ll need to strike a balance between satisfying your civilization’s industrial demands and preserving Kewa’s natural habitat. Pollution poses a genuine risk not just to the happiness and wellbeing of your civilization, but also to the health of Kewa as well.

Beyond this, the company clarified that players can’t arbitrarily gather resources from planets; instead, they must be granted access to these resources. This aspect is significant in aligning with Balancing Monkey’s concept for the game, which seeks to differentiate itself from the colonialist themes often seen in space exploration content.

In this game, one character is a space whale named Kewa, and its aspirations play a significant role in the storyline’s development. The developers haven’t revealed exactly what Kewa desires, but they have mentioned that interacting with the space whale opens up quests and narrative moments that advance the game, possibly serving as markers for players to navigate through their journey. Empathy towards this character and understanding its motivations could be as crucial or even more important than good design principles in the game’s success.

At the heart of it lies hope – the conviction in a brighter tomorrow, coupled with fostering unity amidst isolation’s vast expanse. This may require stepping out of your familiar surroundings significantly. As for the overarching theme, the environmental consequences of civilization-building actions are undeniably crucial; global warming is downright alarming! In essence: let empathy guide you and plant some trees, dear people.

From the instant gamers start playing it at the beginning of next year, Balancing Monkey intends to immerse players deeply in the game right away by combining its mechanical features and philosophical aspects. This strategy, which has proven effective in the past, is their approach for making the most out of an Early Access release.

Beyond These Stars is in development.

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2024-11-27 18:25